Genealogist

Return to The People

Their Stories

Six users' stories were selected for inclusion in this report:

• Returning New Zealander
• First-time importers
• Person who used mental health services
• Parent of youth at risk
• Participant in local democracy
• Genealogist

Skip to Common Themes

Genealogist

Each story is represented pictorially, underscoring salient features and bringing into relief both the positive and negative experiences of using government services. The accompanying narrative, incorporating the user’s own words, highlights key points and possible implications.

Leighton is an 80-year-old retired former professor. He has had a lifelong career as a lecturer with a passion for research, which is a significant driving force for his genealogical project.

The death of a cousin – the only member of his family who had attempted to record the family history – gave him the impetus to embark on the project. He was motivated to complete the family tree before he too passed on. His son supported the idea and pointed him to a genealogy shareware programme to facilitate his data collection.

Key points

• access to information:
  Leighton said that resources for genealogical research are ample and readily available but most people do not know they exist or how to access them.
• intermediaries as guides:
  Leighton found the assistance he received from librarians, curators, and museum volunteers immensely helpful for navigating through the huge amount of information.
• cost as barrier to some information:
  Leighton remarked that acquiring a copy of an old birth, death, or marriage certificate costs $30 to $35, which he considered prohibitive for most people. He suggested that it would be more appropriate for such information to be made available online, preferably at no cost.
• much information is online:
  Leighton appreciated how much government information he was able to find online, and said that the ability to search on a wide range of subjects was very helpful.

Some possible implications

• access to information:
  Leighton’s experience in obtaining birth, death, and marriage certificates suggests that there is scope to make such public information more accessible and less costly for general users such as genealogical researchers.
• information literacy and awareness:
  Leighton commented that although resources for genealogical research are available, most people do not know that they exist or how to access them. This suggests that efforts to raise awareness and encourage literacy in both the use of information and media access to it might benefit potential researchers. More literate users could then more efficiently source and navigate information in both the print and electronic realms to create their own family stories.