Decolonisation through reconciliation: The role of Pākehā identity

Abstract

Research indicates that claiming a contemporary identity as Pākehā is being redefined by those individuals who engage closely with Te Ao Māori. This reopens the discussion of the implications for Pākehā researchers who engage across Māori research spaces. This article reports a reflective study I conducted using the transtheoretical model and its six stages of change (J. O. Prochaska & DiClemente, 1982) to understand my Pākehā cultural identity. I discuss my rationale for engaging in research with Māori, and then outline the approaches that I, as a non Indigenous researcher, adopted to appropriately engage in Indigenous research. I discuss responsibilities for Pākehā to take deliberate and conscious steps to decolonise through reconciliation and dismantle disturbing and prevailing prejudiced attitudes. Decolonisation through reconciliation takes various forms, but necessarily involves a process of actions and changes. Our challenge as Pākehā educators is to participate in this change process towards decolonisation through reconciliation.