“You’re the One That Was on Uncle’s Wall!”: Identity, Whanaungatanga and Connection for Takatāpui (LGBTQ+ Māori)

The glue that binds us: The positive relationships between whanaungatanga (belonging), the wellbeing, and identity pride for takatāpui who are trans and non-binary

ISSUE ADDRESSED

This article explores how belonging can enhance well-being for takatāpui (a traditional Māori term that embraces all Māori with diverse genders, sexualities and sex characteristics) who are trans and non-binary across a range of contexts.

METHODS

We drew data from the 2018 Counting Ourselves, a nationwide community-based survey of trans and non-binary people in Aotearoa (New Zealand) (N = 1178); of which 161 (13.7%) identified as Māori, the Indigenous people of Aotearoa.

RESULTS

Based on generalised regression models, feelings of belonging with friends, takatāpui communities, Māori communities, and work communities were correlated to higher feelings of life satisfaction, life worthwhileness, and identity pride for takatāpui who are trans and non-binary. In Te Ao Maōri (the Māori worldview), such concepts of belonging and relationships are collectively known as whanaungatanga.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings affirm whanaungatanga as foundational to well-being among trans Māori people, enabling them to locate themselves within nurturing and supportive networks. SO WHAT?: Whanaungatanga is a key policy agenda, alongside other system-level change, that is needed to buffer takatāpui who are trans and non-binary from poverty, stigma, and racism they face. This will require changes to the current policy and practice context. We argue that whanaungatanga, while an important strategy of well-being for trans and non-binary people, must also occur alongside wider system transformations to address transphobia, racism, and cisheteronormativity.

Hauora hinengaro o takatāpui: analysing the effectiveness of mental health policies in addressing the needs of Takatāpui in Aotearoa New Zealand

Many studies have documented the effect that colonisation has had on takatāpui, that is, Māori (the Indigenous peoples of New Zealand) with diverse gender identities, sex characteristics and sexualities. In this paper, we explore whether current Aotearoa New Zealand (hereafter Aotearoa) mental health policies meet the needs of takatāpui. We identified five mental health policy needs, informed by the literature. We then explored policy documents from government ministries, district health boards and non-government organisations to see the extent to which policy met these needs. Four themes were present in the literature analysed: an overall lack of acknowledgment of takatāpui and intersectionality; promising engagement with the needs of takatāpui by NGOs; symbolic commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi; and some limited engagement with Māori health models. The findings show promise in some areas but demonstrate a lack of engagement by policy to meet the needs of takatāpui.

A relational approach to youth healthcare: Examining young people's, parents' and clinicians' experiences in the context of variations in sex characteristics

According to popular understandings, children grow from a state of dependence to eventually become independent adults. Interdependence helps to disrupt the in/dependence binary and is a useful concept for making sense of the experiences young people with variations in sex characteristics in relation to healthcare. This study used semi-structured interviews with 32 health professionals, 33 caregivers and 12 young people recruited in the UK and Sweden. The analysis is guided by the questions: (1) how do young people, carers and health professionals position themselves in the adult/young person relationship in the context of healthcare? (2) how is the (in/ter)dependence of young people imagined when young people, carers and health professionals talk about healthcare? Our analysis shows how carers and health professionals might support dominant understandings about young people growing towards independence while providing little opportunity for young people's agency and voice. Interviews with young people gave clear examples of their negotiating relational ways of being, seeking agency in the context of healthcare and not simply becoming independent of adults. This analysis also draws attention to the ways young people might be silenced within healthcare contexts. The present paper is based on secondary analysis of data from the SENS. It works with concepts of relationality and interdependence to draw out the possibilities of voice and agency for young people with variations in sex characteristics in healthcare contexts.

The alcohol industry-A commercial determinant of poor health for Rainbow communities

BACKGROUND

Alcohol use is an area of challenge for health promotion internationally. The alcohol industry operates as a key commercial determinant of health in that its actions contribute to alcohol misuse, resulting in a range of health and social harms to individuals, families and communities. Rainbow people (including those who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or gender diverse) are one group experiencing considerable harm from alcohol use.

METHODS

Data from 24 focus groups involving 131 people held in six cities in New Zealand during 2018, were used to explore local understandings of the ways in which the alcohol industry operates as a commercial determinant of health for Rainbow communities. The focus group discussions were analysed thematically.

RESULTS

Three key themes were identified. First, the alcohol industry was identified as present in the 'everyday', through targeted alcohol promotion to Rainbow people, and due to the centrality of bars to their social and cultural landscapes. Second, participants recognised the benefits of alcohol industry support for Rainbow communities. Last, an opposing view was articulated, with the alcohol industry and its commercial activities viewed negatively.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings highlight that alcohol as a commodity and the alcohol industry are successfully and firmly embedded within Rainbow communities. Overall, given alcohol is widely regarded in a positive way, this is likely to create difficulties for health promotion efforts to reduce alcohol related harm in these communities.

Mental health of people of diverse genders and sexualities in Aotearoa/New Zealand: Findings from the New Zealand Mental Health Monitor

ISSUES ADDRESSED

To examine the mental health inequities, and social exclusion and isolation and protective factor differences between people of diverse genders and sexualities (lesbian/gay, bisexual, gender diverse and takatāpui) and cisgender and heterosexual people in Aotearoa/New Zealand.

METHODS

We employed data from the pooled probability sample of 2016 and 2018 New Zealand Mental Health Monitor. The sample comprised of 2938 people at least 15 years old, of which 93 had diverse gender and sexuality identities. Generalised linear models were used to test for differences in mental health (current and lifetime mental distress, depression, anxiety, self-harm and suicide), social exclusion and isolation, and friend and family support for people of diverse genders and sexualities. We also conducted exploratory linear regression analyses to examine whether mental health difficulties were associated with social exclusion and isolation and friend/family support.

RESULTS

People of diverse genders and sexualities had high rates of mental health difficulties across all variables we examined. For example, people identifying as diverse genders and sexualities had three times the risk of considering self-harm and suicide than their cisgender and heterosexual counterparts (22% vs 5%; RR = 3.12). People of diverse genders and sexualities also scored an average of 6.08 points higher on the 27-point PHQ-9 depression scale when they had experienced social isolation, and 4.01 points higher when they experienced social exclusion.

CONCLUSION

Our results are consistent with current literature on the large mental health inequities faced by people of diverse genders and sexualities. SO WHAT?: Policy makers and health care providers in Aotearoa/New Zealand should consider the negative mental health consequences of social exclusion and isolation for people of diverse genders and sexualities.