Abstract
The overlying allegory of this thesis will be:
Ka titiro whakamua, ngā uri whakaheke mai ō tātou Hapū Whānau katoa, koinā te rangatiratanga.
(Looking forward, we can, and will be, the leaders of our destiny – or alternatively “by us, and for us”)
Chapter one will introduce the reader to the operating environment of this thesis, and the application of an Indigenous viewing lens throughout. Discussion will include established thought processes and literature around Indigenous knowledge acquisition processes, and how that may be situated alongside the western academy, as well as any intersections, and points of difference. Reflexive commentary will be offered by the thesis candidate in this chapter, as well as discussion around thesis scope, and this will help set the stage for the main thrust of the thesis to follow.
Chapter two will detail the first investigative phase of this thesis, which is the establishment of a research platform that aligns with the thesis allegory, and how that suits its research aims. It will introduce the reader to the thesis theme, which is a research preface built on co-design (Indigenous knowledge systems in partnership with western processes), with Indigenous leadership. Discussion will focus on community based participatory research, its traditions, debates, and why it was used as a starting point of this thesis. That will then lead to the knowledge contributions of the thesis around community based participatory research design, and will present a nuanced option to consider, for when external agencies wish to conduct research with an Indigenous population. It will also include an overview of how the focus of the thesis was determined.
Chapter three will review the literature around obesity, and introduce the reader to established views on mitigation strategies. Areas of agreement, tensions, and inadequacies will also be discussed. This chapter will progressively narrow its focus, and conclude by alerting the reader to specific knowledge gaps around obesity, as applies to Indigenous populations.
This then leads into Chapter four, where the chosen methodology will be detailed on how it was proposed that the specific knowledge gaps identified in the previous chapter will be addressed. In revisiting the thesis theme of ‘by us, and for us’, it will describe the application of Indigenous knowledge systems, along with qualitative research theory, to contextualise the lived experiences of Tangata Whenua with obesity. Reasons why the chosen methodologies were adopted will be indicated, including conceptual and theoretical influences, as well as the thesis alignment with Indigenous data sovereignty principles.
Chapter five relays the results from the applied methodology in the previous chapter, and will represent the second major investigative phase of this thesis. The findings in this chapter, will relay a narrative that is centred in an Indigenous world view, that will challenge the prevailing colonial hegemony, around Indigenous populations with obesity. Conceptualisations will be proposed that suggest alternative health delivery considerations going forward, that should be factored in to obesity mitigation approaches with Indigenous communities.
Chapter six will synthesise and discuss the implications of the thesis findings. The significance of the thesis contributions to the literature will be discussed, along with any potential counter viewpoints that have been written or may be experienced. The thesis will conclude by making a case that established colonial thinking on easing obesity profiles, and risk, may not be applicable with Indigenous populations. The transferability of the results from this thesis to other populations will be discussed. Suggestions for future research endeavours, and summary points will be specified about what the main thesis findings are.
Chapter seven: an epilogue of the thesis journey, along with further reflexive commentary by the thesis candidate.