By

Shafii A. Rahman

MUM/MAED/2021/00041

For

ED 626: Economics of Education

Lecturer: Dr. Jamal

Muslim University of Morogoro

Faculty of Arts and Humanities
Department of Education
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Abstract

Despite the considerable contemporary mental health related challenges Muslims face,
many opt not to seek psychotherapy services due to concerns that mainstream therapists do
not provide treatment within a religious or spiritual context (Amri & Bemak, 2013; Killawi,
Daneshpour, Elmi, Dadras, & Hamid, 2014). As a result, Muslims who seek treatment in
secular psychotherapy tend to have difficulty connecting to and trusting their therapists’
formulation of treatment goals (Inayat, 2007). Nonetheless, Richards, Sanders, Lea,
McBride, & Allen (2015) have shown that there is substantial progress in the successful
integration of spirituality and religion into clinical practice. This paper reviews research
trends in the literature related to the integration of western psychological models with
Islamic beliefs and practices. Recommendations are also provided to help direct future
research efforts to expand development in this area.

Keywords: psychotherapy, Islam, Muslims, mental health

1.0. INTRODUCTION

During the last few decades, a significant amount of attention has been given to the role of
religion and spirituality in clinical practice. Professionals, researchers, and academicians
have contributed to the literature indicating further progress (Richards et al., 2015).
However, majority of the studies clearly demonstrate that religiously oriented therapies
have a positive impact in the treatment of religiously observant clients when treatment
goals are framed within their spiritual context (Anderson, Heywood-Everett, Siddiqi,
Wright, Meredith, & McMillan, 2015; Hook, Worthington, Davis, Jennings, Gartner, &
Hook, 2010; Martinez, Smith, & Barlow, 2007; Worthington, Hook, Davis, & McDaniel,
2011).

While academic inquiries into the integration of Islamic traditions within the
psychotherapeutic process are still developing, there exists a wealth of literature that
examines the use of religious and spiritual approaches in the general population. Increased
interest in the integration of spirituality and religion into therapy is reflected in the
establishment of Division 36 (the Society for the Psychology of Religion and Spirituality)
within the American Psychological Association (Piedmont, 2013). Since then, there has

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been extensive research, primarily from American and British sources, attempting to find a
place for religiously and spiritually based psychotherapies within the larger theoretical and
clinical psychological context (Pargament, 2007).

According to Paukert, Phillips, Cully, Loboprabhu, Lomax, & Stanley (2009), Cognitive
Behavioral Therapy (CBT) appears to be one of the most widely used models for adapting
to religious orientations. Such integration is extremely important for diverse populations on
account of the need to offer therapeutic interventions with familiar culturally congruent
concepts. Therefore, there is a need for an approach to psychotherapy that values Muslims’
religious orientations and draws from Islamic sources to inform therapeutic approaches to
treatment.

The trend in the literature is beginning to focus on the development of strategies for
incorporating Islam into the psychotherapeutic encounter. The progress in this research
topic can be observed by looking at the work produced over the past ten years to capture
the enthusiasm of the current research trends in this field. This review explores the trends
that have emerged to integrate the Islamic tradition into modern psychological theory and
practice in the last ten years.

2.0. METHOD

A literature review was conducted across multiple databases, primarily PsycAR-TICLES

and PsycINFO. First, a list of all the articles related to psychology and Muslims was made.
The following inclusion criteria were utilized: a) psychological research as it relates to the
Islamic faith, Muslims, or Muslim culture and b) studies published within the last 10 years
(2006-2015). The exclusion criteria were papers in counseling, social work, and psychiatry.
Upon further review, major themes were identified based on the authors’ observations of
common ideas and topics in these works.

3.0. RESULTS
After a review of literature published from 2006-2015, the results were outlined as critically
discussed below.
4.0. INTEGRATION OF WESTERN PSYCHOLOGICAL MODELS WITH
ISLAMIC BELIEFS AND PRACTICES

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Both religion and psychological science describe the inherent nature of human behavior,
thinking, functioning, emotional distress, and coping, albeit conceptualized differently.
Thus, it is not unusual to see the trend of the incorporation of spirituality/ religion into
mainstream psychology by many Muslim theorists and philosophers. However, due to the
remnant effects of colonialism and the recent void of scientific inquiries into human
behavior as a science in the Muslim world, at times many such theorists are prone to
disregarding the incompatible underlying theological presuppositions between Eurocentric
perspectives on human nature and the Islamic religion and Muslim philosophies. For
example, where Freudian concepts of id, ego, and superego have been compared with the
Qur’anic concepts related to the nafs, the conflict between Freud’s belief in the inherent
evil nature of human beings and the Islamic belief of the primordial goodness of humans
has often been ignored. Additionally, more explicitly incompatible concepts such as
Freud’s primacy of human motivation resting on sexual drives and the Oedipus complex
have been deleted.

