Vol. 1 No. 1 (2026): The International Journal of Indigenous Business
Articles

Between Culture and Context: What Shapes Māori Perspectives on Capitalism and Government Regulation?

Houkamau et al_PDF
  • Carla Houkamau,
  • Kieren Lilly,
  • Kiri Dell,
  • Amber Nicholson,
  • Nimbus Staniland,
  • Jason Mika,
  • Chris Sibley
Carla Houkamau
University of Auckland
Bio
Kieren Lilly
Institute for Social Science Research, University of Queensland, Australia
Bio
Kiri Dell
University of Auckland
Bio
Amber Nicholson
University of Auckland
Bio
Nimbus Staniland
University of Auckland
Bio
Jason Mika
University of Auckland
Chris Sibley
University of Auckland
Bio
Inaugural Edition: International Journal of Indigenous Business
DOI: https://doi.org/10.64222/KZZG3410

Published 2026-02-17

Keywords

  • Indigenous economics,
  • Māori,
  • capitalism,
  • government regulation

How to Cite

Houkamau, C., Lilly, K., Dell, K., Nicholson, A., Staniland, N., Mika, J., & Sibley, C. (2026). Between Culture and Context: What Shapes Māori Perspectives on Capitalism and Government Regulation?. The International Journal of Indigenous Business, 1(1), 78–96. https://doi.org/10.64222/KZZG3410

Copyright (c) 2026 Carla, Kieren, Kiri, Amber, Nimbus, Jason Mika, Chris

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Abstract

This study examines the way Māori (Indigenous to Aotearoa New Zealand) attitudes toward capitalism and government regulation of business vary across the population, challenging homogeneous representations of a single “Māori perspective”. While previous research has explored Indigenous economic models (Anderson et al., 2008) and emphasised the tensions between Indigenous values and market economics, these studies often imply a monolithic Indigenous economic perspective. Using data from Wave 2 of the 2020 Māori Identity and Financial Attitudes Study, we examined 3,241 Māori participants through multiple regression analyses to assess the way cultural identity (iwi importance, cultural efficacy) and employment type (self-employed, paid worker) influence attitudes toward capitalism and government regulation of business. Our findings revealed significant associations between cultural identification, employment position, and economic attitudes. Māori with stronger iwi (tribal) affiliations expressed greater opposition to capitalism and support for business regulation. At the same time, self-employed Māori showed more favourable views toward capitalism and decreased support for government regulation of business. These patterns persisted after controlling for demographic factors. The findings moved beyond homogenising characterisations and towards a more nuanced understanding of the influence of individual circumstances on economic attitudes among Māori.

Houkamau et al_PDF

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