Political and media narratives often manufacture immigration as a social problem, framing the construction of meaning through the discourses of cultural differences as social, political and security problems. Of specific concern is how Muslims and immigrants from predominantly Muslim countries are perceived as the undesirable ‘Other’. The existence of latent - and many times open - anti-Muslim racism raises concerns about the depth of Sweden’s commitment to inclusivity and non-discrimination. Based on the findings of the Diversity Barometer study, among other sources, this article elucidates the longstanding Islamophobia in Sweden. The Diversity Barometer study is a longitudinal survey tracking attitudes towards ethnic diversity in Sweden since 2005. Our analysis shows how islamophobia manifests in the context of structural racism through attitudes towards people with a Muslim background in Sweden. Political debate and national institutions further entrench the negative narrative. By exploring the structural perspective to islamophobia and racism, the article encourages introspection within Swedish society, challenging preconceived notions that hinder social equality, rights, integration, and social cohesion.

Gerotranscendence is a culture-dependent concept involving growth and excellence in old age. While it has been studied in various cultural contexts, little is known about Iranian older adults. This study aims to uncover novel aspects of Iranian older adults’ psychological and transcendental capacities using their lived experiences. A qualitative research approach with a descriptive phenomenological design was employed. Semi-structured and in-depth interviews were conducted with eight older adults (aged 65+) in Tehran, Iran, using a purposive sampling technique. Gerotranscendence among Iranian older adults encompasses four dimensions: self-transcendence, communicative transcendence, worldview transcendence, and harmony of experiences. While sharing commonalities with existing theories, these dimensions exhibit differences that underscore the importance of a culturally sensitive understanding. This study offers unique insights into the development of gerotranscendence in Iranian older adults, highlighting the cultural context of this multifaceted concept. By considering these dimensions in diverse cultural settings, future research can inform tailored interventions and support systems for older adults. 

Introduction: Meaning-making coping is used by people with cancer to help them deal with the stress and emotional turmoil associated with their diagnosis. It is a multifaceted approach that can be influenced by cultural, existential, and personal factors. Research on meaning-making coping among Filipinos diagnosed with cancer is sparse. This study examines how a sample of Filipino people with cancer cope with their illnesses.

Methods: We employed a qualitative approach. The study involved 20 participants with various types of cancer in the Philippines who were selected through purposive sampling and agreed to be interviewed.

Results: The thematic analysis of the interviews revealed the application of both religious and secular meaning-making coping by participants. The study also confirmed the potential influence of culture on coping strategies.

Discussion: The results indicate that religion plays a significant role in Filipino coping mechanisms, given that the Philippines is predominantly a Christian nation. Additionally, the findings highlight the importance of close family ties in Filipino culture and how it contributes to coping with cancer.

Understanding adjustment, coping processes, and various coping strategies is important for preserving and enhancing mental and physical well-being. This chapter reviews and discusses religious/spiritual coping and secular existential coping, their theoretical underpinnings, and their relation to health. Empirical studies conducted in a health-related context were highlighted to demonstrate how these coping strategies are employed in real-life practice. Further, we elaborated on the potential role of culture in individuals’ orientation toward these coping resources. Some possible areas for future research and a few implications for healthcare practitioners, palliative care professionals, and policymakers were outlined.

Workplace violence and threats from social service users towards social workers (client violence) is a problem in Sweden and internationally. This article explores the circumstances that make client violence stressful to social workers who exercise public authority in Swedish individual and family social services. The empirical data are based on qualitative inter- views with social workers (n = 19) who, according to their own perception, have been threatened or assaulted by a client in relation to work. Theory on cognitive appraisal of threat and harm is used. The results, analysed by Inductive Thematic Analysis, show that client violence is stressful because it poses a threat to social workers’ professional identity and private life, and occurs in uncertain and repetitive ways. The results suggest that a negligent safety culture in social service agencies, characterized by normalization of client violence and limited organizational support, may contribute to stress related to client violence. The results are discussed in light of how social workers and social service agencies transact and affect each other.

Background: Identity is a dynamic construct and will change under different cultural conditions. Immigrants, facing the host country, react differently in order to adapt their identity to the new cultural conditions. Despite the high importance of identity and its changes in different cultural and geographical conditions and how a new identity base is formed in immigrants, none of the researches have specifically addressed the identity confusion caused by migration and how to help the individual in redefining identity as a dynamic matter.

