Smoking, Not Our Tikanga: Exploring representations of Māori and smoking in national media

Abstract

Mäori, the Indigenous peoples of Aotearoa New Zealand, continue to present with disproportionately high smoking prevalence. Investigating the impact of recent media representations of Mäori who smoke may increase understanding of the cumulative pressures that maintain Mäori smoking. This study aimed to explore representations of Mäori and smoking through examining a sample of online media from 2010 to 2015 on this topic. We identifi ed four key themes in reporting: strengths-based representation, defi cit-style representation, historical recognition, and cultural dissociation. Acknowledging the history of Mäori as a tupeka kore people prior to colonisation, we found that some media representations of Mäori who smoke may pose an obstacle for Mäori aspirations to be smoke-free. In contrast, we also found examples of positive representation expressed almost exclusively from Mäori perspectives. Our analysis suggests that separating Mäori tikanga from smoking is imperative in recognising Mäori resilience against tobacco and working towards a future in which Mäori can be smoke-free.

Smoking in Pregnancy Among Indigenous Women in High-Income Countries: A Narrative Review

“…Emerging research on the cumulative psychologically harmful effects of racism and marginalization could help to explain the persistence of high-smoking prevalence among Indigenous pregnant women as racism and marginalization are drivers to smoke. 138 Research could explore discrimination experienced by Māori pregnant women with view to informing policy to address social determinants of smoking.…”

Māori, a Politicized Identity: Indigenous Identity, Voter Turnout, Protest, and Political Party Support in Aotearoa New Zealand

“…Past research has linked higher scores on this subscale to higher levels of perceived discrimination (Houkamau & Sibley, 2015a), a lower likelihood of home ownership (Houkamau & Sibley, 2015b), and a higher likelihood of smoking (Muriwai, Houkamau, & Sibley, 2018). Whereas past findings have been attributed to racism in the New Zealand society, Muriwai (2016) added that smoking might be a reaction to racism in that those who perceived rejection from society for their Māoriness might cluster together (the rejection identification model; Branscombe, Schmitt, & Harvey, 1999; Stronge et al, 2016). In the case of Muriwai’s (2016) research, it was over a cigarette.…”

“…Whereas past findings have been attributed to racism in the New Zealand society, Muriwai (2016) added that smoking might be a reaction to racism in that those who perceived rejection from society for their Māoriness might cluster together (the rejection identification model; Branscombe, Schmitt, & Harvey, 1999; Stronge et al, 2016). In the case of Muriwai’s (2016) research, it was over a cigarette. However, higher Perceived Appearance may also lead Māori to support a party created by Māori in response to the center-left Labour party’s rejection of the voices of Māori over a crucial issue.…”