Family & community

About this topic

For many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (First Nations) people, mental health and wellbeing are enhanced by connection to Country, family and spirit, strong social networks and strong leadership in the community (Gee et al. 2014).

Family support can strengthen wellbeing by providing connections to community and culture and the provision of emotional support, particularly in times of stress (Gee et al. 2014; Milroy et al. 2014). Community participation and contact with friends and family outside the household can enhance a person’s sense of belonging, social resilience and can offer meaning to everyday life (ABS 2016; DoH 2019).

Connection to community, family and kinship

Connection to community and to family and kinship are 2 of the 7 domains of social and emotional wellbeing for First Nations people.

Social and emotional wellbeing is a holistic way of looking at relationships between individuals, family, kin and community in the context of land, culture, spirituality and ancestry. Cultural groups and individuals each have their own interpretation of social and emotional wellbeing (Gee et al. 2014).

Having support networks enhances connection to community. Having a loving, stable, accepting and supportive family improves connection to family and kinship (PM&C 2017).

Strong connections to family and kinship systems are central to the functioning of First Nations communities. Connection to community provides opportunities for support and collaboration (PM&C 2017).

The protective benefit of connection to family and kinship is fundamental to wellbeing and these connections are an important resilience tool for First Nations people (Dudgeon et al 2021). Another important protective factor for families, communities and identity is cultural continuity (Dudgeon et al 2022).

Processes that empower cultural continuity and community control enable healthy connections to family and kin. However, these connections are disrupted by trauma from colonisation, compounded by socioeconomic marginalisation, family violence, substance abuse and the persistent impacts of racism (Dudgeon et al 2021).

In 2020, all Australian governments and the Coalition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peak Organisations worked in partnership to develop the National Agreement on Closing the Gap- external site opens in new window (the National Agreement), built around 4 Priority Reforms. The National Agreement also identifies 19 targets across 17 socioeconomic outcome areas. Four of these targets directly relate to family and community, monitored annually by the Productivity Commission.

National Agreement on Closing the Gap: family and community-related targets

Outcome area 10: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults are not overrepresented in the criminal justice system

Target: By 2031, reduce the rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults held in incarceration by at least 15% (from an age-standardised rate of 2,142.9 per 100,000 in 2019 to 1,821.5 per 100,000 by 2031).
Status: In 2022, the age-standardised imprisonment rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults was 2,151.1 per 100,000, which was higher than the target trajectory rate for 2022 of 2,062.63 per 100,000 population.

Outcome area 11: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people are not overrepresented in the criminal justice system

Target: By 2031, reduce the rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people (10–17 years) in detention by at least 30% (from 32.0 per 10,000 in 2018–19 to 22.3 per 10,000 by 2031).
Status: In 2021–22, the rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people (10–17 years) in detention was 28.3 per 10,000, which was lower than the target trajectory rate of 29.6 per 10,000 population in 2020–21.

Outcome area 12: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are not overrepresented in the child protection system

Target: By 2031, reduce the rate of over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out-of-home care by 45% (from 54.2 per 1,000 in 2019 to 29.8 per 1,000 by 2031).
Status: In 2022, the rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out-of-home care was 56.8 per 1,000, which is higher than the target trajectory rate of 48.1 per 1,000 population.

Outcome area 13: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and households are safe

Target: By 2031, the rate of all forms of family violence and abuse against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and children is reduced by at least 50%, as progress towards zero (from 8.4% in 2018–19 to 4.2% by 2031).
Status: There are no new data on self-reported experiences of violence since the baseline year of 2018–19.

Source: Closing the Gap information repository

Key issues

Family connections are affected by child removal, family violence, incarceration and the pervasive effects of intergenerational poverty (Dudgeon et al 2021).

Child protection

Child protection agencies aim to address the safety needs of children. These agencies and services intervene within family settings to support children who are at risk of harm (Titterton 2017). Removing children from their families, culture and communities is a last resort (Productivity Commission 2019).

The reasons for the overrepresentation of First Nations children in child protection and out-of-home care systems are complex and include the intergenerational effects of previous separations from family and culture and the legacy of past policies of forced removal (AIHW 2019).

Community safety

A safe community is one where people feel protected from harm in their home, workplace and society (AIHW 2023b). The wellbeing and mental health of many First Nations people are affected by the safety of their community. Safe communities are able to provide emotional, physical or financial support during times of crisis (DoH 2019).

