Urban Aboriginal Research Articles

“Our Mothers Have Handed That to Us. Her Mother Has Handed That to Her”: Urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Yarning about Community Wellbeing, Healthy Pregnancies, and the Prevention of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder

In Australia, fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) is a largely hidden disability that is currently under-recognized, under-resourced, and under- or misdiagnosed. Unsurprisingly, efforts to prevent FASD in urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities are lacking. Further, mainstream approaches are not compatible with diverse and distinct Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ways of approaching family, pregnancy, and parenting life. To support the creation of culturally appropriate urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander FASD prevention strategies, we sought to understand local perspectives, experiences, and priorities for supporting healthy and alcohol-free pregnancies. Using a narrative methodology, we undertook research yarns with eight female and two male community participants. Data were analyzed using a narrative, thematic analysis and guided by an Indigenist research practice of reflexive listening. Participant yarns provided important insights into local urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural, social, and structural determinants that support family and child health, alcohol-free pregnancies, and the prevention of FASD. The results provide critical guidance for Indigenizing and decolonizing FASD prevention strategies to support culturally safe, relevant, and strengths-based services. This approach has critical implications for all health and social professionals and can contribute to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples' justice, recovery, and healing from colonization.

On country: Identity, place and digital place

Place is central to the identity of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. The Narrabeen Camp Project explores the use of immersive technologies to offer opportunities to engage with Indigenous histories, Storytelling and cultural heritage in ways that privilege place. While nothing can replace being ‘on Country’, the XR technologies of AR and VR support different modalities of engagement with real, and virtual, place. The project documents the Stories, Language and Lore associated with the Gai-mariagal clan and, in particular, with the Aboriginal Camp that existed on the north-western shore of Narrabeen Lakes from the end of the last ice age to 1959 when it was demolished to make way for the Sydney Academy of Sports and Recreation. The project will investigate evolving Aboriginal Storytelling dynamics when using immersive digital media to teach culture and to document a historically important site that existed for thousands of years prior to its demolition in the mid-twentieth century. It expects to generate new knowledge about Aboriginal Storytelling and about the history of urban Aboriginals. Expected outcomes include a schema connecting Aboriginal Storytelling with immersive digital technologies, and truth-telling that advances understanding of modern Australia and urban Aboriginal people. The research should promote better mental, social and emotional health and wellbeing for Indigenous Australians and benefit all Australians culturally, socially and economically.

A casemix study of patients seen within an urban Aboriginal Health Service dermatology clinic over a five-year period.

This is the largest study of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dermatologic presentations to an urban specialist clinic within a community-controlled health organisation. It adds to our understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dermatoepidemiology. Patient files were reviewed over the five-year audit period, with age, gender, Indigenous status, diagnosis, disease category, 'new' or 'review consultation' and 'did not attend' (DNA) data recorded. Our study shows that eczema and benign, pre-malignant or malignant neoplasms are the most common presentations for urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients. Lupus erythematosus and cutaneous infections were less prominent in comparison to data from rural and remote populations. Overall, a broad casemix of dermatologic presentations was observed. Similar to other studies, adult male patients were under-represented. Most skin malignancies were diagnosed in this cohort; this, therefore, identifies a possible target for public health intervention. A high ratio of new to review patients is consistent with the clinic offering a consultation model of care facilitated by primary health-care providers' support within Aboriginal Community-Controlled Health Service. DNA rates in this study were lower than hospital outpatient rates in a comparative study and may be attributed to specialist dermatology care being offered in a more culturally sensitive environment. The dermatology clinic at the Victorian Aboriginal Health Services (VAHS) provides a good breadth of specialist dermatology care. The community health-care model could be replicated in centres elsewhere, including interstate, to help overcome barriers to specialist dermatology care experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations. Additionally, this model improves trainee exposure and understanding of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health.

