About this research
Project Summary
Every week in Aotearoa, the lives of a disproportionate number of whānau Māori are forever changed by suicide. There are multiple and complex reasons for this, and despite intense efforts focused on prevention, rates remain stubbornly high.
This research uses Kaupapa Māori theory to challenge the current dominant Western explanations for suicide, which fail to consider socio-cultural-political pressures and historical processes such as colonisation as core to Indigenous suicide. Using Indigenous knowledge, it builds on previous research showing a correlation between incremental increases in Māori suicides, and the alienation of Māori from their land, language and identity in the century following the signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi as successive racist government policies took effect. Specifically, this scoping study is mapping Māori suicides from 1940-2019 against relevant government policy of that era, for comparison with findings from 1840-1939, to build a better understanding of the influence of socio-cultural-political pressures.
This project is a multi-institutional collaboration between Te Hikuwai Rangahau Hauora in the Faculty of Health, Te Herenga Waka–Victoria University of Wellington, and Te Ata Hāpara, the new suicide research centre of excellence in the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, with crucial support from kaumātua.
Research Question
What is the relationship between relevant government policy in Aotearoa from 1940-2019, and Māori suicide rates in those years?
Lead Researcher
Dr Lynne Russell, Ngāti Kahungunu, Rangitāne, Kāi Tahu, Kāti Māmoe, Ngāti Porou, Victoria University of Wellington
Research Team
Sonny Niha, Ngāti Hine, Ngāpuhi, University of Auckland
Te Waere Ti Peeti, Ngāti Rangiwewehi, Ngāti Raukawa ki te Tonga, University of Auckland
Witeria (Witi) Ashby, Ngāti Hine, Ngāti Kawa
This project uses Kaupapa Māori theory to challenge the current dominant Western explanations for suicide, which fail to consider socio-cultural-political pressures and historical processes such as colonisation as core to Indigenous suicide.
Kairangahau · Researchers
Associate Professor Lynne Russell
Ngāti Kahungunu, Rangitāne, Kai Tahu, Kati Mamoe, Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Raukawa, Te Wainui ā Ru
Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington
Dr Lynne Russell is Ahorangi Tūhono (Rangahau), Hauora Māori | Associate Professor (Research), Māori Health, and…
Associate Professor Lynne Russell
Sonny Niha
Te Orewai, Te Uriroroi, Ngāpuhi
Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland
Kaumatua Sonny Niha (Te Orewai, Te Uriroroi, Ngāpuhi) is the cultural advisor for the Child and Adolescent mental…
Sonny Niha
Witeria Ashby
Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Hine
Te Rau Ora
My name is Witeria Ashby and I am 68 years old. I have worked in the areas of youth development (justice and…
Witeria Ashby
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Kairangahau · Researchers
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Associate Professor Lynne Russell
Associate Professor Lynne Russell
Dr Lynne Russell is Ahorangi Tūhono (Rangahau), Hauora Māori | Associate Professor (Research), Māori Health, and Manutaki Takirua | Co-Director of Te Hikuwai Rangahau Hauora | Health Services Research Centre (THRH) at Te Herenga Waka-Victoria University of Wellington. Much of her professional and academic work has centred around the Indigenous knowledge and healing practices used in recovery from trauma associated with mental distress, suicide loss and self-harm. She describes herself as an writer, activist and public speaker stirred by cultural resilience, social justice, Indigenous and…
He oranga whānau: mahi ngātahi: Whānau livelihoods within the context of work and Māori economies of wellbeing. These groundbreaking works celebrate Māori futures rooted in kaupapa Māori values while fostering pathways for responsible relationships, meaningful lives, and flourishing Indigenous wellbeing economies. By emphasising the central role of whānau…
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He oranga whānau: mahi ngātahi: Whānau livelihoods within the context of work and Māori economies of wellbeing. These groundbreaking works celebrate Māori futures rooted in kaupapa Māori values while fostering pathways for responsible relationships, meaningful lives, and flourishing Indigenous wellbeing economies. By emphasising the central role of whānau, these publications provide actionable insights and inspiration for transformative change in economic and cultural systems.
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Professor Chellie Spiller
Professor Chellie Spiller
Dr Chellie Spiller, of Matawhaiti Iwitea, Ngāti Kahungunu ki Wairoa, is Professor of Management and Leadership, and Associate Dean Māori at the University of Waikato. She was previously a senior lecturer and Associate Dean Māori and Pacific at the University of Auckland Business School. She has over 30 years of corporate experience in tourism, finance and marketing, holding senior executive positions in New Zealand and abroad, and brings this experience to her academic work and leadership and management development programmes. Her research explores how Māori and indigenous businesses create… -
Professor Jarrod Haar
Professor Jarrod Haar
Professor Jarrod Haar (PhD) is a Professor of Human Resource Management in the Department of Management and has tribal affiliations of Ngati Maniapoto and Ngati Mahuta. In 2018, Professor Haar was appointed as a Member of the Marsden Fund Council and is the Convenor of the Marsden Economics and Human Behavioural Sciences panel. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand Te Apārangi (2020), a Research Fellow of the Australia & New Zealand Academy of Management (since 2012), and Chartered Fellow of the Human Resource Institute of New Zealand (HRINZ). He won the inaugural HRINZ HR… -
Professor John Reid
Professor John Reid
Professor John Reid is a researcher whose work focuses on the intersection of sustainability, indigenous knowledge systems, environmental governance, and technological innovation. Based within the Ngāi Tahu Research Centre, his research brings together systems thinking, te ao Māori, and interdisciplinary science to address complex social, economic, and environmental challenges facing Indigenous communities and wider society. His work spans environmental management, regenerative land use, Māori economic development, and the governance of emerging technologies, with particular interests in… -
Professor Jason Paul Mika
Professor Jason Paul Mika
Jason Paul Mika Ko Ranginui e tū iho nei, ko Papatūānuku e takoto nei, ko te ira tangata kei waenganui i raro i te kaitiakitanga o ngā atua, o te manaakitanga o te Runga Rawa. Tīhei mauri ora! Ko Ngāi Tūhoe, ko Ngāti Awa, ko Te Whakatōhea, ko Ngāti Kahungunu ōku iwi. Ko Jason Mika ahau. I was born in Whakatāne and raised mainly in Rotorua. In November 2024, I was fortunate join Waipapa Taumata Rau University of Auckland as a Professor of Māori Management and Associate Dean Māori in He Manga Tauhokohoko Auckland Business School. My research, teaching, writing, and practice centres on Māori and… -
Dr Matthew Rout
Dr Matthew Rout
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