Lara M. Greaves

Demographic and Psychological Predictors of Panel Attrition: Evidence from the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study

This study examines attrition rates over the first four years of the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study, a longitudinal national panel sample of New Zealand adults. We report the base rate and covariates for the following four distinct classes of respondents: explicit withdrawals, lost respondents, intermittent respondents and constant respondents. A multinomial logistic regression examined an extensive range of demographic and socio-psychological covariates (among them the Big-Six personality traits) associated with membership in these classes (N = 5,814). Results indicated that men, Māori and Asian peoples were less likely to be constant respondents. Conscientiousness and Honesty-Humility were also positively associated with membership in the constant respondent class. Notably, the effect sizes for the socio-psychological covariates of panel attrition tended to match or exceed those of standard demographic covariates. This investigation broadens the focus of research on panel attrition beyond demographics by including a comprehensive set of socio-psychological covariates. Our findings show that core psychological covariates convey important information about panel attrition, and are practically important to the management of longitudinal panel samples like the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study.

Stability and Change in Political Conservatism Following the Global Financial Crisis

The current study analyzes data from a national probability panel sample of New Zealanders (N = 5,091) to examine stability and change in political orientation over four consecutive yearly assessments (2009-2012) following the 2007/2008 global financial crisis. Bayesian Latent Growth Modeling identified systematic variation in the growth trajectory of conservatism that was predicted by age and socio-economic status. Younger people (ages 25-45) did not change in their political orientation. Older people, however, became more conservative over time. Likewise, people with lower socio-economic status showed a marked increase in political conservatism. In addition, tests of rank-order stability showed that age had a cubic relationship with the stability of political orientation over our four annual assessments. Our findings provide strong support for System Justification Theory by showing that increases in conservatism in the wake of the recent global financial crisis occurred primarily among the poorest and most disadvantaged.

Regional Differences in the Psychological Recovery of Christchurch Residents Following the 2010/2011 Earthquakes: A Longitudinal Study

We examined changes in psychological distress experienced by residents of Christchurch following two catastrophic earthquakes in late 2010 and early 2011, using data from the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study (NZAVS), a national probability panel study of New Zealand adults. Analyses focused on the 267 participants (172 women, 95 men) who were living in central Christchurch in 2009 (i.e., before the Christchurch earthquakes), and who also provided complete responses to our yearly panel questionnaire conducted in late 2010 (largely between the two major earthquakes), late 2011, and late 2012. Levels of psychological distress were similar across the different regions of central Christchurch immediately following the September 2010 earthquake, and remained comparable across regions in 2011. By late 2012, however, average levels of psychological distress in the regions had diverged as a function of the amount of property damage experienced within each given region. Specifically, participants in the least damaged region (i.e., the Fendalton-Waimairi and Riccarton-Wigram wards) experienced greater drops in psychological distress than did those in the moderately damaged region (i.e., across the Spreydon-Heathcote and Hagley-Ferrymead wards). However, the level of psychological distress reported by participants in the most damaged region (i.e., across Shirley-Papanui and Burwood-Pegasus) were not significantly different to those in the least damaged region of central Christchurch. These findings suggest that different patterns of psychological recovery emerged across the different regions of Christchurch, with the moderately damaged region faring the worst, but only after the initial shock of the destruction had passed.

To burn or to save? The opposing functions of reading scripture on environmental intentions

In a controversial Science article published in 1967, Lynn White blamed Judeo-Christian scriptures for the planet’s ecological crisis. White claimed that scriptural dogmas of human domination have too easily justified environmental exploitation. White’s critics responded that the Bible commends ecological stewardship, which potentially restrains otherwise ruinous human tendencies to exploit. Previous studies empirically assessing these apparently conflicting claims show mixed results. We propose that the effects of religious fundamentalism and attention to scripture must be distinguished. A key novelty of our paper is the use of reported frequency of scriptural reading to measure the salience of scripture in an individual’s life. White’s hypothesis predicts that reading scripture will be associated with (1) increased fundamentalism, and (2) lower pro-environmental intentions. In contrast, the counterarguments of White’s critics predict that (3) higher frequency of scripture reading will be associated with higher pro-environmental intentions. We tested these predictions with a Bayesian Structural Equation Model that estimated the direct and indirect (mediated) effects of scripture reading on pro-environmental intentions. Our data were obtained from a cross-sectional sample of self-identified Christian participants (N = 1012) in the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study. Supporting White, we found clear evidence for a positive link between frequency of scripture reading and religious fundamentalism, and between religious fundamentalism and lower pro-environmental intentions. However, in line with White’s critics, we also found evidence for a positive direct effect of reading scripture on pro-environmental intentions. Although the positive (direct) and negative (indirect) effects of scripture reading were similar in magnitude, the negative effect, which is mediated by religious fundamentalism, appears to be slightly more probable. Collectively, our findings indicate that attention to scripture might be associated with moral ambivalence about pro-environmental intentions.

