Professor Chris Cunningham is Director of the Research Centre for Māori Health and Development (RCMHD) at Massey University. He is the Principal Investigator for its two main research programmes: Te Pumanawa Hauora (Māori Health) and Best Outcomes for Māori: Te Hoe Nuku Roa (Māori Households Longitudinal Study).

Professor Cunningham is a co-Director of He Kāinga Oranga - Housing and Health Research Programme, which was awarded the prestigious Prime Minister’s Science Prize in 2014.

Chris is the Director of the Research Centre for Māori Health and Development (RCMHD) at Massey University. He is the Principal Investigator for its two main research programmes: Te Pumanawa Hauora (Māori Health) and Best Outcomes for Māori: Te Hoe Nuku Roa (Māori Households Longitudinal Study).

Originally appointed Director of Health Research in the School of Māori Studies in 1996, Chris was appointed as inaugural Director of the Centre when it was established in 2002. The Centre won a Massey University Research Medal in 2007. In 2016 Chris was awarded a Massey University: Health Research Council Senior Research Leader’s Award. 

RCMHD runs a successful Doctoral Research Programme which has produced 32 PhD graduates since 2000.  RCMHD's current research projects focus on smokefree, hepatitis B, healthy classrooms, healthy housing, primary care screening, health service quality measurement, sports concussion and cardiac health.

 

Key publications

  1. (2007).
    Institutional challenges in addressing healthy low-cost housing for all: learning from past policy.
    Social Policy Journal of New Zealand,
    30, 42-64.
  2. Matheson, A. Cunningham, M. Blakely, T. O’Dea, D. Woodward, A. Saville-Smith, A. Waipara, N.
    (2005).
    Retrofitting houses with insulation to reduce health inequalities: Aims and methods of a clustered, randomised community-based trial
    Social Science and Medicine,
    61(12, 2600-2610.
  3. Matheson, A. Waipara, N. Blakely, T. Cunningham, M. Woodward, A. O’Dea, D. Douwes, J. Marshall, C. Skelton, P.
    (2002)
    A national study of the health effects of insulating homes: the baseline data (Report 2).
    University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand

    A national study of the health effects of insulating homes: the baseline data (Report 2), August 2002. He Kainga Oranga Housing and Health Research Programme Department of Public Health Wellington