Aims: The current research aimed at developing a model to help immigrant students form an established identity status focusing on “returning to oneself”.Methods: This research was conducted with a qualitative approach and a classical hermeneutic method. The current research community is the famous work of Maulana Jalaluddin Muhammad Balkhi, i.e., Masnavi Manavi, and the target sample, according to the content of the research, is two stories; of “Ni Namah” and “The Maid and the King” from Masnav’s first book. These two stories are often cited as documentary sources. The primary coding was based on the hermeneutic method emphasizing the metaphorical side of the mentioned stories. The underlying structure of the research was drawn through the descriptive and interpretive processes; the underlying structure of the research was drawn.

Results: Data analysis results were formulated in the counseling form model comprising six processes: 1) therapeutic alliance, 2) discovering the person desired, 3) raising awareness, 4) searching for origin, 5) unifying, and 6) termination. Each process has its unique content, purpose, and techniques.

Conclusion: The establishment model of the identity status based on “returning to oneself”, based on the components and theoretical framework obtained, can be utilized for solving the identity challenges of immigrant students.

In this paper, we have mapped the coping methods used to address the coronavirus pandemic by members of the academic community. We conducted an anonymous survey of a convenient sample of 674 faculty/staff members and students from September to December 2020. A modified version of the RCOPE scale was used for data collection. The results indicate that both religious and existential coping methods were used by respondents. The study also indicates that even though 71% of informants believed in God or another religious figure, 61% reported that they had tried to gain control of the situation directly without the help of God or another religious figure. The ranking of the coping strategies used indicates that the first five methods used by informants were all non-religious coping methods (i.e., secular existential coping methods): regarding life as a part of a greater whole, regarding nature as an important resource, listening to the sound of surrounding nature, being alone and contemplating, and walking/engaging in any activities outdoors giving a spiritual feeling. Our results contribute to the new area of research on academic community's coping with pandemic-related stress and challenges.

Client violence can affect social workers negatively. In this paper, we explore what the experience of client violence entails for social workers who exercise public authority in Swedish individual and family social services. The empirical data are based on qualitative interviews with social workers (n = 19) and analysed using inductive thematic analysis and power theory. The results show that social workers experienced physical and non-physical violence, often perpetrated through several related incidents. Clients’ use of violence was mainly in reaction to social workers’ exercise of public authority. Organization and delivery of social services seemed to create friction that agitated clients, while putting social work- ers at risk of violence. Social workers situated client violence in two arenas, i.e. the professional and private arena, with perceived aggravation of the violence as it transcended the professional boundary into their private life. The paper highlights the importance of organizational culture that values and promotes the aspirations, dignity and wellbeing of clients and social workers.

Client violence in social work is a workplace problem in Sweden and internationally. Frontline workers in public agencies have the discretion to decide how they deal with clients to cope with challenges like violence and threats. The coping methods may favour some clients while disadvantaging others. Ultimately, the coping practices may become de facto policy, which may not match official organisational policy. This article explores coping methods statutory social workers use to manage violence and threats in their day-to-day dyadic interactions with clients. The article is based on qualitative interviews with social workers (n = 19) who, according to their perception, were victims of client violence. Theory on street-level bureaucracy and frontline workers’ discretion is used. Based on thematic analysis, the results show that social workers draw from four groups of coping methods depending on their moral and normative dispositions. These include (1) the forced helper, (2) the compassionate helper, (3) the distanced helper, and (4) the authoritarian helper. Social workers oscillate between different dispositions depending on situational needs, striving to find the appropriate balance between helping and controlling clients. Studying social workers’ day-to-day dyadic interactions with clients highlights how coping methods could shape social work policy and practice.

In this article, I will discuss the integration of the Sufi ideas into the Iranian ways of thinking. I will put forward some factors, which explain the reason why Sufi ideas could impact the Iranian ways of thinking and become an integrated part of it. This issue is important since one of the reasons for several social problems from which the Iranian society suffers can be found in the Iranian group-oriented ways of thinking and the lack of an individual-oriented perspective concerning every citizen’s not only rights but duties as well. The mystical dimension of Iranian ways of thinking is regarded as one of the factors, which counteracted the growth of concern for the individual self in the ways of thinking of Iranians.