There are two ways to seek to establish best practices for Alaska Native Elders. The first represents an attempt to emulate documented practices chiefly established to provide services
to non-indigenous people in the United States. This approach utilizes theories that have been developed for "mainstream USA" that are then applied to Alaska Natives. The second approach involves undertaking an understanding of the physical, sociocultural, and economic factors involved in the life of Alaska Native Elders. This method involves the development of innovative theories that represent the values of the people, which leads to novel practices that can result in establishing best practice procedures meaningful to the population to be served. This approach has been adopted in pursuing best practices for Alaska Native Elders.