Open AccessBula vakavanua and the spiritual disruption of elder abuse: A Fijian perspective
Author(s) -
Sandra Thaggard,
ElShadan Tautolo
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
pacific health dialog
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2422-8656
pISSN - 1015-7867
DOI - 10.26635/phd.2020.639
Subject(s) - neglect , aotearoa , disconnection , perspective (graphical) , psychology , environmental ethics , sociology , criminology , social psychology , psychiatry , gender studies , political science , law , philosophy , artificial intelligence , computer science
: This article used a cultural lens to explore issues of elder abuse from a Fijian perspective. Fijian tradition of respect for the older adult is a priority and any mistreatment is viewed as a spiritual disconnection and most injurious to God, the land and the people; their ancestral foundations and traditional customs.Methods: The Fonofale model, as a pan-pacific approach was employed as a methodological paradigm to explore elements of abuse within a larger study of 50 Pacific Island elders from Pacific communities of Aotearoa, New Zealand. This article examines perceptions of abuse as seen from a Fijian perspective.Findings: The findings argue that all forms of abuse; physical, psychological, financial or neglect are seen as a spiritual disconnection to the very foundation of what it is to be Fijian, referred to as bula vakavanua - the Fijian way of life.Conclusion: Practitioners with the possibility of confronting situations of abuse may benefit from a cultural awareness programme, addressing the many different ways that abuse may be construed from within a culture other than the dominant one in society.