Anti-racism Allyship Amongst Psychologists and Students in Psychology Training in Aotearoa New Zealand

Racism is a well-established social determinant of health, impacting Māori,Pacific, and Asian communities in Aotearoa New Zealand. However, fewscholarly studies have focused on racial justice allyship in Aotearoa, particularlywithin the psychology discipline. This study examines demographic andattitudinal factors associated with anti-racism allyship among psychologists andstudents in psychology training amidst escalating racist rhetoric and oppositionto Māori self-determination in Aotearoa. Drawing data from an onlineanonymous survey (n = 280), we assessed participants’ responses on three scales:1) Attitudes towards aspects of Māori (taha Māori); 2) Attitudes towardsacknowledging the existence of racism and settler colonialism 3) Anti-racistallyship. Certain demographic groups (Pākehā, Asian, older-aged, male, or thosewho entered training decades ago) scored lower on these scales, indicating theneed for targeted training. Regression analyses showed both ‘Attitudes towardstaha Māori’ and ‘Attitudes towards racism and colonisation’ scales weresignificantly correlated with anti-racist allyship. Our findings call for a sustainedinvestment in training anti-racist psychologists who are competent in providingculturally safe care and capable of challenging racial injustices. Future research isrequired on the development of a racial justice allyship model across allinstitutions that train, employ and regulate psychologists in Aotearoa that isinformed by Te Tiriti o Waitangi.