Self‐reported proficiency in Māori language among those of Māori descent in New Zealand |
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Authors: | J Elisabeth Wells Te Kanikingi Magnus A McGee |
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Institution: | 1. Department of Public Health and General Practice , University of Otago , Christchurch, PO Box 4345, Christchurch, 8140, New Zealand;2. Te Mata o Te Tau, Academy for Māori Research and Scholarship, c/‐ Research Centre for Māori Health and Development , Massey University Wellington , Private Box 756, Wellington, 6140, New Zealand |
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Abstract: | Abstract In a national survey in New Zealand (N = 12 992), participants of Māori descent (N = 2936) reported their proficiency in speaking, reading, and writing Māori and in understanding spoken Māori. Only 6–10% reported that they could cope “very well” in these areas while 36–52% reported their proficiency as “no more than a few words or phrases”. There was no evidence of subgroups of Māori with divergent proficiency across oral language or literacy. Six latent classes were fitted but these appeared to lie along a continuum, and analysis employing item response theory (IRT) and factor analysis confirmed this. A simple sum of scores across the four areas correlated very highly with the IRT factor score (r = 0.97). High proficiency was more common among older Māori and females, in the Midland region (lowest in the South), and for those with sole‐Māori ethnicity, followed by multi‐ethnic Māori (seldom seen in those of Māori descent but not ethnicity). |
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Keywords: | language proficiency Maori te reo New Zealand Mental Health Survey |
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