Calgary’s Family and Community Support Services’ Social Sustainability Framework and Urban Aboriginal Peoples

Family & Community Support Services (FCSS) in Calgary is a joint municipal and provincial funding program. The program is designed to develop, support, and fund preventive social services. FCSS Calgary has a number of benefits and truly makes a difference in the community. At-risk youth and vulnerable senior citizens have avenues for positive community involvement, family violence victims are safer, newcomers are welcomed and can feel at home in Calgary, citizens have access to information about the community and crisis services, and urban Aboriginal people are able to develop leadership skills within the community. FCSS programs and agencies align with at least one of the funding priorities (Strengthening Neighbourhoods and Increasing Social Inclusion, outlined in the Social Sustainability Framework). Increasing Social Inclusion concentrates on five populations: families, children and youth, seniors, immigrants, and Aboriginal people (City of Calgary, Social Sustainability, 2010). The new Social Sustainability Framework helps the community in a number of ways. It guides funding decisions by providing FCSS Calgary with clear and consistent principles. By aligning funded programs with identified objectives and outcomes, it helps FCSS account for and communicate its impact on the community. There is an abundance of statistics that support the need for culturally appropriate programs for urban Aboriginal peoples. Research demonstrates urgency for these programs and the current social landscape of urban Aboriginal children, youth, and families. For example, between 1996 and 2006, the Aboriginal population across Canada grew by 45% to reach close to 1.2 million persons, representing 3.8% of the Canadian population. (Statistics Canada, 2008, Canadian Demographics at a Glance, p. 34).Two examples of urban Aboriginal programs from Metis Calgary Family Services (MCFS) is presented within FCSS’s Sustainability Framework; Native Network, and Little Dancing Buffalo.

Culturally Responsive Pedagogy and Mathematics Through Creative and Body-Based Learning: Urban Aboriginal Schooling

Global neoliberal imperatives that numerically measure student success through standardized testing undermine the educational outcomes of students, in particular Indigenous students, and construct a seemingly fixed reality that avoids State responsibility to address structural inequality in Australia. Achievement gaps between Indigenous and non-Indigenous school students in mathematics have become an urgent international problem. Although evidence suggests that culturally responsive pedagogies (CRPs) improve student academic success for First Nations peoples in settler colonial countries such as the United States, Canada, New Zealand, and Australia, less prominent is a focus on how CRP is enacted and mobilized in Australian classrooms. Although some initiatives exist, this article explores how creative and body-based learning (CBL) strategies might be utilized to enact CRP. Using an ethnographic case study approach, we examined how two early career teachers serving Indigenous and ethnically diverse students implemented CBL to reengage students with mathematics. Findings suggest that the teachers were able to mobilize a number of CRP principles using CBL strategies to facilitate engagement in mathematics for urban Aboriginal students. Specifically, when teachers repositioned students as “competent” and designed embodied learning experiences that connected to their cultural backgrounds, students let go of their cautious learner histories and remade themselves as clever and competent.

Development of a Culturally Responsive Workforce in Urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health

Introduction: A partnership between a community-controlled health organisation and a university enabled the development of a regionally coordinated model of health student practicums. The aim of this study was to evaluate students’ perceptions of these placements in developing their capacity to provide culturally responsive care. Methods: Students completed a post placement survey involving 15 five-point Likert items on their perceptions of the learning environment, skills development, awareness and self-development, and supervision. Written responses to two open-ended items on positive or negative aspects of the practicum were thematically analysed. Results: The student placement model facilitated increased numbers and diversity of clinical placement of health students within urban First Australian health. 241 students from various disciplines completed the survey from 2011-2016. Most students were satisfied with the quality of their placement (82%) and believed it was a supportive learning environment (87%). Most indicated greater awareness of First Australian culture (89%) and health concerns (87%), and believed their clinical skills were enhanced (79%). Discussion: These results support the efficacy of regionally coordinating clinical placements with First Australians in urban contexts as a means of cultivating a culturally responsive healthcare workforce. Future research needs to involve pre-and post-measures and link student outcomes with improved client outcomes.

