The Western Australian Indigenous Storybook Spins Special Yarns

Melissa Stoneham; Christina R. Davies; Ray Christophers

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-56417-9_16

The Western Australian Indigenous Storybook Spins Special Yarns

Review

In: Arts and Health Promotion: Tools and Bridges for Practice, Research, and Social Transformation [Internet]. Cham (CH): Springer; 2021. Chapter 16.

2021 Mar 30.

Authors

Melissa Stoneham^{1

2

3}, Christina R. Davies^{4

5

6}, Ray Christophers⁷

Book Editors

J. Hope Corbin¹, Mariana Sanmartino², Emily Alden Hennessy³, Helga Bjørnøy Urke⁴

Affiliations

¹ Public Health Advocacy Institute of Western Australia, School of Public Health, Curtin University, Perth, Australia
² School of Public Health, Edith Cowan University, Joondalup, Australia
³ Menzies School of Health Research, Casuarina, Australia
⁴ Health Humanities – Division of Health Professions Education, School of Allied Health, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia
⁵ Public Health Advocacy Institute of WA, Curtin University, Perth, Australia
⁶ The West Australian Arts and Health Consortium, Perth, Australia
⁷ Nirrumbuk Environmental Health & Services, Nirrumbuk Aboriginal Corporation, Broome, Australia

Book Affiliations

¹ Department of Health and Community Studies, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA, USA
² Grupo de Didáctica de las Ciencias, IFLYSIB, CONICET - UNLP Grupo ¿De qué hablamoscuando hablamos de Chagas?, La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina
³ Department of Psychology Institute for Collaboration on Health Intervention & Policy, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
⁴ Faculty of Psychology, Department of Health Promotion and Development, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway

Excerpt

In this chapter, we explore how the arts-based practice of storytelling and publishing can be used as a tool to enhance the well-being of Aboriginal Australians. With a focus on health promotion as outlined in Chap. 1, the West Australian Indigenous Storybooks are a collection of autobiographical stories and artworks that showcase the achievements of Aboriginal Australians and their communities across Western Australia. Bridging the gap between research and practice, the rationale for the Storybooks was based on findings that mainstream media about Aboriginal people is negative, and that this negative focus has an impact on Aboriginal identity, self-efficacy, and health. Guided by an Aboriginal Steering Committee and regional Elders, the Storybooks are a bridge for social transformation and use a strengths-based approach to provide storytellers with the opportunity to write about their experiences, reflect on their achievements, and write/rewrite media-based stereotypes of Aboriginal life. This chapter outlines the rationale for the Storybooks, the method, and the outcomes. By evaluating storyteller experiences, we identify and reflect on the successes and challenges of this type of arts-health approach.

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