Māori mental health

Human Resources editor Kathy Catton sat down with Dr Maree Roche (Rāukawa), Associate Professor from the University of Waikato and specialist in psychological wellbeing at work, to kōrero about mental health in the workplace, particularly for Māori employees.

Great to talk with you, Maree. Could you start by telling us a little about your background and what you have been researching in regard to mental health in the workplace?

My work has always looked at the intersection of mental health and wellbeing from a work – or organisational – perspective. I’m a Fellow of the New Zealand Psychological Society, and I’m also a Fellow of the Positive Organizational Behaviour Institute in the United States of America. Workplaces can be where people flourish and grow or where people can end up with a multitude of mental health issues.

Much of my research has looked at things like mindfulness, belonging and psychological capital at work. When we look at psychological capital, for example, we’re talking about developing the whole person to reach their full potential in order to

increase performance and wellbeing in organisations. One element of this is being able to think about the future in a way that’s realistic, hopeful and optimistic. My research and mahi for most of my career has been in the field of mental health and flourishing, but also I think this mindset about enhancing mental health at work is important, especially in the current climate. Actually it is quite interesting that it’s only lately – with COVID-19 and burnout crises – that this work has been highlighted and on the agenda for organisations.

That sounds fascinating. What do we know about how employers currently meet the needs of Māori in relation to te taha hinengaro (mental wellbeing)?

Some of the work I have done, together with Professor Jarrod Haar and Associate Professor David Brougham, is on looking at a kaupapa Māori approach to human resource practices in Aotearoa. We’ve found that Māori (and non- Māori) employees benefit when organisations take on a Māori world view at work. So, for example, for Māori, whānau wellbeing and inclusion is a huge part of their own wellbeing. So it gets hard to separate mental wellbeing from relational wellbeing and vice versa, for example.

It’s important that we learn from others about different ways of understanding wellbeing at work. Overall, you could say that when employees have a real sense – or real conviction – of belonging in the workplace, great things happen. This provides an opportunity – a wero (a challenge) – for HR managers and leaders to think differently about how we might understand ‘mental’ health at work, towards something much more holistic.

For example, numerous studies have highlighted the importance and relevance of relational approaches to wellbeing as central to a Māori world view. Building ‘relational’ wellbeing could include whakawhanaungatanga (the process of building relationships), using tikanga (cultural protocols and processes) and incorporating cultural values, such as manaakitanga (kindness and hospitality) and the use of mauri (binding energy), to invigorate wellbeing. Our workplaces could embrace all of these!

Actually, relationships are a crucial way to harness the wellbeing of the whole workforce, and I think we now need to engage widely in discussing what we might mean by ‘wellbeing at work’.

Another huge area in research (and this is important for HR leaders) is that the more leaders themselves are psychologically resourced, the more support they are to employees and to an organisation. We certainly need to acknowledge the mahi HR leaders are doing to reinvigorate workplaces and create mentally healthy work environments. Actually, really well-supported evidence exists that suggests that when we are in a state of good mental health (HR) leaders are then a positive contagion throughout the organisation.

What else do you think is needed in workplaces to create mentally healthy work environments for Māori?

Forthcoming research in the New Zealand Journal of Human Resources Management examines the ways in which we might be able to reinvigorate and understand Māori wellbeing from a Māori perspective. The first is having a really strong sense of belonging, a place of openness, recognising whakapapa, and connection. I think all workplaces could really benefit from having an environment where a real sense of belonging exists, where everybody feels they can do their best work, but more than that, where they feel they can bring their whole selves.

Some of this work also really emphasises that a strong sense of cultural identity is significant, and the six themes or pathways towards wellbeing are represented in a visual image or model of Whiti Te Rā (Rising of the sun, figure 1). Each ray coming off the sun represents one of these pathways. One is around language (reo Māori), one is around taiao (our connection with the environment), one is around our wairua (Māori spiritual beliefs and practices), another is take pū whānau (Māori relational values) and one is whakapapa (intergenerational relationships). This model can help HR to examine wellbeing from several perspectives but with each helping the whole (in this case, the rising of the sun).

What are some of the outcomes of your research that may be relevant to Māori, leaders and employers?

When we start to look at the things that might be relevant for leaders in the future, I think it’s quite important we understand that, as HR professionals, we do carry a leadership role. Our mental health and wellbeing are contagious in the organisations we work for. So the way we model this and the way we act are really important. Even down to the micro-expressions and how we talk with others is crucial.

HR leaders have a fundamental role in ensuring their environment is a flourishing work environment. So what can we take away from that? Well, our research has said as soon as we put our own oxygen mask on, it means that, actually, we are better able to create mentally healthy workplaces. We need to be modelling wellbeing practices to keep ourselves mentally healthy. So doing mindfulness is helpful. So is working on psychological capital. It’s also important to acknowledge that these can be hard things to do when you’re trying to answer 1,000 emails all the time, for example!

Of course it’s about looking for ways of enhancing wellbeing for employees, that are culturally driven, provide new insights into wellbeing, and maybe challenge how we conceptualise and lead wellbeing and mental health into the future.

It’s great to hear a little about your research and your work. Thank you, Maree, for sharing your insights and reflections.

Associate Professor Maree Roche has expertise in leadership, mental health, positive psychology and the positive mindsets of leaders and employees in relation to enhanced organisational outcomes. Maree has examined many psychological aspects of mindset at work in relation to business leaders, with an overall finding that the enhancement of these manifests in many positive outcomes for organisations, leaders and their employees.