Reconciliation is not a destination, but a rigorous clinical and ethical practice. Upcoming CCN conference keynote speaker Professor Andrew Gunstone interrogates the transition from performative gestures to substantive, anti-racist action within the profession.
At the upcoming College of Clinical Neuropsychologists (CCN) Conference, Professor Andrew Gunstone, Co-Chair of Reconciliation Victoria and Foundation Editor of Journal of Australian Indigenous Issues, aims to help delegates to understand the difference between performative acts of allyship and move towards substantive reconciliation efforts.
With three decades of experience leading reconciliation efforts across academic and community sectors, Professor Gunstone will deliver a provocative keynote challenging people to move towards more meaningful means of reconciliation and allyship.
"One of the things I talk about a lot in my career is that organisations will often develop reconciliation action plans, but they do it in a performative way," he says. "That's why some Indigenous communities are sceptical of RAPs because, often, they're not worth the paper they're written on.
"To make them more meaningful, the same public attention that goes into the launch of a RAP should be applied when a RAP finishes. And, along the way, you might have a traffic light system going, which shows: 'Here's where we're doing well, and this is where we're not doing so well'. That's much more meaningful and useful," he says.
By interrogating power structures and encouraging a shift toward substantive reconciliation, he will invite the profession – and broader community – to trade comfortable symbolism for the harder, more impactful work of true reparative justice.
Despite not being a psychologist himself, Professor Gunstone's external perspective, the principles of his work – addressing racism and reparative justice – are deeply resonant with the ethical and clinical frameworks needed to create an inclusive and effective psychology profession.
Truth-Telling, listening and acting
Professor Gunstone’s longitudinal research into Australian attitudes, which has been running since 2004, reveals a "stunning lack of understanding" among non-Indigenous people, he says.
Astonishingly, about 30 per cent of survey respondents do not believe that gaps exist in health, education or housing for Indigenous Australians, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.
This colonial load describes the heavy burden placed on First Nations people to constantly educate others.
He notes that during the referendum, for example, non-Indigenous people often assumed all Aboriginal people were constitutional law experts and would pepper them with questions rather than doing their own research.
Part of overcoming this cultural load is prioritising action over armchair activism.
The Uluru Statement from the Heart calls for Voice, Treaty and Truth. While truth-telling is a common concept in Australia, Professor Gunstone has coined necessary extensions: truth-listening and truth-acting.
He points out that Australia has had dozens of inquiries – from the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody to the Bring Them Home report – yet the vast majority of recommendations are never implemented.
"Truth-telling in itself isn't enough," says Professor Gunstone. "Governments, communities [and] organisations have to listen to the truth. But then beyond all that, they have to act on the truth."
For the psychology profession, the risk of truth-telling without acting is significant. Professor Gunstone warns that asking First Nations people to tell their stories for a report or a National Reconciliation Week event, for example, without following through with structural change can be psychologically damaging.
"Talking about your trauma – or your family's trauma – again and again and again, only for it to be put into a book or a report that sits on a shelf while nothing happens, [can be] really re-traumatising people," he says.
"I am a very strong believer in the need for truth-telling to be accompanied by truth-listening and truth-acting at all levels: government, businesses, community and individuals."
Practical steps for psychologists
For those attending the APS CCN Conference, the takeaway will be a challenge to engage in reconciliation in meaningful ways, says Professor Gunstone. This includes:
- Indigenous leadership: Substantive change requires Indigenous voices at all levels, including boards and executive leadership, not just entry-level positions.
- Proactive training: His research indicates that cultural capability is not about a single event or module, but the number of engagements. He cites research which shows that people who attended four or five training events showed significantly higher levels of competence than those who only attended a single, one-off training session.
"Standing up... is really important," says Professor Gunstone.
Whether it's challenging inappropriate comments from friends or relatives or pushing for anti-racist policies within an organisation, he says genuine allyship is an active, ongoing process.
Andrew Gunstone will be talking about reconciliation at the upcoming APS College of Clinical Neuropsychologists Conference on 31 July. Learn more about his session here.
Truth-telling in itself isn't enough. Governments, communities [and] organisations have to listen to the truth. But then beyond all that, they have to act on the truth. – Professor Andrew Gunstone.
The APS Indigenous Taskforce' perspective
In recognition of the ten-year anniversary of the APS formal apology to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples – a landmark commitment to the profession’s relationship with First Nation’s communities – APS established its Indigenous Taskforce, co-chaired by Professor Pat Dudgeon AM and APS President Kelly Gough.
One of its members is Tony Kiessler, who is an Arrernte man and the CEO of the Australian Indigenous Psychologist Association (AIPA). One of the key focuses of the Taskforce is to support APS in working towards the genuine and meaningful allyship and reconciliation efforts outlined by Professor Gunstone above.
"We're there to have a conversation with the APS and guide them in their work, which includes the development of a new reconciliation action plan," says Kiessler.
Other initiatives they're working with APS on include:
"We're also helping the APS to think about what else they can do, such as [creating] more meaningful outputs, empowering their First Nations reference group, and then advocating in the sector.
"[That could look like] advocating with the Psychology Board of Australia, looking at things like the new curriculum, and how does that affect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students, and what can [a group] with a voice like the APS do to help support and promote any concerns that we, as a group of practitioners, might have."
Psychologists are incredibly important in furthering Australia's reconciliation efforts, says Kiessler, as they are the "knowledge holders of a broad area of study called social and emotional wellbeing".
"This is about looking at the whole person: their mind, body and spirit. And that’s a very Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander specific way of looking at mental health and the way it’s delivered and looks at broader aspects of life and culture.
"That's a big story to be told by psychologists, including what it looks like in practice.”
As well as becoming familiar with tools and resources (see below) to position yourself as a genuine ally and support reconciliation efforts in the profession and broader community,
Kiessler highlights the importance of understanding, in a comprehensive manner, the new competencies around cultural safety, set by Ahpra.
"Do that in a meaningful way with materials and knowledge that comes from Indigenous psychologists,” he says. “Really reflect on your practice and how you can be more inclusive.
“We make up 0.9 per cent of the psychology workforce and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have the largest burden of mental health issues, so it won't be any time soon that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander psychologists will be able to fill that gap – mainstream psychologists are going to need to be responsive to that.
"It's really great that the APS is working closely with AIPA, and with people like Pat Dudgeon. It's a really positive step. We're really happy they're working closely with us, and we welcome more of that."
Recommended resources for professionals
Professor Gunstone suggests several starting points for anyone looking to build their cultural capability – within the profession or the broader community:
APS resource list: