Difficulties In Dealing With Obesity For Maori In Aotearoa

Running head: Difficulties In Dealing With Obesity For Maori In Aotearoa 1
Difficulties In Dealing With Obesity For Maori In Aotearoa
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Difficulties In Dealing With Obesity For Maori In Aotearoa 2
My proposed study topic is the difficulties in dealing with obesity for Maori in Aotearoa.
This planned research is much relevant for Māori in Aotearoa New Zealand with regard to
their health. Studies show that the life expectancy of Maori people in 2011 was
approximately 73 and 77 years for males and females respectively, whereas, the non-Maori
people was estimated at 79 and 84 years for males and females respectively (Ministry of
Health, 2013). The Maori people have shorter lives than non-Maori in addition to substandard
health. The primary cause of the disparity in health of the Maori and non-Maori people are
diabetes and vascular diseases, which significantly contributes to their poor health compared
to the non-Maori (Tobias & Turley, 2013). Obesity is the major cause of these disorders
among other lifestyle diseases like high blood pressure and abridged lifespan (Wang et al.,
2011). Therefore, this study will be of much benefit to the Māori in Aotearoa, New Zealand
because it will deal with the central issue of health from the root cause. The challenges
encountered in addressing obesity will be ascertained and recommendations made.
The study intends to apply the Kaupapa Maori Research model. This approach is described as
a research by Maori, for Maori and with Maori (Eketone, 2008). The epistemology of the
model impacts the whole survey from the formulation of the study topic, data collection to
the analysis, and the response to the respondents and the society at large. It is a means of
comprehending and describing how we know what we know and it upholds Maori’s right to
be Maori. The entirety of this Maori-centred approach also leads to the provision of Maori
knowledge. Chilisa (2011) observes that the model uses both Maori and non-Maori
techniques and modern research and analytical methods like explanatory phenomenological
analysis.
The study will apply the Maori protocol in the entire study from the formulation of the study
topic, data collection, data analysis and the provision of the findings and recommendations.