— Involvement of First Nations People in Research

Our research focus:

• To promote culturally appropriate, strengths-based approaches to wellbeing assessment and treatment for First Nations people and to communicate strengths-based 'two-way' mental health messages
• To promote delivery of wellbeing services and messages in First Nations languages
• To address mental health literacy needs in remote and urban settings for primary care and specialist services.
• To build the capacity of First-Nations and non-Indigenous practitioners and service providers working with First Nations clients to address wellbeing
• To facilitate the development and implementation of culturally appropriate digital tools that address the wellbeing of First Nations people
• To support capacity building of First Nations researchers and to conduct research that provides practical and culturally appropriate early intervention and treatment.

Ethical conduct of research upholds the rights and responsibilities of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities to be involved in all aspects of research undertaken in their communities and organisations. Ethical conduct of research is about making sure the research journey respects the shared values of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and communities as well as their diversity, priorities, needs and aspirations; and that research is of benefit to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples and communities as well as researchers and other Australians.

It is important that research with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities is led by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and communities. This can mean that the chief researchers and/or members of the research team are Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people. It can also mean that research and its priorities are driven and guided by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities with whom the research will take place. It is also important to note that most research methodologies and practices have emerged from Western concepts that sometimes do not include other conceptual viewpoints. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-led research can also mean that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander standpoints and research methodologies are considered and used in research where appropriate.

The CBPR partnership between five community partners and a university rural health department is described, with illustrations of how CBPR harnessed the community’s voice in making the project relevant to their wellbeing needs. The local Indigenous community’s involvement led to a number of unexpected outcomes, which impacted locally and nationally. At an early stage, the conceptual framework of the project was changed from d-MH to the culturally-relevant Indigenous framework of digital social and emotional wellbeing (d-SEWB). This led to a significant expansion of the range and type of digital resources; and to other notable outcomes such as successful advocacy for an Aboriginal-specific online therapy program and for a dedicated “one-stop-shop” d-SEWB website, Wellmob, which was funded by the Australian government in 2019–2021. Some of the implications of this project for future Indigenous CBPR projects are discussed.