Abstract
Social workers working in the rural community do so within a rural culture. This culture has developed from historical and cultural influences from the generations before, from the impact of social and familial changes over the years and from current internal and external influences. These changes and influences make the rural people who they are today. This study was carried out on a small rural community in Western Southland. The purpose was to examine the impact on the community of social changes over the past 50 years. Eight long-term residents were interviewed. The results will be discussed within this article.
Highlights
Government policies, changes in international trade and markets, environmental policies, globalisation, change in the structure of local and regional government and legislative changes, impacted on all New Zealanders during the past 50 years
People on board the canoe settled in the area and many of their descendants are still resident in the Tuatapere area (Southland District Council, 1995)
That rural communities continue to value social and historical research by conducting community research recording the changes in New Zealand life
Summary
Government policies, changes in international trade and markets, environmental policies, globalisation, change in the structure of local and regional government and legislative changes, impacted on all New Zealanders during the past 50 years. The elderly have to travel for their health and other service needs and the unavailability of regular daily transport services makes it difficult for them to meet appointments They have to rely on family and friends for transport and many no longer have the family available to support them locally. The residents and how these changes impacted on their lives are explored in this study through the eyes of eight long-term residents. This is a qualitative study in which four men and four women were interviewed using a semi-structured questionnaire exploring their views on social change, the way the ISSUE 22(3), 2010. AOTEAROA NEW ZEALAND SOCIAL WORK community has responded to changes in service provision and how they have managed the move from being a vibrant rural service community to a tourist town. Five themes were identified from the literature and provide a framework for this study: historical influences and cultural expectations, impact of government decisions on their lives, sense of community, sense of self and access to services
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