Quête spirituelle, résilience et Temps du Rêve chez les Aborigènes de Sydney

ContextThis article contains a discussion of cultural continuity between self-improvement and health practices amongst Aboriginal populations in large Australian cities, from a psychological anthropology perspective. GoalsThere are two main purposes to this article: (a) showing how some contemporary urban Aborigines reappropriate cultural elements, historically and anthropologically considered as “traditional,” especially concerning their links to the Dreaming cosmology; (b) analyzing how this cultural reappropriation impacts the way Aborigines express their pain, both individually and collectively. MethodThis study is based on first-hand ethnographic data collected during the author's doctoral research. The fieldwork consisted of a 10.5-month participant observation of an Aboriginal group therapy circle in a suburb of Sydney and about 15 semi-structured interviews with some members of this group. FindingsThis article presents two main findings: (a) the urban Aboriginal populations under consideration reappropriate an altered version of the myth and practices of the Dreaming and (b) their involvement in a therapeutic process aimed at allowing them to “feel better” takes the form of a spiritual quest framed in this altered conception of the Dreaming. ConclusionsThrough the analysis of this ethnographic example, this research promotes an understanding of therapy as being intrinsically linked – from a pragmatic point of view – to the cultural background from which it emerges. Doing so, this article shows the cultural inventiveness and resilience demonstrated by Aborigines in Australia's large cities to contain the pain generated by colonization.

How does Hukou Status Transformation Affect Rural Migrants’ Subjective Well-being? An Empirical Study Based on CLDS Micro-data

The deepening reform of the hukou status system will enable more rural migrants to realize the hukou status transformation and become permanent migrants in cities. Whether rural migrants can achieve the integration of subjective well-being in the city is related to the quality of new human-oriented urbanization. This paper utilizes CLDS2016 data to explore whether and how hukou status transformation affects rural migrants’ subjective well-being in urban China. Data summary shows that hukou status transformers, i.e. permanent migrants, have significantly higher happiness score than their rural migrant counterparts who have no hukou status transformation. Step regression and OB decomposition both indicate that the improvement of labor market, social security and social capital may be the main reasons why hukou status transformation can improve the subjective well-being of rural migrants. Comparatively speaking, the traditional factors such as income and demographic characteristics cannot explain the impact of hukou status transformation on the subjective well-being of rural migrants. An investigation of the subjective well-being status of permanent migrants and urban aborigines shows that there is no significant difference in happiness between permanent migrants and urban aborigines, that is, permanent migrants realize the urban integration of subjective well-being.

Success in Closing the Socio-Economic Gap, But Still a Long Way to Go: Urban Aboriginal Disadvantage, Trauma, and Racism in the Australian City of Newcastle

The research presented in this article is based on a four-year place-based qualitative case study of Aboriginal success in addressing Aboriginal disadvantage in the Australian city of Newcastle. The article presents extracts from in-depth interviews with Aboriginal people working on a day-to-day basis with Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people experiencing disadvantage in this city. Interviewees define Indigenous disadvantage in a way that differs considerably from how it is defined in mainstream policy circles. They describe Indigenous disadvantage as being grounded in the histories of social exclusion from Australian society, rather than merely a contemporary phenomenon related socio-economic factors (i.e., lack of educational and employment opportunities). They indicated that it was (a) closely tied to Aboriginal experiences of displacement and trauma; (b) not just a material problem but a historical and social structural problem; and (c) unique to each community. For instance, urban Indigenous disadvantage is distinct from Indigenous disadvantage in remote areas. This supports the claims of Indigenous sociologist Maggie Walter (2009). In doing so, the article more strongly aligns with a critique of a neo-liberal racial project, which defines Indigenous disadvantage within an individualistic framework of individual rights and in terms of socio-economic gaps, from the voices of Aboriginal representatives.

