In this issue …

Abstract

Welcome to this issue of Qualitative Social Work. We are very honoured to have two new Editorial Board members. You will have read the brilliant Editorial by Kirsty Oehlers which reflects the creativity and innovation she brings to her Associate Editor role. Having published in our New Voices section, Kirsty will be taking the lead and as you can see, very much welcomes your submissions. We are also excited to have a new European Review Essay Editor, Dr Caroline Leah. Caroline will be introducing herself and her vision for the Review Essay section in the next European-led issue. We have 12 articles in this issue, on topics including mental health, child protection, and dis/abilities, using a range of methodological approaches. We begin with an article by Talin Gharibian and David McCarty-Caplan who write about their exploratory study which examined the intersections of Middle Eastern and North African American cultural identity, and attitudes towards mental health and substance use in the United States. The authors note that ‘the unique experiences of MENA communities are rendered nearly invisible within much of the extant scientific literature on public health and substance abuse within the U.S., despite growing recognition that research about these communities remains limited’. Based on their interviews with 15 people, the authors identified five primary themes: lack of understanding, shame and stigma, denial, collective identity, and resistance. The article concludes with four important recommendations for social workers. The following article is by Louise Morley and Frances Crawford who are both based in Australia. Their article reflects on the humanistic conceptualisation of Martin Buber’s I/thou notion of personhood. I was interested to read how their engagement with Buber’s work was sparked by the reflections of two social work interviewees in a larger study. It reminded me of Les Back’s (2019, np.) argument that ‘fostering a different kind of attentiveness to the world is a resource in the service of hope’. The authors, attentive to the social workers discussion of personhood, have used this as a basis for their own reflections. Wemove to an article by Rahel More, based on their doctoral research, which critically explores the meanings of parenting and dis/ability for mothers and fathers with intellectual disabilities in the context of social work in Austria. The author collected data from Austrian virtual internet discussion groups (newsgroups), interviews with six social work