Hibner, Lia (2014) “Too Many to Count”: The Detrimental Effect of Negative Life Events on the Mental Health of Aboriginal Australians, and the Role of Sense of Belonging. Coursework Masters thesis, University of Southern Queensland. (Unpublished)
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- Contains Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Research
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Abstract
Aboriginal Australians have suffered a history of genocide, disposition dispossession, removal, discrimination, and other experience of social injustice. In addition to these historical events factors, Aboriginal Australians are exposed to a heightened rate of negative life events in their daily life, which have the potential to harm their mental health. There is growing evidence to the compromised mental health of Aboriginal Australians; however more research on the topic is required to identify factors that have an effect on their mental health, including lifetime occurrence of negative life events. The limited empirical research in this area highlights the need for the current study. It was hypothesised that negative life events would have a negative effect on the mental health of Aboriginal Australians. Also, this study explored sense of belonging to community and Country as a potential protective factor and hypothesised that it would act as a moderator in this relationship. Participants were 200 adults, who identify as Aboriginal people, between the ages of 18-80. They completed three scales measuring the experience of negative life events, mental health, and sense of belonging to community and Country. The first hypothesis was supported, and the occurrence of negative life events was found to be negatively related to mental health. The negative life events with the highest impact (moderate effect sizes) on mental health include previous mental illness, alcohol and drugs misuse, and was found to be the pressure to fulfil cultural responsibilities. The second hypothesis was not confirmed by the results, and sense of belonging was not found to buffer against the detrimental effect of negative life events on mental health of Aboriginal Australians. The results are discussed in relation to previous literature concerning Aboriginal Australians’ mental health, negative life events, sense of belonging, and relevant theories, along with implications and directions for future research.
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| Item Type: | Thesis (Non-Research) (Coursework Masters) |
|---|---|
| Item Status: | Live Archive |
| Additional Information: | Current UniSQ staff and students can request access to this thesis. Please email research.repository@unisq.edu.au with a subject line of SEAR thesis request and provide: Name of the thesis requested and Your name and UniSQ email address |
| Faculty/School / Institute/Centre: | Historic - Faculty of Health, Engineering and Sciences - School of Psychology, Counselling and Community (1 Jul 2013 - 31 Dec 2014) |
| Supervisors: | Charlotte Brownlow; Maree Toombs |
| Qualification: | Master of Psychology (Clinical) |
| Date Deposited: | 14 Oct 2025 04:23 |
| Last Modified: | 14 Oct 2025 04:23 |
| Fields of Research (2008): | 17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences > 1799 Other Psychology and Cognitive Sciences > 179999 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences not elsewhere classified |
| Fields of Research (2020): | 52 PSYCHOLOGY > 5299 Other psychology > 529999 Other psychology not elsewhere classified |
| URI: | https://sear.unisq.edu.au/id/eprint/52409 |
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