About the project

The relationship between culture, identity, and mental health is now well-accepted. However, the precise nature of these relationships, and the various ways in which these operate and intersect has recieved far less attention. Part of the challenge stems from a lack of data and insight into what constitutes culture. How this is measured or assessed, what variables are important, how these are valued and applied, and how these reflect the hetrogenious nature of modern society. As well, the issue of reliably linking this information to measures of mental health and wellbeing, and the associated complexities of drawing insights which are robust and data informed.  This research aims to better explore the relationship between Maori culture, identity, and mental health.  This will be achieved by utilising data, scales, and information uniquely available through the Growing up in New Zealand data-set and which have not previously been used for this purpose.

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Start date: 1/11/2023

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