First Nations people have experienced violence through colonisation, discrimination and cultural dispossession (Day et al. 2013; Our Watch 2018). This has resulted in ongoing social, economic, physical, psychological and emotional effects (AIHW 2018a; Coles et al. 2015; Loxton et al. 2019; Our Watch 2018).

The effects of colonisation are perpetuated through:

racialised, structural inequalities of power
entrenched racism in social norms, attitudes and practices
racist violence
condoning of, and insufficient accountability for, violence against First Nations people.

‘Lateral violence’ describes the way people (First Nations and non-Indigenous) in positions of powerlessness covertly or overtly direct their dissatisfaction inward towards themselves, each other and those less powerful than themselves (AIHW & NIAA 2020).

For First Nations people, the roots of lateral violence are found in colonisation, oppression, intergenerational trauma and experiences of racism (Korff 2015).

A range of First Nations community initiatives have been implemented to manage community safety. These include family violence prevention programs and community patrols (AIHW & NIAA 2020).

The child protection and criminal justice systems are also used as ways of managing community safety, but interactions with these systems can be traumatic for First Nations communities. Violence or child abuse can be under-reported by victims due to lack of trust in police (Bailey et al. 2017; Olsen & Lovett 2016; Prentice et al. 2017; Willis 2010).

Improving the level of safety in all communities depends on addressing entrenched inequality and disadvantage and the multiple factors that give rise to violent and criminal behaviour.

Members of the Stolen Generations and their descendants experience higher levels of incarceration, unemployment and poor health compared with First Nations people in the same age cohort who were not removed (AIHW 2018b).

Contact with the criminal justice system

First Nations people experience contact with the criminal justice system – as both offenders and victims – at much higher rates than non-Indigenous Australians (Productivity Commission 2016; Senate Community Affairs References Committee 2010).

Imprisonment compounds existing social and economic disadvantage and affects family, children and the broader community with intergenerational effects (AIHW & NIAA 2020). Child removals, poverty, higher rates of stressful life events, psychological distress, and mental health issues are linked to the higher rates of contact with the criminal justice system (AMA 2015; McCausland et al. 2017; Shepherd et al. 2017). The experience of imprisonment can contribute to poor mental health (Baldry et al. 2015).

The use of culturally immersive programs, First Nations sentencing courts (for example, Koori court), on-Country programs and parenting programs can result in positive social and emotional wellbeing outcomes for First Nations people and their communities (Bennett 2016; Marchetti 2009; Palmer 2013).

Key statistics

The Indigenous Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Clearinghouse (the Clearinghouse) has used 3 social and emotional wellbeing measures – psychological distress, level of mastery and perceived social support – from the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey (NATSIHS) 2018–19 to identify relationships between factors like social connection, removal from family, experience of violence, and mental health conditions and SEWB. For more information these scales, see the topic page on Social and emotional wellbeing.

The data presented here are sourced from the NATSIHS 2018–19 and are for persons aged 18 and over. Estimates are calculated using a sample selected from a population rather than all members of that population. See the data tables in the Download data section for notes related to these data.

Social connection

Strong and healthy connections to community protect First Nations people from mental ill-health. Healthy connections to family and kin are enabled by processes that empower cultural continuity and community control. Strong and healthy connections to family and kin protect people from suicide and suicide-related behaviour. Connection to family and kin is acknowledged to underpin social and emotional wellbeing across the life span, and across generations (Dudgeon et al. 2021).

Data in this section refer to people in non-remote areas.

In 2018–19, 73% of First Nations adults reported that they get the emotional support and help they need from their family. A similar proportion (74%) of First Nations adults reported that their family really tries to help them (AIHW & NIAA 2020).

People who reported High perceived social support were most likely to report Low/Moderate psychological distress (78% or 176,100 out of 227,200) (Table FC.1).

The proportion of people reporting High/Very high psychological distress increased as perceived social support decreased. People who had Low perceived social support were most likely to report High/Very high psychological distress (56% or 19,800 out of 35,100) (Figure 1; Table FC.1).

High perceived social support was greater among people without a diagnosed mental health condition compared with people with a diagnosed mental health condition (67% compared with 50%). The proportion of people reporting Low perceived social support was greater among people with a mental health condition (13% compared with 6.1%) (Figure 2; Table FC.2).

Among First Nations people who reported feeling accepted by other Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people, over two thirds (69%) reported Low or Moderate psychological distress. This was compared to 59% among people who did not feel accepted (Table FC.3).

