Architecture Without Expectation: Designing a third place for mental wellbeing in the community

<p>In 2018, the government published the report of its inquiry into mental health and addiction in Aotearoa New Zealand, which called for a ‘paradigm shift’ in the country’s approach to mental wellbeing. This research portfolio explores the role architecture has to play in this shift, acknowledging the problematic historical associations of architecture and mental health. In doing so, the work aims to establish principles for a new architectural typology of mental health care, outside of conventional institutions. It explores contemporary approaches to wellness, and integrates research from several bodies of theoretical and evidence-based research into a new creative practice within architecture. Specifically, the research draws on theory around nonrepresentational therapeutic landscapes, third place and evidence based design. These inform creative explorations of the therapeutically affective qualities of naturally-sourced materials. The findings of this explorations are transferred to spatial design using a ‘multiplicity’ approach based on nonrepresentational theory and Māori health models, which is then applied to a specific site in Wellington, New Zealand. Finally, architectural applications for this research are proposed in the form of a community-based third place to support mental health and wellbeing.</p>

Spaces of Wellbeing; A Framework for Tertiary Environments

<p>Generally, one in five New Zealanders experience mental illness. Majority of lifelong mental illnesses begin before the age of 25, presenting a real problem for youth. In 2018, young people of New Zealand called for more help as they rallied outside parliament. The government responded by allocating more money towards student mental health. Yet, employing more counsellors, which is necessary, is not the only way to contribute to an urgent need for a new approach towards supporting mental health and wellbeing. This research portfolio responded to this complex situation by developing ‘a guide’ for the design of tertiary spaces supportive of wellbeing. One of the most important goals of this work was to align the research closely with user needs and views, therefore research methods involved including students views in more than one phase of development. The work draws on evidence based design, geography, health and architectural theory and the existing wellbeing knowledge. Engagement with the users, observation, experiments and real life interventions were critical in refining a conceptual framework which kept the users at the centre of the process. The outcome of this research was a resource to guide the design of tertiary space for wellbeing, using five intervention points, which could have a positive effect on the student wellbeing if implemented as a system. New Zealand must shift the current model of mental health care towards more holistic understandings of health, which better incorporates Māori health and wellbeing. Despite New Zealand’s bicultural values, Māori experience significantly higher rates of mental illness. This prompted to design with the same understandings of hauora (health). As a result, the conceptual framework presented a multi-dimensional, interconnected understanding of wellbeing through an integrated framework exploring physical, cultural, social, learning and spiritual environments. While it is acknowledged that environments can affect our mental health, this is an under researched field requiring motivation to stimulate discussion and change. This research advocates wellbeing as a central focus in the design of our built environments and explores the opportunity for architecture to facilitate our student and national wellbeing goals.</p>

Architecture Without Expectation: Designing a third place for mental wellbeing in the community

<p>In 2018, the government published the report of its inquiry into mental health and addiction in Aotearoa New Zealand, which called for a ‘paradigm shift’ in the country’s approach to mental wellbeing. This research portfolio explores the role architecture has to play in this shift, acknowledging the problematic historical associations of architecture and mental health. In doing so, the work aims to establish principles for a new architectural typology of mental health care, outside of conventional institutions. It explores contemporary approaches to wellness, and integrates research from several bodies of theoretical and evidence-based research into a new creative practice within architecture. Specifically, the research draws on theory around nonrepresentational therapeutic landscapes, third place and evidence based design. These inform creative explorations of the therapeutically affective qualities of naturally-sourced materials. The findings of this explorations are transferred to spatial design using a ‘multiplicity’ approach based on nonrepresentational theory and Māori health models, which is then applied to a specific site in Wellington, New Zealand. Finally, architectural applications for this research are proposed in the form of a community-based third place to support mental health and wellbeing.</p>

Spaces of Wellbeing; A Framework for Tertiary Environments

<p>Generally, one in five New Zealanders experience mental illness. Majority of lifelong mental illnesses begin before the age of 25, presenting a real problem for youth. In 2018, young people of New Zealand called for more help as they rallied outside parliament. The government responded by allocating more money towards student mental health. Yet, employing more counsellors, which is necessary, is not the only way to contribute to an urgent need for a new approach towards supporting mental health and wellbeing. This research portfolio responded to this complex situation by developing ‘a guide’ for the design of tertiary spaces supportive of wellbeing. One of the most important goals of this work was to align the research closely with user needs and views, therefore research methods involved including students views in more than one phase of development. The work draws on evidence based design, geography, health and architectural theory and the existing wellbeing knowledge. Engagement with the users, observation, experiments and real life interventions were critical in refining a conceptual framework which kept the users at the centre of the process. The outcome of this research was a resource to guide the design of tertiary space for wellbeing, using five intervention points, which could have a positive effect on the student wellbeing if implemented as a system. New Zealand must shift the current model of mental health care towards more holistic understandings of health, which better incorporates Māori health and wellbeing. Despite New Zealand’s bicultural values, Māori experience significantly higher rates of mental illness. This prompted to design with the same understandings of hauora (health). As a result, the conceptual framework presented a multi-dimensional, interconnected understanding of wellbeing through an integrated framework exploring physical, cultural, social, learning and spiritual environments. While it is acknowledged that environments can affect our mental health, this is an under researched field requiring motivation to stimulate discussion and change. This research advocates wellbeing as a central focus in the design of our built environments and explores the opportunity for architecture to facilitate our student and national wellbeing goals.</p>

