At a ceremony in Orewa, north Auckland, 350 people take an oath to become New Zealand citizens. But what values do we take on when we decide to be a Kiwi?

Politicians demand we respect the insular values that defined us in the past. But a major AMP/Stuff survey reveals Kiwis no longer value the 40-hour week, strong silent stoicism and the security of distance. Instead, we are embracing changing values: we celebrate diversity, we profess kindness and – in our distant corner of the world – we are more outward-looking than ever before.

Otene Rewiti is centre-stage, demonstrating the intricacies of the hongi, for the benefit of the people who will soon troop across the stage, each receiving a certificate of New Zealand citizenship, several dignitaries' handshakes and an optional nose-press along the way.

"It's the pressing of nose to nose, forehead to forehead. Not a headbutt! Not kissing my forehead! Not kissing my nose!"

The audience laugh.

"This is the way we greet each other as Māori. It's about exchanging the breath of life. As you come into our world, we share that same breath of life."

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And so begins the hour-and-a-half ceremony, on a recent Tuesday evening in the auditorium of Orewa College, during which 350 people become new New Zealand citizens, watched and applauded by an equal number of friends and relatives.

JASON DORDAY/STUFF New Kiwis queue to receive their citizenship certificates.

At times the vibe is that of a school awards ceremony: many names, several stumbles over the trickier non-Anglo ones, clapping and whooping, a national anthem, proud smiles.

There are speeches from local kaumatua Rewiti and from DIA and council officials, and pre-recorded addresses from Governor General Patsy Reddy, Auckland Mayor Phil Goff and Minister of Internal Affairs Tracey Martin, interwoven with a video montage of New Zealand at its scenic best.

This ceremony is about the right to own a passport with a silver fern on the front. But it's also a moment for talking about what it means to be a New Zealander, and the values that we share – or at least, the values the speakers hope we share.

Mayor Goff talks about peace, harmony and respect. A local board member reminds everyone they're now expected to defend the principles of democracy, demonstrate tolerance, and come to the country's defence if needed. Minister Martin talks about Te Tiriti and Kate Sheppard's 1893 suffrage petition.

AJ HACKETT BUNGY Yes, we know, New Zealand kind-of invented the bungee jump, but does that mean every aspirational montage of Kiwi behaviour has to include one?

Even the cheesy video montage is signalling what a new Kiwi should consider admiring or aspiring to: snowy mountains, cows in a field, a ute, sheep, sunlight sparkling on clean water, people at the beach, a DJ spinning discs, more Queenstown scenery, a bungee jumper, a real-life kiwi bird, a sodding America's Cup race and, naturally, a great deal of rugby. (I would humbly suggest to the DIA that it's time their video materials got a zhuzh.)

BEYOND THE DOG-WHISTLE

Last month New Zealand First put the subject of "values" on the national agenda by unleashing a dog-whistle disguised as a doomed parliamentary bill. It's been treated with derision, but while they've got us all talking about values, perhaps it's not a bad time to ask the question: what are "New Zealand values" anyway? Are they worth signing up to? And are they changing as the country changes?

KAVINDA HERATH/STUFF New Zealand First put "values" back on the agenda. But what if it turns out that "respect for diversity" is one of the country's most cherished values?

To that end, Stuff, with the support of AMP, asked market researchers Yabble to survey 1000 or so people about their perceptions of New Zealanders, their values and how they've have changed over the years. The results of the AMP/Stuff Survey of Values 2018 were intriguing.

The old chestnuts of Kiwi identity get a solid showing: we see ourselves as valuing pragmatism and kindness and sporting prowess. We'll give things a crack (Hello Sir Ed!), we believe in equality (Go Kate Sheppard!), we punch above our weight on the international stage (Gidday again Sir Ed!), but we're also pretty modest (Sir Ed hat-trick). We're innovative as a consequence of our pioneer heritage (Yay for Number 8 wire!) and we like to look after our natural environment (or at least pretend to). So far so familiar.



