Aboriginal Perception of Social and Emotional Well-being and Mental Health

Running head: SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING
Social and emotional well-being
Name of the student:
Name of the University:
Author’s note

1SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING
Introduction
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are the ethnic groups of Australia who
have great attachment to their land, culture, spirituality and community. However, due to their
scarred history troubled by loss of land, forced settlement in other areas and loss of family
member, their emotional and social well-being has been seriously affected. Poverty,
unemployment, health issues and racial discrimination has become common challenges in their
life after leaving their ancestral homes and settling in new areas (Mitrou et al., 2014). Although
the term social and emotional well-being is a multidimensional concept that often includes
mental health, however the aboriginals prefer the term social and emotional well-being instead of
mental health because of its more holistic connotation. The purpose of this report is to further
explore the aboriginal perception of social and emotional well-being and mental health and find
out why they give more preference to social and emotional well-being. It also gives an insight
into the changes found in the Aboriginal Medical Services and its alignment with WHO’s
primary health care principles. In accordance with the aboriginal’s preference for social and
emotional well-being, the services and performance of one Aboriginal Community Controlled
Health Service has been discussed too.
Difference between aboriginal concept of social and emotional well-being and mental
health
As defined by WHO, mental health is a condition of social and emotional well-being
where people have the capacity to cope with normal life stressors. Hence, mental health is
associated with symptoms that arise due to complex interaction of biological, social, economic,
environmental and psychosocial factor of an individual (Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet,

2SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING
2017). It implies that social and emotional well-being is necessary to promote mental health in
people. However, according to the aboriginal concept, they regard social and emotional well-
being as a crucial factor to reduce stress and promote mental health. The aboriginals are closely
attached to their land and culture. For them, social and well-being can be promoted by focusing
on solving socioeconomic concerns in their life instead of focusing on mental health issues (Le
Grande et al., 2017). This is particularly important because several social challenges in their life
increase psychological distress for them. Some of the social issues that contribute to high stress
for them include unresolved trauma, loss and grief, experiences of racism and discrimination,
socioeconomic disadvantage and social exclusion (Markwick et al., 2014). Hence, implementing
strategies to reduce social issues will play a role in better social and mental health outcome in the
group.
Great difference has been found in the perception of social and emotional well-being in
Aboriginal people and the mental health concepts in the group. The non-indigenous group
concept of mental health comes from illness perspective, where the focus is on addressing
symptoms of mental illness and improving people’s level of functioning in the environment (UN
Chronicle, 2017). This implies an individualistic concept where the focus is on improving the
health of the individual alone. However, by reviewing the National Aboriginal Health Strategy, it
can be said they have a broader concept of health where much emphasis is given on closeness to
land and their culture to promote social and emotional well-being. Hence, according to WHO
concept, social well being is a part of mental health, however according to indigenous context,
mental health comes under the umbrella of social and emotional well-being. From this perception
of indigenous people, it can be said that they have a holistic view of health and well-being
(Calma, Dudgeon, & Bray, 2017). From the aboriginal perceptive, focusing on social and

3SOCIAL AND EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING
emotional well-being is considered effective because they have suffered a lost because of the
negative colonial history and ongoing disadvantages such discrimination, grief, unemployment,
adversity and health disparities. Hence, addressing social disadvantage in their life will help
them to achieve the goal of social and emotional well being.
Reducing the poor mental health outcome in indigenous people is a national priority and
considering the aboriginal concept of social and emotional well being and mental health, many
promising initiatives has been implemented to restore their well-being. The indigenous
population is dispersed and social disadvantage acts as major barrier in access to health. High
level of unmet need is the reason for high stress and poor quality of life in the group. Health care
workers and social agencies are acknowledging the impact of social and cultural determinants on
well-being of the group and taking the best world approach to eliminate disadvantage as well as
improve mental health outcomes in the group (Calma, Dudgeon, & Bray, 2017). Therefore,
modifying the social factors that contributes to mental stress will be beneficial in achieving
positive health outcome in indigenous people.
Evolution of aboriginal medical service and alignment with primary care outlined by
WHO:
In 1971, first Aboriginal Medical Service was developed and it was the first Aboriginal
community controlled health service (ACCHS) specifically for the Aboriginal community. The
AMS was developed on a voluntary basis in Redfern, Sydney. Since them many health policies
were implemented to help states and other agencies work together for optimal health of
aboriginals. In 1973, after the instruction of Commonwealth Government, many states took the
responsibility for managing indigenous affairs and implementing appropriate policies for them.