International Journal for Multidisciplinary Research (IJFMR

The shifting of paradigms in modern psychology has left modern men in a state of confusion on the issues pertaining to what should be the paramount concern of psychology and in the proper understanding on the topic of human nature. In a contrastive manner Islamic psychology which has been promoted by Muslim scholars alongside with the process of Islamization of knowledge and education, has its roots in the philosophical ideas of early Muslim scholars. Its resurgence, which started some two decades ago, is seen as an initiative to introduce Islamic understanding on man to the conflicting ideas prevalent in modern psychology. Its approach, which is mainly philosophical in nature, goes back to the ideas on man mentioned in the two primary sources of Islam, the Qur'an and ×adÊth. Islamic psychology with its comprehensive ideas on human nature has been seen by Muslim scholars as a new perspective in psychology that can fill in the lacunae present in the modern psychological thoughts on man, and clears the mist that surrounds most Western theories on man. This paper represents an attempt to analyze and also synthesize Western psychology and Islamic psychology in terms of their nature, development, contributions, and problems.

American Journal of Applied Psychology, 2022

As psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior then it follows that psychology should be able to understand, manipulate, predict and treat human thought and behavior. The purpose of this paper is to explain how first of these three could be used to revive Islam among Muslims in Muslim majority countries. The discussion has been analytical in nature while applying psychological principles and theories from a wide range of psychological studies to understand and design Islamic revival. The paper focuses on five core psychological and psychosocial areas: early childhood development, adulthood, social relationship, marriage and unity. These are crucial foundations for any people, society and it's worldview and even more so for Muslims and Islamic revival. The readers must not in anyway, get the idea that this paper proposes Islam vs West conflict, rather the paper establishes the uniqueness and independence of the Islamic society through the Islamic religion while revealing Islam as a broader system. The paper truly establishes human diversity on independent values and laws through Islam as an example. The paper reveals that psychology is a workable science and not just theory and as such Muslim psychologists should continue to study and use psychology to evolve and mature the Islamic self-concept, Islamic conscience and Islamic society.

psychological studies, 2006

"There have been some suggestions concerning the subject matter of Islamic psychology. It seems that these suggestions could not overcome the theoretical barrier for providing a subject matter for psychology. Some have considered the divine Spirit (Run) within the human as the subject matter, some others have regarded the Soul (Nafs)and still others, the divine creation of the human (Fitrah) as the candidates for doing the job. However, these suggestions could be challenged in different ways on being able to provide a suitable subject for scientific studies of psychology. The present essay is an introductory attempt to give an alternative. Accordingly, an alternative to the three abovementioned suggestions seems to be the important Islamic concept of Action. We can consider Action as the suitable subject matter for psychology. This is because action is so wide that it could cover all the humans whether believers or non-believers in God, whether their Fitrah is active or silent. An action, as it is used in the Islamic texts, refers to a behavior (being observable or non-observable) that is based on, at least, three kinds of foundations: cognition, emotion, and will. In addition to being a suitable subject for psychology, action is a key concept in referring to the human nature or identity. "

Journal of Religion and Health, 2004

Early Muslims wrote extensively about human nature and called it Ilm-al Nafsiat or self-knowledge. In many cases, their works seem to be the original ideas for many modern day psychological theories and practices. What is interesting however is that a lot of what the early scholars wrote was blended with Islamic philosophy and religious ideas. This paper covers major contributions of prominent early Muslim scholars to psychology and outlines the challenges faced by today's Muslims in adapting to the Western theories. It also offers a few recommendations on the indigenization of psychology for Muslim societies interested in seeking the Islamic perspective on human behaviors.

2018

In this article the author attempts to give a brief summary and critique of the various ways Islamic Psychology is conceptualized and defined. She then proposes and discusses a conceptual model, the Multilevel Interdisciplinary Paradigm (MIP), as a potential theoretical unifier for the emerging field, which also serves as a methodology for defining it. Recommendations for ways forward in the domain of Islamic Psychology are also provided. Keywords Islamic Psychology – Multilevel Interdisciplinary Paradigm (MIP) – Psychology of Religion and Spirituality – Psychology – Islamic Studies

Journal of Clinical Psychology, 2004

Psychology," like many abstract terms, is difficult to define precisely. Henriques' (this issue, pp. 1207-1221) argument that psychology, though unified and coherent, actually spans two realms-psychological formalism ("the science of mind," this issue, p. 1211) and human psychology ("the science of human behavior at the individual level," this issue, p. 1208)seems likely to improve the clarity of the concept. The strongest contribution of his analysis may be its placing "psychology" in the larger conceptual framework of the Tree of Knowledge taxonomy.

Early Muslims wrote extensively about human nature and called it Ilm-al Nafsiat or self-knowledge. In many cases, their works seem to be the original ideas for many modern day psychological theories and practices. What is interesting however is that a lot of what the early scholars wrote was blended with Islamic philosophy and religious ideas. This paper covers major contributions of prominent early Muslim scholars to psychology and outlines the challenges faced by today's Muslims in adapting to the Western theories. It also offers a few recommendations on the indigenization of psychology for Muslim societies interested in seeking the Islamic perspective on human behaviors.