WHAT IT MEANS TO BE KIWI: New Zealanders loved Kiwiana and it helped define us on the world stage. You too can tell us what you think are the values, old and new, that define 21st Century New Zealand, in the AMP/Stuff Survey of Values 2018.



But where respondents are invited to write in their own comments things get interesting.

One person says their idea of a New Zealander is someone who's: "liberal, non-church affiliated, mixed-race, technology-driven, overweight, broken or blended family, gender-challenged, tattooed, pierced, environmentally-aware".

When asked to name our defining values, dozens of people mention tolerance and diversity. "We are a diverse and accepting society," writes one correspondent. We're proud of "our multicultural integration" says another, though "we could do better". One, though, figures you can have too much of a good thing. "We no longer are just one nation. Too diverse".

JASON DORDAY/STUFF A handshake to seal the deal as citizenship certificates are doled out to 350 new Kiwis.

Yabble collected some demographic information, making it possible to drill down to responses from just those people who'd grown up outside New Zealand. The impressions of this sub-group are, well … diverse.

We are, say those of us not born here, "honest but naive financially"; "hard-working, honest, resilient"; and "socially and environmentally aware". But also "ill-educated"; "politically correct"; "lazy"; "reckless, ignorant, arrogant and selfish".

To be fair, respondents who did grow up in New Zealand are just as catholic in their opinions. According to them, we're variously "honest, reliable"; "beautiful"; and "outgoing, friendly, loveable", yet also "broke, poor, racist"; "lazy, inward-thinking" and "soft, greedy, self-centred".

Several respondents reckoned the questions were simply impossible:

"I don't think we can generalise what a typical New Zealander is like any more [...] we have become quite a split society in how we see things and do things. The one word/phrase that should describe us all is "lucky" to be a New Zealander and I'm not sure how many people realise that."

123RF Ask for a list of New Zealand values, and a respect for nature and the environment always comes up.

HOW WE'RE SEEN ABROAD

Consultant Karl Wixon's efforts to chart the Kiwi psyche have included work for the New Zealand Story Group, a government-led branding and marketing exercise that seeks to identify New Zealand values – especially the positive ones – and tell the wider world about them. Wixon has run workshops, asked questions and tried to pick apart what, if anything, is unique about New Zealanders, both in how we see ourselves, and how we are seen abroad.

He says in the past decade he's become increasingly aware of the profound impact of Maōri philosophy and culture on wider New Zealand. Like a teabag in hot water, he says, the subtleties and nuances of Māori ways of thinking and acting have infused the entire culture.

"The more we dig into these questions – who are we? what makes us unique? – it's those Māori sensibilities that are quite defining," says Wixon.

Take the notion of "manaakitanga", which roughly means hospitality or kindness or generosity.

JASON DORDAY/STUFF All the world's a stage, so one of the younger new citizens takes a twirl.

Naturally New Zealand's not the only country that prides itself on its hospitality, kindness and generosity. "But we might talk about the way New Zealanders are quite welcoming and tend to treat visitors like members of the family, and that new people move from being strangers to being family or friends quite quickly. That sits within Māori ways of relating, but they're now New Zealand ways of being."

These things really matter, and not just inside New Zealand, says Wixon.

"If you ask people from offshore, they describe Kiwis as being 'nice', and we're dismissive of that because it seems a bit blah – but when they're saying this, they're comparing us to every other country.

"There's something in there, says Wixon, "about the way we care about and relate to the environment', and again there's a Māori way into it".

"Kaitiakitanga" means guardianship or protection, and it's increasingly the lens through which New Zealand organisations are looking at environmental protection and conservation.

JASON DORDAY/STUFF New citizens can pick between an Oath of Allegiance to the Queen (BYO holy book), or a secular Affirmation of Allegiance.

"'Tiaki' means to care," says Wixon. So the notion of kaitiakitanga "might have a Māori name, but it's a concept that sounds right for all New Zealand."

Wixon's research has uncovered gaps between local self-image and perceptions from the outside. Kiwis always see themselves as a nation of innovators, yet ask people abroad about that, says Wixon, and they look at you like you're crazy.