People who felt accepted were also more likely to report High mastery (67%) and High perceived social support (62%) compared to those who did not feel accepted (55% and 46%, respectively) (Table FC.3).

Removal from family

First Nations people in Australia are burdened by trauma from colonisation and the ongoing transmission of trauma across generations as a result of the forced removal of children from their families and communities (the Stolen Generations). Exposure to adverse childhood experiences (including forced removal from family) leads to trauma which is compounded by additional exposure to other stressors associated with racism and socio-economic marginalisation. Together, they contribute to the breaking of healthy and protective connections to family and kin and the healthy continuity of family and kin relations (Dudgeon et al. 2021).

Psychological distress was highest among people aged 18 and over who had both been removed from their natural family themselves and had a relative removed, with almost half (43%) reporting High/Very high psychological distress. This compared with about a quarter (26%) for people who had not been removed, nor had a relative removed (Table FC.4).

In non-remote areas, perceived social support was highest among people who had not been removed, nor had a relative removed, with over two thirds (68%) reporting High perceived social support (Figure 3). Of people who had experienced removal of themselves or a relative, people who had a relative only removed were most likely to report High perceived social support (58%), followed by people who were removed but not had a relative removed (51%) and people who had both been removed themselves and had a relative removed (44%) (Figure 3; Table FC.4).

Level of mastery, which is the level of control a person feels over their own life, followed a different pattern. Level of mastery was similar among people who were removed but did not have a relative removed, people who were not removed and did not have a relative removed, and people who had a relative only removed were most likely to report High mastery (69%, 67% and 66%, respectively). Level of mastery was lower for people who had both been removed themselves and had a relative removed, with 55% reporting High mastery (Table FC.4).

Almost half (45%) of people who had both been removed themselves and had a relative removed reported a current, diagnosed mental health condition. This compared with just under a third (32%) of people who were neither removed nor had a relative removed (Table FC.5).

Experience of violence

Feeling safe at home and in the community contributes to good social and emotional wellbeing. Experiencing threats and acts of violence, living in an environment where personal safety is at risk and facing social settings where violence is common can have negative health effects on victims of violence (AIHW & NIAA 2023). Aside from acute physical injury, health effects can include depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and suicide, as well as cardiovascular disease and premature mortality (Rivara et al. 2019).

In 2018–19, First Nations people who experienced threatened physical harm were less likely to report Low/Moderate psychological distress (43%), High mastery (49%) and High perceived social support (47%), compared with people who did not experience threatened harm (74%, 69% and 62%, respectively) (Table FC.6).

Proportions were similar among people who experienced actual physical harm by another person: Low/Moderate psychological distress (49%), High mastery (43%) and High perceived social support (43%), compared with 70%, 67% and 61%, respectively, among those who did not (Figure 4; Table FC.6).

Both males and females who experienced threatened physical harm were more likely to have a current, diagnosed mental health condition (59% for males and 69% for females) than those who did not (25% for males and 39% for females). For males, this proportion dropped to 36% among those who experienced actual physical harm, but for females the proportion remained at around two thirds (65%) (Figure 5, Table FC.7).

Key terms

Country refers to an area of land or sea on which First Nations people have a traditional or spiritual association.

Level of mastery was determined using the Pearlin Mastery Scale, which is a set of seven statements used to measure how much a person feels in control over life events and outcomes. Higher levels of mastery can lessen the impact of stress on a person’s physical and mental wellbeing. Respondents were asked to respond to each statement by selecting one of four responses presented on a prompt card, ranging from ‘strongly agree’ to ‘strongly disagree’. Responses to the statements were combined to produce an overall score between seven and 28. The scores were then grouped to describe the level of mastery as low (7–19) or high (20–28). The Pearlin mastery scale was asked of people living in non-remote areas only (ABS 2019).

The term non-Indigenous Australians refers to people in Australia who have declared that they are not of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent.

Out-of-home care is overnight care for children aged 0–17 for which the government offers a financial payment that can be accepted by a carer (but does not have to be accepted).

Perceived social support was determined using a set of six statements from the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), which measure a person’s perception of the social support they receive from family and friends. Respondents were asked to respond to each statement by selecting one of seven responses presented on a prompt card, ranging from ‘very strongly disagree’ to ‘very strongly agree’. ‘Don’t know’ and refusal options were available and, if selected, a score was unable to be determined. Responses to the statements were combined to produce a family score, a friends score and an overall score. The family, friends and overall scores were grouped to describe the level of perceived social support from each dimension as low (1–2.9), moderate (3–5) or high (5.1–7). The MSPSS was asked of people living in non-remote areas only (ABS 2019).

