This report presents an analysis of the mental health of Pacific peoples, and looks at intra-Pacific mental health, that is mental health in multi-ethnic Pacific peoples and cultural connectedness in Pacific peoples. The analysis was completed using a pooled dataset using the 2015 and 2016 New Zealand Mental Health Monitor with the 2016 Health & Lifestyles Survey to be able to analyse mental health for smaller subpopulations, such as various subgroups of Pacific peoples.
Methodology
The 2015 and 2016 New Zealand Mental Health Monitor (NZMHM) and 2016 Health & Lifestyles Survey (HLS) are both nationwide face-to-face surveys of adults aged 15 years and over. The surveys are conducted in people’s homes using Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI). The fieldwork for all three survey waves was completed over 18 months between July 2015 and December 2016. The pooled dataset included data collected from 6,777 respondents. Of these, there were 1,279 Pacific respondents included in the analysis for Te Kaveinga.
The analyses use a combination of weighted proportions and regression modelling. For all results on Pacific peoples only, descriptive statistics are presented showing the weighted proportions for various items for the Pacific respondents. For all comparative analyses, regression models were used to test for significant differences between groups. All regression analyses were adjusted to control for the potential confounding influence of population differences in age and gender structures. Only statistically significant differences are presented.
Key Results
- Pacific peoples are well connected socially and culturally.
- Cultural connectedness is weaker in multi-ethnic Pacific peoples and Pacific peoples whose heritage is from Pacific nations where there is a constitutional agreement with New Zealand (ie, Cook Islands Māori, Niueans and Tokelauans).
- Pacific peoples, on average, report higher psychological distress and depressive symptoms over the past 2 to 4 weeks than the Others (ie, non-Māori, non-Pacific people).
- The stigma surrounding mental health issues is high among Pacific peoples.
- Some Pacific peoples don’t know where to get help for mental distress and awareness of national mental health websites is low