How Indigenous struggles for racial justice and collective healing are influenced by political perspectives will be explored at a lecture hosted by The University of Western Australia this month.
The 2024 Robin Winkler Lecture, presented by UWA’s School of Psychological Science, will challenge the myth of the ‘neutral observer’ in psychology, highlighting that all research is shaped by the viewpoints of those conducting it.
Mental Health is Political: Global Indigenous Struggles for Racial Justice and Collective Healing will explore how worldviews and positions in society influence the questions we ask and the conclusions we draw, emphasising that psychology is inherently political.
The lecture will be facilitated by Professor Pat Dudgeon AM, a Bardi woman from UWA’s School of Indigenous Studies, the first Aboriginal psychologist and Director of the Centre of Best Practice in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Suicide Prevention, and Dr Stewart Sutherland, a Wiradjuri man from Wellington, NSW, who has more than 20 years’ experience in Indigenous health from Australian National University.
“Indigenous research methods have shown community engagement and cultural empowerment is vital in understanding and addressing real-world issues,” Professor Dudgeon said.
“We hope listeners will think critically about the political dimensions of psychological research and how embracing diverse perspectives can lead to more meaningful, impactful outcomes.”
Guest speakers include: Associate Professor Jeffrey Ansloos, a citizen of Fisher River Cree Nation (Ochekwi-Sipi; Treaty 5) and the Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Studies in Health, Suicide Studies, and Environmental Justice at the University of Toronto; Dr Mark Standing Eagle Baez, a descendant of the Mohawk and Pawnee people and a psychologist focusing on clients dealing with emotional, cognitive, and behavioural problems from Bemidji State University, Minnesota; and Dr Hukarere Valentine, Senior Māori Clinical Psychologist and co-director of the Centre for Indigenous Psychologies at Massey University.
The speakers will share examples from their own work, demonstrating how integrating Indigenous knowledges and practices provides a richer, more ethical framework for research – especially when it comes to tackling issues such as mental health, social justice and community wellbeing. The lecture will include a Q&A with the speakers.
The annual lecture commemorates the work of Robin Winkler, a highly influential teacher and researcher whose work was guided by humanitarian values and a relentless questioning of accepted orthodoxies.
The lecture is on Monday 28 October from 5.30 to 7pm at the UWA Social Sciences Lecture Theatre. For more details and to register click here.