Narrative Structure and Evaluative Language of Personal Narratives Shared by Urban Aboriginal Children in Taiwan

ABSTRACT Labovian narrative theory is used to explore the personal narrative performance of five-year-old urban aboriginal children. Fifty-two participants with the same socioeconomic status (half aboriginal, half non-aboriginal) were recruited from 11 preschools in metropolitan Taipei, Taiwan. Narratives were collected by interviewing individual children about past experiences. Interviews were conducted in Mandarin Chinese, tape-recorded, and transcribed verbatim. With ethnicity as the independent variable, the results indicated the following: (1) in structure elements, urban aboriginal children tended to use more evaluations and non-aboriginal children offered more complicating actions. (2) Urban aboriginal children outperformed their counterparts regarding structural level (approximately half in the leapfrogging level and one-third in the chronological level). (3) Regarding evaluative features, urban aboriginal children used significantly more intention terms, sensory terms, reported speech, and negations, and non-aboriginal children used more obligation terms. The discussion and implication are provided in relation to cultural differences.

The Cost of Acute Respiratory Infections With Cough Among Urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children.

Introduction: Acute respiratory infections with cough (ARIwC) contribute considerably to childhood morbidity, yet few studies have examined the cost of these illnesses among Australian children. Moreover, of the few studies that have, none are inclusive of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children, despite this population experiencing a greater burden of respiratory illnesses. This study aimed to determine the costs of ARIwC among urban Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children from the perspective of caretakers, the public healthcare system, and employers.Methods: This cost of illness study used data collected from Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children aged <5 years enrolled in a 12 month prospective cohort study conducted through an urban primary healthcare clinic in Queensland, Australia. Illness-related resource use was collected for each episode of ARIwC reported, and costed at market rates. Linear regression was used to (a) examine cost per episode by season of illness onset and cough duration and (b) examine cost per month of observation by baseline child and family characteristics.Results: During the study period, a total of 264 episodes of ARIwC were reported among 138 children. The total mean cost was estimated to be $AU252 per non-hospitalized episode (95%CI 169–334). Caretakers, the public healthcare system and employers incurred 44, 39, and 17% of costs per episode, respectively. After accounting for months of completed follow-ups, the total mean cost per child per year was estimated to be $991 (95%CI 514–1468). Winter episodes and episodes resulting in chronic cough were associated with significantly higher costs per episode. A prior history of wheezing, connections to traditional lands and parent/guardian belief that antibiotics should be given until symptoms resolved were associated with significantly higher cost per child month of observation.Conclusion: The cost of ARIwC in this predominantly disadvantaged population is substantial, particularly for caretakers and this needs to be considered in both clinical management and public health initiatives. The importance of cultural factors on health and burden of illness should not be overlooked. Further research into the prevention of chronic cough may play an important role in reducing the economic burden of pediatric respiratory infections.

Sustainable career development of new urban immigrants: A psychological capital perspective

Sustainable development goals (SDGs) emphasize decent work and well-being, while sustainable career development is a key determinant of these two parts. Based on Psychological Capital Theory, we investigate the micro mechanism of new urban immigrants' sustainable career development which is good to their social incorporation and sustainability. Especially this paper constructs a model including job performance as mediator and origin region as moderator to propose the relationship between psychological capital and new urban immigrants' career successes. Several hypotheses are supported by empirical evidence of a sample of 306 questionnaires filled by supervisors and employees with 11 firms. We found that psychological capital has a significant impact on career development including opportunities and satisfaction through job performance. Employees' origin region moderates the relationship between psychological capital and job performance. Compared to urban employees, the psychological capital of rural employees has a stronger influence on job performance. Origin region also significantly moderates the relationship between job performance and career development opportunities. Namely at the same level of performance, supervisors give more career development opportunities to rural employees. In regard to career development, psychological capital is more important to new urban immigrants than urban aborigines. We suggest that government and firms should pay more attention to new urban immigrants' psychological capital to propel them achieve sustainable career development which is good to society sustainability.

Liturgical Inculturation in Urban Aboriginal Pentecostalism

Many scholars today see the Pentecostal–charismatic movement as moving in waves, thus adhering to Alan Anderson’s definition of “Pentecostalism(s)” as “churches with a family resemblance that empha...

