Whanau out of touch with cultural customs are to benefit from a Maori project looking into traditional child rearing.
Ministry of Social Development data from 2012 shows abuse among Maori newborns to four years old was higher than other nationalities.
For the same age group, the rate of Maori who went to hospital for intentional injuries was four times higher than for other tamariki - not including Pasifika children.
Leonie Pihama, who leads research programme Tiakina Te Pa Harakeke, says some traditions include parents and grandparents working together to raise a child.
The Waikato University associate professor says another custom is to avoid smacking a child because it's seen as physically punishing a child and its ancestors.
Some whanau may not know about Maori customs or be close to people who can share their knowledge due to colonisation, she says, urging that the project evidence to be passed on to families.
A two-day research symposium will be held at the Waikato-Tainui College for Research and Development on 10-11 February to canvas how traditional values are being used today to protect tamariki.
