Exploring Pasifika Mental Health Literacy in Aotearoa New Zealand
Year: 2022
Type: dissertation
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Exploring Pasifika Mental Health Literacy in Aotearoa New Zealand is a mixed methods research project led by Sarah Kapeli, an Aotearoa-born Tongan researcher whose research is underpinned by Pacific knowledges, understandings, and worldviews. Section 1 provides an overview of Pasifika mental health in Aotearoa New Zealand and how it has evolved over time. It also identifies areas of opportunity across research and strongly recommends the role of education, particularly mental health literacy, as a way towards enhancing Pacific mental health and wellbeing outcomes. Section 2 draws upon survey data from the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study. Each study presented in this section explores an innovative approach to Pacific research by connecting Pacific concepts with Western survey measures. Demonstrating how to (re)claim sovereignty over our Pacific data and how this can be carried into the future of Pacific research, particularly around Pasifika mental health literacy. Section 3 presents findings from the Pasifika Mental Health in Aotearoa (PMHA) project, a two-phased project that included the PMHA survey (first phase) and the PMHA etalanoa (second phase). The PMHA survey explored the understandings, experiences, and attitudes around mental health literacy for Pasifika in Aotearoa New Zealand – key facets of mental health literacy as explored in existing research literature. From this, the PMHA report was developed and includes a descriptive overview of the survey findings. The PMHA survey also included two vignettes – a Pacific man experiencing depression, and a Pacific woman experiencing anxiety. Participant responses to the vignettes reflected the gender of the character presented in the vignette. The patterns of the responses to the vignette characters guided the direction of the PMHA e-talanoa, which explored common themes that participants discussed in regard to their perceptions of the vignette characters. Overall, this doctoral research project has provided a steppingstone towards defining Pasifika mental health literacy and developing a Pasifika mental health literacy framework for Pasifika in Aotearoa New Zealand – that has the potential to enable, mediate, and advocate for our Pasifika communities through the cogs of legislation, policy, and practice informed by research.
Author: Kapeli, Sarah Ann
Language: English
Subfield: Health
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7065953263