"There was very little belief in that. They said 'you didn't invent the iPhone - that was Silicon Valley'."



WHAT IT MEANS TO BE KIWI: What are the symbols of New Zealand? Is there a new pavlova, a new kiwifruit for this century? First up, jandals shaped the feet of a nation – but what's next? Tell us, in our fun Neighbourly Kiwiana poll.



And yet there is still some truth in that self-image, says Wixon. Pākehā settlers, out on the edge of the world, were indeed forced to improvise and innovate, and even if we'll never outdo Apple, the legacy of that is that we're open-minded and outward-looking.

There's a Māori strand to it as well, says Wixon. "There's that legacy of being Pacific voyagers and explorers." Polynesians come from what Tipene O'Regan rightly called "a culture of dynamic adaptation".

New Zealand's values are dynamic too, and there are times when they've undergone dramatic shifts.

Nelson Mail A Springbok Tour protest march in Nelson in 1981: certain events have had a catalytic effect on the values New Zealanders hold dear.

Consider the occupation of Bastion Point by Māori activists, and how it shifted attitudes about our colonial past and the need for redress. Consider the anti-nuclear movement of the 1980s, or the 1981 Springbok Tour, or the wrenching economic changes from 1984 onwards.

Consider, even, the Christchurch earthquakes. Wixon has been involved in the redevelopment of the central business district and he's been struck by how locals have been forced to "respond and connect and work together and think a bit differently because of the disruption. By necessity, people have innovated more and collaborated more and become more community-spirited."

GLOBAL IMPACTS

New Zealand First may fret about migrants from far away turning up in New Zealand with the "wrong" kind of values and headwear. But the reality is that our values and self-identity have always been affected by forces from abroad, whether individuals set foot here or not.

The end of European colonialism, the rise of secularism, world wars and a cold war, feminism, air travel, contraception, economic shocks, American civil rights, Chinese industrialism, neoliberalism, technological change, globalisation, climate change, the internet, Twitter, Donald Trump – you name it, and it's had an impact on the way New Zealanders work, travel, think and behave. That means our values are always under pressure, and they're always shifting: sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly.

EVAN VUCCI/AP Integrity, honest and transparency appear under threat in the era of Trump. But sometimes a challenge to our values makes them only stronger.

Yet it's curious, says Wixon, the way some values actually get stronger under pressure.

In New Zealand we set a lot of store on things like tolerance, openness, honesty, transparency, and right now, on the world stage, says Wixon, "those things feel at risk".

But when New Zealanders hear Trump's rants, rather than eroding our faith in these values, Wixon suspects it does the opposite, affirming our attachment to them.



WHAT IT MEANS TO BE KIWI: What are the symbols of New Zealand? Is there a new pavlova, a new kiwifruit for this century? First up, jandals shaped the feet of a nation – but what's next? Tell us, in our fun Neighbourly Kiwiana poll.



Once again, there's a Māori word for it.

"Integrity's very important for New Zealanders, and there's the sensibilty of 'mana'. I wouldn't go so far as to say all New Zealanders think about mana the same way Māori do, but we do care about reputation. We care about how others see us."

At a moment in history like the one we're facing now, "it's about how you confront that sense of indignity with dignity".

LIVING OUR VALUES

Perhaps the most telling responses to the Yabble survey came when respondents were asked to give examples of how their values are reflected in day-to-day behaviour.

It's easy to talk in the abstract about "inclusiveness" or "respecting diversity" or "entrepreneurial spirit" or "innovation. But actions mean more than words.

So this, then, is what New Zealanders say when they're asked to describe the ways in which they live their values:

"I volunteer one day a week."

"I check on the well-being of elderly friends and neighbours".

"I take on coaching roles to pass on my skills and knowledge about netball."

"I conserve water … recycle and compost, pick up rubbish, plant trees to care for environment, befriend new immigrants consistently and long-term, and try to resolve problems and issues in our family and community without violence or hurt or resentment."

And also this: "I like to smile at people, and listen."

WHAT IT MEANS TO BE KIWI

Next week: Rob Mitchell investigates our changing community