Breaking the Barriers Between Indigenous and Non-Indigneous People
Emily Kwok

The line that separates our indigenous from non-indigenous populations continues to exist. Recently, Sandra Eades, one of Australia’s foremost indigenous medical researchers, was recognised as the 2006 NSW Woman of the Year (Sydney Morning Herald, March 9 2006.) for her contribution to improving the health of Aboriginal women and children. It makes Australians wonder if our non-indigenous professionals also contribute in t\he same manner to our indigenous counterparts, the result will be increased unity and mutual respect in our society. However, cultural and language differences often become a barrier between indigenous and non-indigenous populations. Powell (2000) identified 5 factors through which these barriers may be overcome, focusing mainly on the barriers that arise during conducting interviews of indigenous people.

In general, according to Powell (2000), the elements which make interviewing Aboriginal people more effective include: 1) obtaining Prior knowledge about the interviewee, 2) establishing Rapport with the interviewee, 3) seeking Interpretive assistance when necessary, 4) possessing a Diverse array of hypotheses, and 5) adopting Effective techniques of interviewing such as incorporating open-ended questioning. These elements form the acronym PRIDE.

Obtaining prior knowledge about the interviewee serves to decrease the possibility of miscommunication. Such knowledge may include the indigenous person’s culture, language, customs, and beliefs. It has been estimated that 70.3% of Aboriginal people speak a language other than English at home. Furthermore, even within the English language, indigenous and non-indigenous people may attribute different meanings to the same words. For example, in Torres Strait Creole, the word “kill” can be used to mean “hurt” or “maim”, as opposed to the conventional meaning of “ending another’s life”. It is not difficult to imagine what kind of problems will arise in a court setting when such differences in word meanings are not clarified. How many people may be wrongly sentenced to jail?

Further to language differences, Aboriginal people also have different conversational conventions. Whereas it is polite and expected for non-indigenous people to look into a person’s eyes when talking to him/her, the same rule does not apply for indigenous people. On the contrary, the same behaviour is considered disrespectful for Aboriginal people. Without an understanding of this culture, indigenous people may be accused of being impolite when in reality they wish to convey the direct opposite. Moreover, it is appropriate for Aboriginal people to pause before giving answers. Interviewers who do not understand this culture may misinterpret the silence as an indication of a lack of knowledge or language disability.

Understanding the indigenous culture and belief can assist in establishing relationships of trust, or rapport. Most professionals agree that the advantage of obtaining an interviewee’s trust is that interviewees will generate more information. Obviously, this is because interviewees feel more comfortable with discussing sensitive issues with interviewers whom they know will not judge or criticise their opinions. It is important, however, that establishing a good rapport does not compromise professionalism. The most trusted interviewers are, indeed, those perceived as courteous, honest, fair and respectful of the value system of the community.

Any speaker with indigenous people should also be aware of their English ability. At times, interviewees who are able to communicate effectively in normal conversations may not show the same competency in an interview setting. This lack of ability can often be overlooked, especially when the interview questions only produce “yes” or “no” answers. Other times, an indigenous person may simply repeat the words of the question in their response to hide their inability. These language barriers must not be taken lightly and interpreters should be introduced where appropriate. When interpreters are used, the interviewer must ensure that the interviewee feels comfortable about the presence of a third person, and technical jargon should be minimised to aid the translation process.

Moreover, it is crucial that interviewers are not biased in their questioning. In our society, there exist a number of stereotypical views of indigenous people. Many of these stereotypes have not been experimentally or statistically confirmed. Even if they have, the facts that hold true for the majority of an ethnic group may not be true for a specific person within this group. In other words, in communicating with or interviewing indigenous people, one should not allow stereotypes to limit his/her perceptions. Interviewers should aim to question about different hypotheses of what might have happened rather than prove an existing belief that he/she may have. Unbiased interviews are especially important for indigenous interviewees because it is often polite in the Aboriginal culture to agree with what is being said, even if it is not true, so as to maintain harmony.

The final element to decrease bias in an interview or in everyday conversations with indigenous people is the adoption of effective techniques, namely, an open-ended questioning technique. Open-ended questions allow the interviewee to tell his/her story with minimal interruption and contamination of information by the interviewer. Furthermore, Aboriginal people are better acquainted with narrative telling more than they are with question-and-answer responses. More direct questions should only be used when open-ended questions are not generating information from the interviewee.

Lastly, it is evident that many in the society desire to decrease the gap between indigenous and non-indigenous people. By gaining a greater understanding and acceptance of the indigenous culture, this gap will become smaller. In time, an increase of trust will be built between the cultures. The result will be a community where both indigenous and non-indigenous populations will make contributions to the welfare of the society.

Reference:
Powell, M.B. (2000). P.R.I.D.E.: the essential elements of a forensic interview with an Aboriginal person. Australian Psychologist, 35, 186-192.

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