Open Theses & Dissertations

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Tuwhera Open Access Theses & Dissertations contains digital copies of theses, dissertations and research projects from AUT's postgraduate research, deposited with the Library since 2002. The full text digital files are available if the author has given permission for their thesis, dissertation or research projects to be available open access.

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Browsing Open Theses & Dissertations by Supervisor "Ajiee, Richard"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
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    Decentralisation of Hotel and Tourism Industry: Effects of Blockchain Technology in Hotel Booking Systems
    (Auckland University of Technology, 2022) Tepe, Yanki; Ajiee, Richard
    Blockchain technology is a decentralised, distributed ledger that has become popular (Kwok & Koh, 2019). Various industries have accepted the popularity of blockchain technology (BCT) and initiated the search for alternative use cases such as digital payments, inventory management, capacity planning, and credential management (Kwok & Koh, 2019). The tourism sector is one of the sectors that is increasingly affected by the emergence of BCT and organizations are looking for ways to integrate BCT to improve the above-mentioned use cases (Thees et al., 2020). This study explored how the integration of BCT into hotel booking systems can impact customers, especially their economic benefits and satisfaction. The outcome of the study aims to trigger increased adaptation of BCT by helping the hotel and tourism industry to acknowledge the potential benefits of the technology. This study utilized a qualitative research approach underlined by social constructivism. It utilized netnography and document analysis to look at over 1600 user-generated content and 25 organizational documents. The results of the study showed that BCT will be viable to adapt in some use cases while increasing economic benefits and satisfaction. On the other hand, the execution of BCT is very limited due to a lack of adaptation in the industry. In conclusion, it was found that even though theoretically it is possible to increase guest satisfaction and economic benefits, there are lots of grey areas inside the hotel and tourism industry related to BCT.
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    Latin American Refugees and Immigrants in New Zealand: The Impact of Migration Status on Quality of Life
    (Auckland University of Technology, 2022) Lopez, Alfredo; Nakhid, Camille; Ajiee, Richard; Vazquez, Gloria
    This study explores the definitions and perceptions that Latin American refugees and immigrants have about their quality of life in New Zealand. In addition, this research explores how the immigration status of Latin Americans impacts their quality of life in New Zealand and what factors affect their well-being. Likewise, the study investigates the perceptions that New Zealanders have about refugees and immigrants. Although there has been some research on Latin American immigrants and refugees in New Zealand, no research has been published about the quality of life of these groups in New Zealand. This research uses a mixed-method approach with both, qualitative and quantitative research methods. Although a quantitative method using an online survey was employed, the core of the study remained qualitative, with the adoption of ethnography and autoethnography as research methodologies. The study includes three data collection methods, semi-structured interviews, digital ethnography (which includes observation of the participants through Facebook), and an anonymous online survey. The participants recruited for the interviews were nine refugees and 11 immigrants from Argentina, Chile, Colombia, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela. The online survey included 100 New Zealanders. The qualitative data revealed that Latin American immigrants and refugees in New Zealand define the quality of life as living in peace, happiness, being surrounded by their families and friends, and having sufficient financial resources to have a dignified, comfortable and pleasant life. The findings of this study show seven main factors that impact the quality of life of immigrants and refugees in New Zealand. These factors are 1) discrimination, 2) language barriers, 3) unemployment, 4) low income, 5) mental health problems, 6) isolation and lack of friends, and 7) family problems. Although these factors negatively impact the quality of life for immigrants and refugees, participants in this study state that these factors have not prevented them from having a satisfactory quality of life in New Zealand. In fact, despite facing these obstacles, participants report feeling satisfied with their quality of life in New Zealand. The data from the survey, conducted with 100 New Zealanders, shows that 55% of New Zealanders gave a neutral response to the question “what is your perception about migrants?”. In contrast, 47% of the respondents provided a negative response to the question “what is your perception of refugees?”. This study contributes new knowledge on the concept of quality of life for refugees and immigrants in New Zealand. This study also presents valuable recommendations that could be implemented when conducting further studies with immigrants and refugees in New Zealand and worldwide.
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    Turning International Students into Active Sport Tourists
    (Auckland University of Technology, 2021) Zhu, Ying; Wright, Richard; Ajiee, Richard
    According to International Consultants for Education and Fairs (ICEF) (2018), education export has become the fourth largest export industry in New Zealand. According to statistics from the export education industry, of the 54,865 international paying students enrolled in New Zealand universities, polytechnics, or private training institutions in 2018, 30,230 studied in the Auckland region (Education Counts, 2019). Of these Auckland based international students, 20,820 were Chinese citizens (Education Counts, 2019). Although there are plenty of support services available for international students in New Zealand, little is currently known about how or where they like to spend their weekends. While tourism has become New Zealand’s largest foreign exchange earning industry and the largest export industry, a surprising lack of literature exists on the tourism experiences of international students. New Zealand's geographical conditions provide excellent natural conditions for a variety of active sport and leisure activities. Sports tourism is a kind of special interest tourism, which is a social phenomenon resulting from the integration of sports and tourism-related activities. It is now widely considered to be the fastest growing sector of the global travel industry. After New Zealand was first recognised as an "official approved destination" by China in 1999, Chinese tourists were as a research subject of interest to tourism industry and academia in New Zealand. Chinese students' attitude towards active sports tourism has, however, received no academic attention. This study seeks to fill some of this knowledge gap, focusing specifically on the niche and special interest field of active sports tourism. The aim of this research was to gather Auckland-based Chinese International Students' opinions and observations of New Zealand’s active sports tourism industry. Through interpretive phenomenological analysis of focus group interviews, this research found that the reason why active sports tourism is not attractive to Chinese students currently living in New Zealand is due to the lack of awareness and accessibility.

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