This study used data from the 1996, 2001 and 2006 New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings and the corresponding New Zealand Index of Deprivation to describe trends in the distribution of New Zealand’s major ethnic groups (Māori, Pacific, Asian or European/Other) by small area deprivation and trends in the ethnic composition of each deprivation category. Throughout the observation period, Māori and Pacific ethnic groups were over-represented at the more deprived and underrepresented at the less deprived end of the deprivation spectrum. The European ethnic group displayed less marked skewing, and in the opposite direction, while the Asian ethnic group showed close to the expected uniform distribution. Little change occurred in either the deprivation distribution of any ethnic group or the ethnic composition of any deprivation decile between 1996 and 2006.
