Te Kura Hinengaro Tangata School of Psychology<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What does mindfulness mean from a M\u0101ori perspective? Dr Pikihuia Pomare from the School of Psychology has been interviewing M\u0101ori to ask what practices they use to help bring about the state of being mindful, centred and present, and how they help themselves to relieve emotional distress and achieve better health and wellbeing. \u2018What has come through strongly is that people have had to find their own strategies,\u2019 she said. Creative dance, movement, kapa haka and waiata (cultural performance and song) feature, while others use rongo\u0101 (medicinal plants), or going to the moana (sea). \u2018For me, it\u2019s good because it shows that there\u2019s a range of different pathways in which people can develop that skill within themselves. It was nice for them to be able to talk about their own creative ways in which they had developed these skills.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr Pomare found that one of the major emphases was on the importance of whanaungatanga (relational wellbeing and connectedness), and this value underpinned many of the mindfulness and wellbeing practices. Contemporary ways of being creative with m\u0101tauranga M\u0101ori (M\u0101ori knowledge) in the current world also featured strongly, with people drawing on things that their t\u016bpuna (ancestors) practised, but adapting them for the present day, such as using the Maramataka (traditional M\u0101ori lunar calendar), karakia (incantation\/ prayer), rongo\u0101, mirimiri (massage) and waiata. Te reo M\u0101ori came through as a strong theme for participants in the research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2018I think there\u2019s a lot of potential implications for how mindfulness might be delivered to M\u0101ori and otherindigenous populations in a number of different health and clinical settings, as well as everyday practices that people canuse to keep themselves well,\u2019 she said, pointing out that individualistic, pathology-focused models do not work for M\u0101ori;more indigenous models are needed in practice. \u2018This is often the criticism of Western reductionist models of mental health \u2014 that it\u2019s all just focused on pathology and the individual without considering social harms and the broader system.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dr Pomare is also involved in a research project with a number of other M\u0101ori women in the School of Psychology to investigate interpretations of extraordinary experiences. \u2018How do M\u0101ori interpret these anomalous experiences that could be explained as being wairua [spiritual experiences] from a M\u0101ori perspective? How can these inform and broaden our understanding of what is often pathologised, as in some cases of psychosis\/schizophrenia? Our interpretation can make a huge difference, and if we have particular models of understanding extraordinary experiences that can help people to make sense of them, then hopefully it will make a big difference in terms of their distress.\u2019<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
This research is also relevant to how M\u0101ori perspectives relate to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders<\/em> (DSM<\/em>), a universal tool used by clinical psychologists to define and classify mental disorders. \u2018This is really interesting because it\u2019s challenging the DSM<\/em> as a form of categorising phenomena which is coming out of a particular, very biomedical view. Out there in the world of practice, it\u2019s seen as the bible, especially in the district health boards (DHBs), and it\u2019s problematic for a lot of M\u0101ori. As a result, the approach tends to be to put people on medication, and nothing else is done. But because we have wairuatanga [spiritual experiences] and p\u016br\u0101kau [oral traditions\/legends, extraordinary stories], which are everyday and normalised concepts within te ao M\u0101ori [the M\u0101ori world], it does leave a bit more room to explore things than the DSM<\/em> does.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally, Dr Pomare is involved in a project looking at youth mental health in a digital age. \u2018There\u2019s a lot of encouragement for people to use apps and digital technologies, but we don\u2019t know how people use them, and if they are actually helpful,\u2019 she said. \u2018With mental health being in the spotlight lately, we\u2019d like to understand that landscape a bit more, and to look at a range of views \u2014 from young people, app developers and health policy-makers. A lot of the statistics show that M\u0101ori don\u2019t utilise mental health services even though there\u2019s great need there, and so the appeal of things like apps and other online resources is important, because they are easy and accessible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2018We know that there\u2019s a burden of mental health for M\u0101ori and there are so many reasons why that is, but the next part is to try to make an impact and find strategies, skills and resources that can actually be helpful. Even though there\u2019s huge need, there\u2019s not a lot of M\u0101ori clinical psychologists or practitioners, but we are building, and particularly at Massey we\u2019ve got a really strong presence of M\u0101ori academics. Sometimes it can be difficult when you\u2019re faced with the realities of the negative statistics, but I can also see that there is a lot of really good work happening, and it\u2019s exciting to be able to highlight indigenous psychology, which I think is really important in our country.\u2019<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" DR PIKIHUIA POMARE Te Rawara, Ng\u0101puhi, Ng\u0101i te Rangi, Ng\u0101ti P\u016bkenga Te Kura Hinengaro Tangata School of Psychology What does mindfulness mean from a M\u0101ori perspective? Dr Pikihuia Pomare from the School of Psychology has been interviewing M\u0101ori to ask what practices they use to help bring about the state of being mindful, centred and … Continue reading M\u0101ori perspectives on psychology<\/span>