Lay summary
During the COVID-19 pandemic, health professionals encountered some objections and resistance from the Pacific communities. One of the strongest (yet ignored) factors behind the resistance is people’s illusionary lotu (faith/religion) or ‘delusional religiosity’ (DR) (i.e. religious beliefs and practices with no link to reality or facts) to be exact. DR is a ‘pandemic’ in its own way, and it has the propensity to harm people with its toxic and life-negating orientation. The overall aim of this project, therefore, is to explore the impact of delusional religiosity (DR) on the health and well-being of Pacific peoples with a particular focus on Tongans. Central to the project is the question: what impact does ‘delusional religiosity’ have on the well-being of Tongans in New Zealand? In order to answer this question, this project will employ a qualitative approach to data collection and analysis.