Māori Cultural Identity Linked to Greater Regard for Nature: Attitudes and (Less So) Behavior

Abstract

A sense of connectedness to the natural environment is intrinsic to ways of being for many Indigenous peoples. This is particularly evident in the Indigenous Māori of Aotearoa New Zealand, whose cultural beliefs, values, and practices are inextricably linked to te taiao—the natural environment. Few studies have investigated the interaction between this inherent connection to the wider ecosystem and the proenvironmental attitudes and behaviors of Indigenous peoples. Having proenvironmental cultural values may not necessarily translate to proenvironmental behaviors. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether a greater sense of environmental connectedness (proenvironmental attitudes) as indicated by higher Māori cultural identity scores was related to increased proenvironmental behaviors. A low-risk institutional notification was obtained, and data collection occurred through an online questionnaire comprising a series of developed measures assessing Māori cultural identity, environmental connectedness, and proenvironmental behaviors. In total, 110 participants (N = 82 females, N = 24 males, N = 2 nonbinary , N = 2 non-specified), with a median age of 46–55 years, completed the survey. Participants with higher cultural identity scores demonstrated significantly greater positive regard for the environment. A positive and significant correlation with strong effect was also found for environmental connectedness and reoccurring proenvironmental behavior. Our study provides further insight into the meaning of “connectedness with nature” for contemporary Māori, and what aspects of cultural identity might foster these relationships. Findings also suggest, irrespective of strength of cultural identity, that the social context of proenvironmental behaviors is important.