This chapter outlines the basic concepts rooted in Islamic religious and spiritual traditions. The different types of fitrah, nature of human soul, and the dynamics of the metaphysical elements like nafs, aql, and ruh are explored with their effects on human personality. Concepts of Jinn, Satan and evil eye and their influences on human personality as well as contributions of some prominent early Muslim scholars to psychology are discussed. It is hoped that with the growth of indigenous psychologies, Islamic psychology will also be researched and developed in various parts of the world.

An Introduction to Psychology for the Middle East (and Beyond), 2018

Introductory psychology textbook for use in the Middle East. Sections on approaches to psychology (cognitive, behavioral, social, positive, Islamic) and Mental Illness: An Islamic Perspective

Revelation and Science

This paper explores three issues: first, the historical factors that contributed to calls for the Islamicisation of psychology; second, the forms that articulations of Islamic psychology have subsequently taken; and third, the difficulties inherent in attempts to Islamicise the discipline. It begins with the observation that, from the 1960s onwards, the international academy became mired in debates about social 'relevance'. In psychology, the antiestablishment posturing exhibited itself in American and European debates about 'relevance', while, in the hinterlands of the psychological fraternity, troubling questions were posed regarding the Third World applicability of an intellectual package imported wholesale from the disciplinary centre. It was in response to these concerns of developing nations that efforts to 'indigenise' psychology began. Among Muslim thinkers, it was argued that psychologists had regurgitated Western psychological theories and practices that were unsuitable for Muslim populations. As a result, attempts at fashioning an authentic Islamic psychology gathered pace, assuming, typically, one of two forms: a critical revision of Western psychology (with accompanying analyses of relevant Qur'anic passages) or an elaboration of the classical Islamic tradition. A quandary arises, however, as to the feasibility of transforming an originally Western discipline whose questions, topics and methods were forged in the maelstrom of specific social contingencies. The fact that the birth of modern psychology was closely related to the rise of a liberal-capitalist hegemony is an important consideration in the search for an Islamic psychology. Moreover, the homogenisation of world culture necessitates critical reflection on the very desirability of Islamicising the discipline.

Journal of Clinical Psychology, 2004

A new form of knowledge technology is used to diagnose psychology's epistemological woes and provide a solution to the difficulties. The argument presented is that psychology has traditionally spanned two separate but intimately related problems: (a) the problem of animal behavior and (b) the problem of human behavior. Accordingly, the solution offered divides the field into two broad, logically consistent domains. The first domain is psychological formalism, which is defined as the science of mind, corresponds to animal behavior, and consists of the basic psychological sciences. The second domain is human psychology, which is defined as the science of human behavior at the individual level and is proposed as a hybrid that exists between psychological formalism and the social sciences.

Islamic Psychology Around the Globe, 2021

Islamic Psychology (IP) is an emerging discipline evident from a consistent growth of publications worldwide in the last 40 years. While the body of knowledge and practice is not new and was known as Ilm an-Nafs or science of the self during the Islamic Golden Age, it lost its significance for many centuries primarily because of the secularization of psychology and colonization of the Muslim world. IP has now developed into a professional and academic field, as it tries to understand the human self from an Islamic worldview. This chapter introduces the context for the book which reports on IP development in 17 countries ranging from Indonesia to Bosnia to the United States. A bird's eye view of the discipline's growth is offered, along with the personal and professional backgrounds of the book's editors who have been an instrumental part in the field's development. The chapter sets the context for the global development of Islamic Psychology as a field and helps the reader understand the history, challenges, and prospects of this developing field.

2025

The integration of Islamic principles into psychological research has gained momentum in the last 40 years, reflecting a growing effort to establish a theologically grounded Islamic psychology paradigm. This study identifies four prevailing trends in Islamic psychological research: exploratorydescriptive studies, psychometric and validation studies, Islamicallyoriginated research, and Islamic-psychological integrative studies. The later trend highlights the need for an integrative framework to enhance the credibility, transparency, and holistic development of Islamic psychology. However, significant challenges remain, including limited theological knowledge among Muslim psychologists and the lack of structured frameworks to guide integration efforts. To address these issues, this study introduces the Islamic-Psychological Research Integration Framework, a systematic five-step process that requires collaboration between psychologists and Islamic scholars. The framework includes identifying, evaluating, adapting, validating, and empirically testing the integratedpsychological constructs in empirical research. By aligning psychological concepts with Islamic principles, the framework mitigates researcher uncertainty while ensuring methodological and theological rigor. It provides practical guidelines for researchers seeking to bridge the gap between modern psychological methodology and Islamic principles, thereby promoting a comprehensive understanding of human behaviour. This initiative enriches both theoretical discourse and the psychological needs of Muslim communities, fostering a harmonious integration of scientific inquiry and Islamic values.

2020