Tikanga Hauora. The Hauora Homies: An evaluation of a Kaupapa Māori Weight Loss and Lifestyle Change Model

<p>Tikanga Hauora – The Hauora Homies: An evaluation of a Kaupapa Māori Weight Loss and Lifestyle Change Model provides an understanding about how tikanga was practised during the implementation of the Hauora Homies and Kick in the Butt programmes, specifically the cultural principles of whanaungatanga (relationship, kinship, sense of family connection) and manaakitanga (kindness, generosity, support, hospitality). The thesis looks at how participants understood tikanga and if they believed the programmes were kaupapa Māori in approach. The thesis then examines how these principles supported participants to achieve programme outcomes and the immediate impact of the programmes. Finally, this thesis explores the use of Facebook as the main mode of communication during the programmes to provide insight into how tikanga is transformed into an online space. The evaluation is positioned within a kaupapa Māori framework, since the Hauora Homies programmes was initiated by Māori, benefited Māori, and represented and legitimised Māori experiences and worldviews on the issue. Both the programmes and the evaluation are accountable to Māori participants. Continuous engagement with the participants of the programmes and the support of a whānau network were key aspects during the thesis process. In total there are 31 participants in this sample, 26 females and five males. Thirty participants identified themselves as Māori and one participant as Samoan. Interviews were conducted with 10 participants and one administrator. Facebook data representing 31 participants was utilised and personal observation notes provided further insight into the programmes. Interpretive analysis and descriptive statistics analysis, with an underlying ethnographic approach, were used to analyse the collected data. A kaupapa Māori approach facilitated an analysis from a Māori standpoint and Te Pae Mahutonga provided a Māori health framework to identify the health promotion outcomes of the Hauora Homies model. The evaluation found that tikanga played a significant role within the programmes and was a critical component which provided a whānau approach and platform for participants to express themselves as Māori where Māori culture and values were the social norm. Whanaungatanga and manaakitanga were found to be fundamental and were embedded and practised in the model and programmes by creating, maintaining and strengthening relationships by actively engaging with participants online and offline. The evaluation also found the programmes had a positive impact on participants’ knowledge, attitudes, behaviour and awareness, which supported them in reaching their weight loss and lifestyle change goals. The changes included increased nutritional knowledge, increased fitness, and confidence and leadership skills amongst others. This evaluation will contribute towards evidence-based research into what works and what does not for Māori in a tikanga Māori, kaupapa Māori setting. This can contribute towards the design and implementation of lifestyle programmes at a whānau (family), hapū (sub-tribe), iwi (tribe) and national level, as well as open a forum for indigenous people from other areas in the world.</p>

The Applecart Project: Bi-cultural action research collaboration focused on dietary change and social capital within a Māori community

<p>Na to rourou, Na taku rourou, Ka ora ai Te iwi. …with your food basket, and my food basket, the people will thrive… The AppleCART Project was an action research project which evolved through a bi-cultural research relationship. The pairing of a Maori community organisation focused on wellbeing, with a Pākehā masters student, created a project that weaved together academic findings regarding barriers to dietary change, Māori health models and identity constructs and social capital indicators, and combined it with the organisation‟s experiential knowledge of a „hard to reach‟ Māori community. The development of The AppleCART Project therefore occurred at an intersection of four approaches: Māori, Pākehā, community, and academia. The 12-week project included weekly delivery of ingredients to prepare a healthy meal supported by social cooking workshops. Ten participants were interviewed; workshop observations and a post-project discussion group enriched the data, along with the author‟s personal action research diary. Ethnographic data describes a community that has a health consciousness but experiences of poverty hinder ability to improve dietary behaviour. Social capital indicators are present within the community, mainly located within whānau networks. Participants with less robust whānau networks particularly lacking in expressive support relied on CART for social support. It is suggested that CART functions as an urban marae providing space, place and security for its community, engendering the development of adaptive and fluid contemporary Māori identities. Contrasts between Māori relational and Pākehā instrumental approaches are discussed.</p>

Tikanga Hauora. The Hauora Homies: An evaluation of a Kaupapa Māori Weight Loss and Lifestyle Change Model

