Key Social Work Frameworks for Sociologists ● 39spiritual, cultural, and health impacts from oppression and colonization. It
is therefore not surprising that, in countries that have experienced coloniza-
tion and also have a well-established social work academy, alternative frame-
works have developed. These frameworks focus on the self-determination
of indigenous people, their rights to justice and equality, and the revaluing
and restoration of indigenous knowledge and conceptual frameworks. Such
frameworks are also used to analyze and intervene in areas where problems
occur. Most indigenous peoples suffer disproportionately from significant
social problems, including poverty, violence, racism, poor health, and addic-
tions, in comparison with their nonindigenous counterparts. In a number
of nations, indigenous peoples who have been at the margins for centuries
are now voicing their right to use frameworks and practices that reflect their
own cultures, ideologies, and ways of promoting the well-being of their
own people.
The indigenous frameworks being developed in Aotearoa/New Zealand are
illustrative of developments in a number of countries. The indigenous peoples
of Aotearoa/New Zealand are Māori; they represent 15 percent of the nation’s
population. For over 200 years, Māori have experienced and challenged the
negative impacts of colonization. Within this context, social work has estab-
lished two frameworks as the dominant approaches to working with both Māori
and non-Māori clients: a bicultural framework and a kaupapa Māori framework,
the latter embodying core Māori principles, practices, and knowledge.
The bicultural framework emanates from an understanding and application
of the partnership principles in the Treaty of Waitangi. This treaty, signed
in 1840 between representatives of the British Crown and over 500 Māori
leaders, is the founding document of New Zealand (Ruwhiu 2013). The
application of the Treaty of Waitangi’s principles—which include partnership,
reciprocity, protection, indigenous rights, and independence—requires social
workers to recognize the significance of historical relationships and become
familiar with key ideas and actions associated with maintaining Māori well-being
(Ruwhiu [2013] and chapter 6).
According to Munford and Sanders (2011) and Ruwhiu (2013), a bicultural
framework will
● (^) embrace both Māori and non-Māori cultural understandings, protocols,
and practices;
● (^) recognize the impact of political, economic, social, and cultural margin-
alization on Māori as a consequence of colonization and the advantages
gained by non-Māori through colonization;
● (^) draw on the expertise offered by Māori models of social work used and
valued by Māori communities;