CfP: Negotiating Belief in Health and Social Care for Special Issue with the Int J of Human Rights in Healthcare

The guest editor of the journal is seeking manuscript submissions for a 2018 special issue on how religion, belief and spiritual identities are negotiated in health and social care, in policy and professional practice.
Religion and belief, either as identities or concepts, have been explored by many contemporary theorists and researchers. By and large, researchers in the 21st century have agreed that religion never went away, as per Berger’s and Bruce’s arguments, but rather changed; the way people believe and engage with their religious or nonreligious faith is different. Never the less, and as religion privatised until more recent years, while more secular ideas were present in the public sphere, professional practitioners found themselves in a position in which they lack appropriate language and skills to engage with religion, belief and spiritual identities of service users. Recently, in 2016, Adam Dinham and Mathew Francis explored the concept of religious literacy in policy and practice. Such framework recommends the need for further investigation of how professionals and policies negotiate such identities. This special issue, therefore, seeks contributions from scholars and practitioners to report on contemporary approaches to religion, belief, and spirituality in policy and practice.
This special issue will provide evidence and critical intersectional analysis about specific issues related to religion, belief, nonbelief, and spirituality specifically pertaining to health and social care.  We are seeking empirical research articles, case studies, viewpoint articles, review or literature review articles and conceptual articles covering (but not limited to) the following topics:
  • The representation of religion, belief and spirituality in health and social policies;
  • The representation of religion, belief and spirituality in end of life care;
  • How religious and nonreligious beliefs are integrated into professional practice;
  • Spiritual well-being and health and social care;
  • Negotiating religion, nonreligion and spirituality in social care;
  • Are personal beliefs contradicting professional practice?
  • Religious diversity and health inequalities;
  • Religious microaggressions and healthcare;
  • How does spirituality link with health equality?
  • Intersectional analysis and critique of secular theories and the presence of religion, belief and spirituality in health and social care;
  • Intersectional analysis of how theories of religion explain the negotiation of religion and belief in professional practice;
  • Social function of religion in health and social care;
  • Social constructionism and religion in health and social care;
  • Intersubjectivity and religious or nonreligious self-awareness of health and social care professionals.


The key contents considered in this issue are intersectionality, social determinants of health and social care, equity and human rights, and interventions that help to overcome barriers and that promote equality and inclusion.  Submissions may present new research, critical theory, or best practice and should highlight practical lessons learned from experience in different settings or countries.

Submission instructions
  • Manuscripts should be between 3,000 and 6,500 words and formatted according to the journal author guidelines.
  • Submissions must be received by 15th September 2017 via the online submission system Scholar One Manuscripts: http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/ijhrh
  • Authors should indicate that the manuscript is for this special issue by selecting this from the dropdown list on Scholar One Manuscripts.


For further information
Please see the journal homepage: http://www.emeraldinsight.com/ijhrh.htm o