<p>Tikanga Hauora – The Hauora Homies: An evaluation of a Kaupapa Māori Weight Loss and Lifestyle Change Model provides an understanding about how tikanga was practised during the implementation of the Hauora Homies and Kick in the Butt programmes, specifically the cultural principles of whanaungatanga (relationship, kinship, sense of family connection) and manaakitanga (kindness, generosity, support, hospitality). The thesis looks at how participants understood tikanga and if they believed the programmes were kaupapa Māori in approach. The thesis then examines how these principles supported participants to achieve programme outcomes and the immediate impact of the programmes. Finally, this thesis explores the use of Facebook as the main mode of communication during the programmes to provide insight into how tikanga is transformed into an online space. The evaluation is positioned within a kaupapa Māori framework, since the Hauora Homies programmes was initiated by Māori, benefited Māori, and represented and legitimised Māori experiences and worldviews on the issue. Both the programmes and the evaluation are accountable to Māori participants. Continuous engagement with the participants of the programmes and the support of a whānau network were key aspects during the thesis process. In total there are 31 participants in this sample, 26 females and five males. Thirty participants identified themselves as Māori and one participant as Samoan. Interviews were conducted with 10 participants and one administrator. Facebook data representing 31 participants was utilised and personal observation notes provided further insight into the programmes. Interpretive analysis and descriptive statistics analysis, with an underlying ethnographic approach, were used to analyse the collected data. A kaupapa Māori approach facilitated an analysis from a Māori standpoint and Te Pae Mahutonga provided a Māori health framework to identify the health promotion outcomes of the Hauora Homies model. The evaluation found that tikanga played a significant role within the programmes and was a critical component which provided a whānau approach and platform for participants to express themselves as Māori where Māori culture and values were the social norm. Whanaungatanga and manaakitanga were found to be fundamental and were embedded and practised in the model and programmes by creating, maintaining and strengthening relationships by actively engaging with participants online and offline. The evaluation also found the programmes had a positive impact on participants’ knowledge, attitudes, behaviour and awareness, which supported them in reaching their weight loss and lifestyle change goals. The changes included increased nutritional knowledge, increased fitness, and confidence and leadership skills amongst others. This evaluation will contribute towards evidence-based research into what works and what does not for Māori in a tikanga Māori, kaupapa Māori setting. This can contribute towards the design and implementation of lifestyle programmes at a whānau (family), hapū (sub-tribe), iwi (tribe) and national level, as well as open a forum for indigenous people from other areas in the world.</p>

The Applecart Project: Bi-cultural action research collaboration focused on dietary change and social capital within a Māori community

<p>Na to rourou, Na taku rourou, Ka ora ai Te iwi. …with your food basket, and my food basket, the people will thrive… The AppleCART Project was an action research project which evolved through a bi-cultural research relationship. The pairing of a Maori community organisation focused on wellbeing, with a Pākehā masters student, created a project that weaved together academic findings regarding barriers to dietary change, Māori health models and identity constructs and social capital indicators, and combined it with the organisation‟s experiential knowledge of a „hard to reach‟ Māori community. The development of The AppleCART Project therefore occurred at an intersection of four approaches: Māori, Pākehā, community, and academia. The 12-week project included weekly delivery of ingredients to prepare a healthy meal supported by social cooking workshops. Ten participants were interviewed; workshop observations and a post-project discussion group enriched the data, along with the author‟s personal action research diary. Ethnographic data describes a community that has a health consciousness but experiences of poverty hinder ability to improve dietary behaviour. Social capital indicators are present within the community, mainly located within whānau networks. Participants with less robust whānau networks particularly lacking in expressive support relied on CART for social support. It is suggested that CART functions as an urban marae providing space, place and security for its community, engendering the development of adaptive and fluid contemporary Māori identities. Contrasts between Māori relational and Pākehā instrumental approaches are discussed.</p>

He oro hauora: How do kaupapa Māori models of health relate to my music therapy practice in an adolescent acute mental health unit?

<p>This project explores the relationship between understandings of health within kaupapa Māori frameworks and music therapy with a particular focus on Durie’s Te Whare Tapa Whā (1998), Pere’s Te Wheke (1991) and ecological perspectives in music therapy. This research took place within an acute adolescent mental health unit that operates with a model of healthcare that emphasises Māori approaches to wellbeing. Secondary analysis of data involving techniques developed within grounded theory is used to investigate clinical notes from my music therapy practice in order to identify processes relevant to the four dimensions of Te Whare Tapa Whā. Themes that emerged were examined and used to investigate further data until a clearer picture of the relationship between music therapy and kaupapa Māori health frameworks became evident. This project particularly acknowledges the unique qualities of music and its practical application in music therapy in order to address and support a person's wairua within modern mental health practices. Specifically, the concepts of mana, mauri and whatumanawa appeared particularly relevant to the process of music therapy and the state of whakamā also emerged as significant within this mental health context. Parallels between kaupapa Māori understandings of health and ecological perspectives within music therapy were also noted and particular reference made to the work of Carolyn Kenny and her Field of Play (2006) model in developing the discourse linking indigenous perspectives with the music therapy profession.</p>