Protective factors enhance the likelihood of positive outcomes and reduce the chance of negative consequences from exposure to risk.

Psychological distress was determined using the Kessler 5 (K5), which is a measure of non-specific psychological distress, derived from a modified version of the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10). It is designed for use in surveys of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Respondents were asked questions about how often they had experienced negative emotional states in the previous four weeks by selecting one of five responses, ranging from ‘all of the time’ to ‘none of the time’. Responses were combined to produce an overall score between five and 25. The scores were then grouped to describe the level of psychological distress as low/moderate (5–11) or high/very high (12–25) (ABS 2019).

The Stolen Generations are the current survivors of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children who had been removed from their families and communities as a result of government policies across Australian jurisdictions in the 20th century.

Where do I go for more information?

This information was compiled from the following data sources: National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Survey 2018–19. More information about this data source and its data quality is available in Data sources.

For more information on community safety, please see AIHW report: Community safety for First Nations people.

For more information about mental health and suicide prevention programs and evaluation evidence for Indigenous prisoners, see the Clearinghouse article Criminal justice system.

For more information about mental health and suicide prevention programs and evaluation evidence for Indigenous children in the child protection system, see the Clearinghouse article Child protection system.

For more information about family violence, mental health and suicide, see the Clearinghouse article Domestic and family violence.

For more information on family, kinship and social and emotional wellbeing, see the Clearinghouse article Family and kinship.

For more information on connection to community, see the Clearinghouse article Connection to community.

Data quality issues

Care has been taken to ensure that the results of survey data presented above are as accurate as possible. However, the following factors should be considered when interpreting these estimates:

Data collected from self-report surveys may differ from information available from other sources.
Accuracy of responses may be affected by the length of time between events experienced and participation in the survey.
Some people may have provided responses they felt were expected, rather than those that accurately reflect their own situation (ABS 2019).

References

ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) 2019. National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health survey, 2018–19. ABS cat. no. 4715.0. Canberra: ABS.

AIHW (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare) 2018a. Family, domestic and sexual violence in Australia 2018. Canberra: AIHW.

AIHW 2018b. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Stolen Generations and descendants: numbers, demographic characteristics and selected outcomes. Cat. no. IHW 195. Canberra: AIHW.

AIHW 2019. Youth justice in Australia 2017–18. Canberra: AIHW.AIHW 2023. Indigenous community safety. Canberra: AIHW. Viewed 04 March 2021.

AIHW 2023. Community safety for First Nations people. Canberra: AIHW. Viewed 13 November 2023.

AIHW & NIAA (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare & National Indigenous Australians Agency) 2020. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Performance Framework 2020 web report. Canberra: AIHW. Viewed 17 May 2021, https://www.indigenoushpf.gov.au/measures.

AMA (Australian Medical Association) 2015. 2015 AMA Report card on Indigenous health. Closing the Gap on Indigenous imprisonment rates. Barton: Australian Medical Association.

Bailey C, Powell M & Brubacher SP 2017. The attrition of Indigenous and non-Indigenous child sexual abuse cases in 2 Australian jurisdictions. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law 23(2):178.

Baldry E, McCausland R, Dowse L & McEntyre E 2015. A predictable and preventable path: Aboriginal people with mental and cognitive disabilities in the criminal justice system. Australia: University of NSW.

Bennett P 2016. Specialist courts for sentencing Aboriginal offenders. Adelaide: Federation Press.

Coles J, Lee A, Taft A, Mazza D & Loxton D 2015. Childhood sexual abuse and its association with adult physical and mental health: results from a national cohort of young Australian women. Journal of interpersonal violence 30:1929–44.

Day A, Francisco A & Jones R 2013. Programs to improve interpersonal safety in Indigenous communities: evidence and issues. Canberra: Closing the Gap Clearinghouse.

DoH (Department of Health) 2019. Head to health. Canberra: Department of Health. Viewed 26 March 2020.

Dudgeon P, Blustein S, Bray A, Calma T, McPhee R & Ring I 2021. Connection between family, kinship and social and emotional wellbeing. Cat. no. IMH 4. Canberra: AIHW.

Dudgeon P, Bray A, Blustein S, Calma T, McPhee R, Ring I, and Clarke R 2022. Connection to community. Catalogue number IMH 9, AIHW, Australian Government.

