摘要：Like many Indigenous groups, Inuit youth have experienced high rates of suicide following the historical trauma and ongoing marginalization associated with Euro-Canadian colonialism. (1) Suicide rates in Nunavik are among the highest in Canada. (2) Yet suicide rates vary substantially among communities, (3) and many Inuit youth are thriving. Moreover, some Inuit "feel that it is detrimental to the health of individuals to continually tell them that they are at the highest risk for disease" and "are interested in research on ... concepts of wellness, and wellness indicators". (4)
Mental wellness, defined by Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (ITK) as "self-esteem and personal dignity flowing from harmonious physical, emotional, mental and spiritual wellness and cultural identity", (5) is a priority for Inuit organizations. Inuit cite a wide range of social and environmental factors that affect mental wellness, (6-9) including a clear cultural identity and social role;supportive relationships with friends, family and community, particularly Elders; access to and knowledge of the land and the Inuktitut language; and regular consumption of locally harvested food ("country food"). Salient stressors include emotional stress in relationships, violence, poverty, overcrowded housing and environmental change.
However, epidemiological research involving Inuit has focused primarily on individual-level risk factors for psychobehavioural pathology. (10-13) Little attention has been paid to protective factors or to community contexts as determinants of mental health, or to positive dimensions of mental wellness. This phenomenon is not specific to research involving Inuit: a recent review (14) of the scope of research on Indigenous mental health and wellness emphasized the need to include community-level perspectives in epidemiological research, as well as a focus on resilience and well-being. Such studies can be useful in guiding and supporting mental wellness promotion efforts for Inuit youth, and in directing research attention towards key dimensions of the complex community dynamics that give rise to variations in mental wellness among communities.
