Taking ceremony into the laboratory. Fulbright presentation.

Abstract

Dr. Cheung’s research integrates Western scientific and Maori ways of knowing and being to study brain diseases. The Maori believe the head is extremely tapu (sacred/with restriction). After consulting with Ngati Rangitihi elders they advised the researchers develop tikanga (ceremonies) to use in the laboratory environment to honor the sacred nature of the brain and to acknowledge the person. Her subsequent research practices integrated tikanga (ceremony) into the cutting-edge scientific methods for growing human brain-derived cells used to study neurodegenerative diseases and develop treatments. As an extension of this research, culturally-responsive clinical practices in nursing, psychiatry and psychology resulted for those who treat Maori people with Huntingdon’s disease.