The Validity of Self-Report Measures in Assessing Historical Knowledge: The Case of Canada’s Residential Schools

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada (TRC) strives to increase public education regarding residential schools. A baseline measure of the public’s residential school knowledge could be useful to evaluate the progress of the TRC. The National Benchmark Survey, Urban Aboriginal Peoples Study, and Canadian Public Opinion on Aboriginal Peoples Report are three existing surveys that provide such a baseline, though each use only self-report measures. We measured residential school knowledge of 2,250 non-Indigenous Canadian undergraduate students through self-report (subjective) and multiple-choice (objective) measures. Analyses revealed a statistically significant correlation between self-reported and objective knowledge of residential schools.

Living Tensions of Co-Creating a Wellness Program and Narrative Inquiry Alongside Urban Aboriginal Youth

This paper is based on a three-year study that has a dual purpose: firstly, to create a program to attend to the health and wellness of Aboriginal children and youth, and secondly, to narratively inquire into the experiences of the children and youth who participate in the wellness program. In an attempt to disrupt intervention type models that position Aboriginal youth as at-risk, or in-deficit, we pose questions around how wellness programming and research begin in different commitments when we see Aboriginal youth as knowledge holders.

Traditional Urban Aboriginal Religion

This paper represents a group of Aboriginal people who claim traditional Aboriginal ownership of a large Australian metropolis. They have struggled for at least the last 25 to 30 years to articulate and represent their contemporary group identity to the wider Australian society that very often does not take their expressions seriously. This is largely because dominant discourses claim that ‘authentic’ Aboriginal culture only exists in remote, pristine areas far away from western society and that urban Aboriginal traditions, especially urban religious traditions are, today, defunct. This paper is an account of one occasion on which such traditional Aboriginal religious practice was performed before the eyes of a group of tourists.

My body’s getting healthy and my mind is getting healthy with it. Considering Urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Conceptions of Health.

Drawing on the salutogenic, or ‘origins of health’ framework, this article explores the health and well-being conceptions of urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and identifies individual and community health-enabling strategies employed to support their health and well-being. This qualitative study included 12 focus groups with 83 predominantly Indigenous Australian participants of Work It Out, a chronic disease self-management and rehabilitation program in South East Queensland. The focus groups explored meanings of health and well-being as well as strategies used to keep healthy and well. The findings indicate that urban Indigenous Australians participants view health as a balance between physical, psychological, socio-emotional and environmental factors and are active engagers in health enhancing behavior. This study provides new insights into the health and well-being conceptions of urban Indigenous Australians at risk of suffering from a chronic disease and reveals a unique view of health and well-being. Understanding how urban Indigenous Australians conceptualize health and well-being will contribute to the evidence base to inform culturally responsive public health programs and policy.

Planning and Delivery of Health Services - An Article Review on Urban Aboriginal Mobility in Canada: Examining the Association With Healthcare Utilization

An article from Social Science and Medicine, written by Snyder and Wilson (2012), examined the use of healthcare services by urban Aboriginal populations in Canada. Using the Behavioural Model of Health Services Use (BMHSU), predisposing, enabling, and need factors were organized and used for data analysis. Specifically, a comparison was made between conventional (physicians and nurses) and traditional (traditional healers) health service utilization in Toronto and Winnipeg. In addition to the geographical and educational factors, the results of the research recognized mobility as a significant predisposing complement to healthcare utilization.

Towards an Urban Aboriginal Housing and Wellness Strategy for Metro Vancouver, 2015-2020

Towards an Urban Aboriginal Housing and Wellness Strategy for Metro Vancouver, 2015-2020

Indigenous Inclusion in Public Policy: A Comparison of Urban Aboriginal Peoples in Canada and Travellers in Ireland

To what extent are voluntary organizations included in the policy processes that make decisions regarding the needs and interests of Indigenous groups? As politically underrepresented groups, both urban Aboriginal Peoples and Travellers rely on voluntary organizations to provide culturally appropriate programs and services and to advocate on their behalf. Applying a scalar analysis, this project isolated three key concepts that are critical to their inclusion in policy processes. First, is the incorporation of their issues and interests in cultural programs and services. Second, is group representation in policy processes. And third is their collaboration with government. On balance, it appears that urban Aboriginal Peoples in Canada have moved closer to inclusion in policy processes than Travellers.