Identity loss tied to Maori suicide

Being cut off from Maori culture is a key factor behind the high rates of Maori suicide and attempted suicide, a study has found.

Massey University researcher Nicole Coupe interviewed Maori treated at Auckland hospitals following attempted suicide and compared them with a control group.

She found much higher numbers among the attempted-suicide group were not connected to things Maori.

"They didn't have a secure identity," she said.

"Interestingly, the majority could actually say who their iwi were, but they couldn't tell us much more than that. They were much less likely to speak te reo than the group from the wider community."

Other suicide-attempt risk factors included poor general health, cannabis use and having been abused by others.

Maori have much higher rates of suicide in most age groups. Maori males aged 15 to 24 in 2001 had a 34 per cent higher suicide rate than non-Maori: 38.9 per 100,000, compared with 29.2.

The disparity was even greater for young women, although the rates were lower.

Dr Coupe said last night that Maori who lost contact with Maoritanga - things like their whakapapa, marae and Maori language - "lack a sense of belonging to a place".

Rebuilding these connections, like learning the language, could help to reduce the risk of Maori suicide.

An Otago University report for the Ministry of Health last year said that although there had been a reduction in the number of Maori and non-Maori suicide deaths from 1999, Maori suicide rates had doubled for females and trebled for males from 1957 to 1991.

About a quarter of suicides by young Maori males occur in prison or police custody.

The report says that in new world countries, including New Zealand, minority indigenous populations often have higher suicide rates than the majority, non-indigenous populations.

"The comparatively high rates have been said to be symptomatic of the cultural alienation and social disintegration consequent upon rapid colonisation."

Risk factors assessed

Massey University study.
* 250 Maori who were treated at Auckland hospitals after attempting suicide were interviewed. They were compared with a control group of 250 Maori randomly selected from the same communities.
* Each participant was asked 400 questions about his or her personal circumstances, background, health, employment, drug and alcohol use and whether they suffered depression and anxiety.
* Those connected with Maori culture were three times less likely to have attempted suicide than those who were not connected.
* Cultural connection included being able to speak Maori, name their iwi, ancestors and marae, having visited their marae and having access to their whanau.