Gee G, Dudgeon P, Schultz C, Hart A & Kelly K 2014. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social and emotional wellbeing. In: Dudgeon P, Milroy H & Walker R (eds). Working together: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mental health and wellbeing principles and practice. 2nd edn. Canberra: Australian Government, pp. 55-68.

Korff J 2015. Bullying & lateral violence. Viewed 8 June 2021, https://www.creativespirits.info/aboriginalculture/people/bullying-lateral-violence.

Loxton D, Townsend N, Dolja-Gore X, Forder P & Coles J 2019. Adverse childhood experiences and healthcare costs in adult life. Journal of child sexual abuse 28:511–25.

McCausland R, McEntyre E & Baldry E 2017. Indigenous people, mental health, cognitive disability and the criminal justice system. Indigenous Justice Clearinghouse, Policy and Reform, NSW Department of Justice.

Marchetti E 2009. Indigenous sentencing courts. Indigenous Justice Clearinghouse Brief 5. Sydney: NSW Department of Justice and Attorney-General.

Milroy H, Dudgeon P & Walker R 2014. Community Life and Development Programs – Pathways to Healing. In: Dudgeon P, Milroy H & Walker R (eds). Working together: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mental health and wellbeing principles and practice. Canberra: Australian Government, pp. 419-36.

Olsen A & Lovett R 2016. Existing knowledge, practice and responses to violence against women in Australian Indigenous communities: State of knowledge paper. Sydney: ANROWS.

Our Watch 2018. Changing the picture, Background paper: Understanding violence against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women. Melbourne: Our Watch.

Palmer D 2013. "We know they healthy cos they on Country with old people": Demonstrating the value of the Yiriman Project, 2010–2013. Final report. 2011. Western Australia: Kimberley Aboriginal Law and Culture Centre, Fitzroy Crossing.

PM&C (Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet) 2017. National Strategic Framework for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples’ Mental Health and Social and Emotional Wellbeing. Canberra: Australian Government.

Prentice K, Blair B & O’Mullan C 2017. Sexual and family violence: Overcoming barriers to service access for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander clients. Australian Social Work 370(2):241–52.

Productivity Commission 2016. Overcoming Indigenous disadvantage: Key indicators report 2016. Productivity Commission 2016. Overcoming Indigenous disadvantage: key indicators report 2016.

Productivity Commission 2019. What is known about systems that enable the ‘public health approach’ to protecting children: Consultation Paper. Canberra: Productivity Commission. Viewed 03 June 2020.

Senate Community Affairs References Committee 2010. Hear us: inquiry into hearing health in Australia. Canberra.

Shepherd SM, Ogloff JRP, Shea D, Pfeifer JE & Paradies Y 2017. Aboriginal prisoners and cognitive impairment: the impact of dual disadvantage on Social and Emotional Wellbeing. Journal of Intellectual Disability Research 61:385–97.

Tilbury C, Burton J, Sydenham E, Boss R & Louw T 2013. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Child Placement Principle: Aims and Core Elements, Submission 93, Attachment 2. Victoria: SNAICC.

Titterton A 2017. Indigenous access to family law in Australia and caring for Indigenous children. University of New South Wales Law Journal 40 (1):146.

Willis M 2010. Community safety in Australian Indigenous communities: Service providers’ perceptions. Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology.

Data tables

Table number and title	Source	Reference period
Table FC.1: Psychological distress among First Nations people, by perceived social support, 2018–19	AIHW analysis of ABS NATSIHS	2018–19
Table FC.2: Perceived social support among First Nations people, by presence of mental health conditions, 2018–19	AIHW analysis of ABS NATSIHS	2018–19
Table FC.3: Social and emotional wellbeing among First Nations people, by feelings of acceptance, 2018–19	AIHW analysis of ABS NATSIHS	2018–19
Table FC.4: Social and emotional wellbeing among First Nations people, by removal from natural family, 2018–19	AIHW analysis of ABS NATSIHS	2018–19
Table FC.5: Presence of mental health conditions among First Nations people, by removal from natural family, 2018–19	AIHW analysis of ABS NATSIHS	2018–19
Table FC.6: Social and emotional wellbeing among First Nations people, by physical harm, 2018–19	AIHW analysis of ABS NATSIHS	2018–19
Table FC.7: Presence of mental health conditions among First Nations people, by physical harm, 2018–19	AIHW analysis of ABS NATSIHS	2018–19