Nicola Braid

Nicola is currently completing her Masters research in the construction of masculinity in New Zealand after the 1950s.

MA in History

Nicola completed a degree in History and Political Science at Victoria University of Wellington, including six months at the University of Leeds in the United Kingdom. In 2013 she gained her Honours degree in History at Victoria University of Wellington. Her dissertation was in American political History, focussing on right-wing columnist and Blacklist-clearer George Sokolsky. As a result of her varied interests, Nicola has also completed her Masters research in the construction of masculinity in New Zealand after the 1950s. Her work used oral history life narratives from members of the Petone Workingmen's Club and looks at engaging, challenging and refocusing existing scholarship surrounding working-class masculinity in New Zealand. As well as a considerable engagement with New Zealand historiography and theories of masculinity, Nicola's project used oral history theory surrounding intersubjectivity and memory with the overall hope of injecting lived experience into the persisting stereotypes surrounding New Zealand men.