Mental Health Survey

Te Rau Hinengaro – New Zealand Mental Health Survey collects information on the prevalence, severity, impairment and treatment of major mental health disorders. Te Rau Hinengaro was carried out in 2003/04.

Overview

Te Rau Hinengaro collected information on the mental health of New Zealanders, including prevention, severity and treatment. This survey is linked to one that has been fielded in many other countries in collaboration with the World Health Organization. The questionnaire used is a New Zealand adapted version of the WHO Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI).

The main objectives of the survey were to:

  • describe the one-month, 12-month and lifetime prevalence rates of major mental disorders among those aged 16 and over living in private households, overall and by sociodemographic correlates
  • describe patterns of and barriers to health service use for people with mental disorder
  • describe the level of disability associated with mental disorder
  • provide baseline data and calibrate brief instruments measuring mental disorders and psychological distress to inform the use of these instruments in future national health surveys.

The aim was to provide this information for the total New Zealand population and for Māori and Pacific populations living in New Zealand.

Te Rau Hinengaro was a computer assisted face-to-face interview (CAPI) administered survey. In 2003/04 a sample of 13,000 people were interviewed, with two booster samples for Māori and Pacific peoples. Data were collected over a 12-month period.

Data and statistics

There are three main ways of getting data and statistics from Te Rau Hinengaro.

  1. The Mental health section contains the key results from the surveys.
  2. Further analysis of survey results can be requested in some circumstances. Please email [email protected] if you are interested in getting further analysis done.
  3. Survey microdata will be available from Te Rau Hinengaro to researchers for their own research projects, on certain conditions. More information can be found in the Access to survey microdata section.
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