Binding Moral Foundations and the Narrowing of Ideological Conflict to the Traditional Morality Domain

Moral foundations theory (MFT) posits that binding moral foundations (purity, authority, and ingroup loyalty) are rooted in the need for groups to promote order and cohesion, and that they therefore underlie political conservatism. We present evidence that binding foundations (and the related construct of disgust sensitivity) are associated with lower levels of ideological polarization on political issues outside the domain of moral traditionalism. Consistent support for this hypothesis was obtained from three large American Internet-based samples and one large national sample of New Zealanders (combined N = 7,874). We suggest that when political issues do not have inherent relevance to moral traditionalism, binding foundations promote a small centrist shift away from ideologically prescribed positions, and that they do so out of desire for national uniformity and cohesion.

Identity and demographics predict voter enrolment on the Māori electoral roll: Findings from a national sample

Statistics from the New Zealand Electoral Commission (2013) show that only 55% of those who indicate they are of Mäori descent are enrolled on the Mäori electoral roll. In this paper, we aim to find the statistical predictors of being enrolled to vote on the Mäori roll versus being enrolled on the general roll. We present two models analysing demographic and psychological aspects of people’s subjective identification as Mäori to predict enrolment on the Mäori roll. In model 1, demographic variables from participants of Mäori ancestry involved in a national probability sample (N=1,961) were analysed to predict enrolment on the Mäori roll. In model 2, data from a subsample of people who identify as Mäori (N=662) were analysed to assess the impact of both demographics and identity on electoral roll choice. The dimensions Higher Group Membership Evaluation (the extent to which someone thinks that being Mäori is positive and part of their selfconcept) and Higher SocioPolitical Consciousness (engagement with Mäori political issues) * Ngäti Kuri, Ngäpuhi. PhD Candidate, School of Psychology, University of Auckland, New Zealand. Email: lara.greaves@ auckland.ac.nz † Senior Lecturer, School of Psychology, University of Auckland, New Zealand. ‡ Ngäi Tahu, Ngäti Porou. Senior Lecturer, School of Management and International Business, University of Auckland, New Zealand. § Professor, School of Psychology, University of Auckland, New Zealand. DOI: 10.20507/MAIJournal.2017.6.1.1 L. M. GREAVES ET AL. 4 MAI JOURNAL VOLUME 6, ISSUE 1, 2017 predicted enrolment on the Mäori roll. Our findings will be useful for those looking to increase Mäori roll enrolment and may also help to combat deficitbased arguments for the abolition of the Mäori seats.

‘Truly being a New Zealander’: ascriptive versus civic views of national identity

ABSTRACT This article explores the relative strength of public support for ascriptive and civic aspects of national identity to assess the boundaries of ‘inclusion’ or ‘exclusion’ within New Zealand’s national imaginary. Data from the International Social Survey Programme (ISSP) module on citizenship in 2015 provide a unique window into public understandings of what characteristics are associated with ‘truly being a New Zealander’ in the 21st century. Although New Zealanders have relatively inclusive attitudes overall, those with low education and those who sit on the political Right or vote New Zealand First were more likely to relate to ascriptive views, while female and Māori respondents were more likely to associate with civic notions of New Zealandness. Older respondents were more likely to associate with both ascriptive and civic views about truly being a New Zealander. The implications of such findings for social cohesion and belonging will be of interest to both policy-makers and national identity theorists.