Getting our histories right rather than Right
CORNWELL, MAX
1996-03-01 00:00:00
Most of the papers in this issue are concerned with histories of our field, while keeping an eye on our possible futures. Behind the scenes, the Journal too has been considering its future and in the past year has conducted two enquiries. Elsewhere in this issue we report on the findings of a brief survey on volunteer contributions to the Journal, which gives additional evidence of how much we depend on the goodwill, time and expertise of many unpaid colleagues. Our June issue will include a report on our random survey of individual subscribers, which has also been most helpful in charting future directions. Unknown to us, two independent researchers were also making an enquiry into the Journal. Their paper on aspects of our first ten years of publication is featured in this issue. We welcome this enquiry by Mari Davis and Lorraine Lipson, and regard being chosen for their analysis as both a compliment and a gift, offering invaluable material for us to help evaluate our record and to plan ahead. The fact their research was totally independent and completed before we knew of its existence gives an added validity to their findings. Their research on the Journal was incidental to their main focus. Indeed, coming as it does from another field and including advanced forms of bibliometric analysis, their study offers a unique vantage point. Even if we had had the resources to fund such a project, it is unlikely we would have been equipped to raise some of the sophisticated bibliometric questions they pose, let alone gather answers. We are indebted here too to the Anita Morawetz Research Committee of VAFf, which gave financial support for the data relevant to the Journal to be drawn together for our use after the main bibliometric research had been presented and published. Now that this benchmark work has been done, it is my hope that periodic updates will be made, perhaps commissioned by the Journal and/or the Associations, so that we keep monitoring trends. Meanwhile we are looking at selected areas and how they have been handled in the second decade, most notably two questions that have been of continual concern to the Journalthe pursuit of gender equity and the special requirements of our indigenous peoples. At time of writing, I am quite sick at heart at gathering suggestions in the media of a manylayered, renewed conservative onslaught on the rights of Aborigines. That is a possibility too dreadful to contemplate, one far more pressing than our own parochial concerns, and one we should all monitor very carefully. As Andrew Wood makes clear in his history of social work and family-centred perspectives, or Brian Stagoll does in his touching on little known connections between New Zealand and Victoria, part of the challenge for us all is to draw on seemingly diverse histories as essential to inclusive futures. Finally, my apologies for the delayed appearance of this issue. The reason should be made abundantly clear on the next page. MAX CORNWELL Editor (iii)
http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.pngAustralian and New Zealand Journal of Family TherapyWileyhttp://www.deepdyve.com/lp/wiley/getting-our-histories-right-rather-than-right-heufglmi58
Most of the papers in this issue are concerned with histories of our field, while keeping an eye on our possible futures. Behind the scenes, the Journal too has been considering its future and in the past year has conducted two enquiries. Elsewhere in this issue we report on the findings of a brief survey on volunteer contributions to the Journal, which gives additional evidence of how much we depend on the goodwill, time and expertise of many unpaid colleagues. Our June issue will include a report on our random survey of individual subscribers, which has also been most helpful in charting future directions. Unknown to us, two independent researchers were also making an enquiry into the Journal. Their paper on aspects of our first ten years of publication is featured in this issue. We welcome this enquiry by Mari Davis and Lorraine Lipson, and regard being chosen for their analysis as both a compliment and a gift, offering invaluable material for us to help evaluate our record and to plan ahead. The fact their research was totally independent and completed before we knew of its existence gives an added validity to their findings. Their research on the Journal was incidental to their main focus. Indeed, coming as it does from another field and including advanced forms of bibliometric analysis, their study offers a unique vantage point. Even if we had had the resources to fund such a project, it is unlikely we would have been equipped to raise some of the sophisticated bibliometric questions they pose, let alone gather answers. We are indebted here too to the Anita Morawetz Research Committee of VAFf, which gave financial support for the data relevant to the Journal to be drawn together for our use after the main bibliometric research had been presented and published. Now that this benchmark work has been done, it is my hope that periodic updates will be made, perhaps commissioned by the Journal and/or the Associations, so that we keep monitoring trends. Meanwhile we are looking at selected areas and how they have been handled in the second decade, most notably two questions that have been of continual concern to the Journalthe pursuit of gender equity and the special requirements of our indigenous peoples. At time of writing, I am quite sick at heart at gathering suggestions in the media of a manylayered, renewed conservative onslaught on the rights of Aborigines. That is a possibility too dreadful to contemplate, one far more pressing than our own parochial concerns, and one we should all monitor very carefully. As Andrew Wood makes clear in his history of social work and family-centred perspectives, or Brian Stagoll does in his touching on little known connections between New Zealand and Victoria, part of the challenge for us all is to draw on seemingly diverse histories as essential to inclusive futures. Finally, my apologies for the delayed appearance of this issue. The reason should be made abundantly clear on the next page. MAX CORNWELL Editor (iii)
Journal
Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family Therapy
– Wiley
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