4.1. Acceptance of Western psychological models as Islamic

In some cases, researchers have hypothesized the possibility of Freud or Jung being
influenced by the Qur’an or other religious texts (Abu-Raiya, 2014), attempting to lend
further credibility to a western theory having little relation to Islamic thought. While this
may not indicate a strong alignment with earlier iterations of psychotherapy, several
authors have shown how Islamic beliefs are in fact in line with the theoretical
underpinnings of more recent psychological models such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
(CBT).

In a study on university students in Pakistan, the participants assert that principles of CBT
are generally consistent with their belief systems in most areas including personal and
religious values (Naeem, Gobbi, Ayub, & King-don, 2009). Whereas CBT is more of a
therapeutic modality and less of a paradigmatic framework, it offers considerable flexibility
for practitioners to adapt to clients’ own personal and religious values. Similarly, Beshai,
Clark, and Dobson (2013) state that “the beliefs of some modern Islamic sects and more
secular Muslims fit exceptionally well with the humanistic underpinnings of CBT” (p.205).
This highlights the possibility that while more religiously oriented Muslims may in fact
need or want more explicitly religious solutions to psychological issues, for a large
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population of the Muslim community, the approach of CBT is compatible with an Islamic
orientation in general.

On another pole, Abu Raiya (2014) compared Islamic theory of personality with
psychodynamic approaches suggesting new avenues for dialogue to advance the field of
psychology. However, while there may not be significant differences between Cognitive
Behavioral Therapy and Islam, theories from the Psychodynamic paradigm may pose some
disagreements. On this point, Haque, Khan, Keshavarzi (2012) argued that researchers who
insist that Freud’s theories of personality development and treatment methods of
psychoanalysis are not only acceptable in Islam, but may also be influenced by religious
text, may become victims of selective perception and ignore opposing viewpoints.
Otherwise, it is preferable to identify the specific areas of a theory that are acceptable or not
acceptable in Islam and present it in that manner.

4.2. Historical accounts of Islamic psychology

According to Haque & Masuan (2002), Islamic psychology in the modern era was revived
at the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) following the establishment of its
Human Sciences Faculty in 1990. In their view, International scholars joined the university
and collaborated with the social sciences department to help close the gap between Islam
and modern psychology. A product reverting back to traditional Islamic teachings is seen in
Badri’s (2013) translation of al-Balkhi’s Masalih al-Abdan wa al-Anfus (Sustenance for
Body and Soul) was among the first of such literature providing an entire treatise
demonstrating the sophistication of early understandings of clinical psychology dating back
to the 9th century.

Earlier in 1979, Malik Badri wrote an influential book critiquing the use of Eurocentric
theories with Muslims and encouraging Muslim psychologists to tap into their own
indigenous concepts and traditions. Haque (2004) published a review of the works of many
early Muslim scholars from the 9th to the 12th centuries; the work indicated the birth of
psychology in the Muslim world preceding modern psychology by at least a century.
Another resource with a less direct focus on the science of psychology is the classical
spiritual psychological works of al-Ghazali’s revival of the religious sciences translated

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into English (one translation by Spohr Publishers, 2014) and Abu Bakr al-Razi’s traditional
psychology translated by Arberry (2007).

Following Badri was Awaad and Ali’s (2015) publication that conducted research on al-
Balkhi’s explanation of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and found transcultural diagnostic
consistencies across many centuries. This piece showed significant convergence between
the DSM and al-Balkhi’s diagnostic criteria. Another interesting article by Khalily (2012)
details a historical account of a 9th century Sufi saint that utilized schema-focused therapy,
a cognitive type of intervention, with an accompanying case illustration.

Though Khalily uses modern CBT terminologies, such as “cognitive restructuring”, to

describe some of these interventions, they are demonstrations of early indigenous Islamic
methodologies that included cognitive strategies preceding the birth of CBT in the 20th
century. He also highlights a relational model of understanding human personality from an
Islamic perspective.

Although the vast array of scholarly work in the Muslim history and tradition has not been
studied as much as it is needed; we are able to see some of the work done by al-Ghazali, al-
Balkhi, and al-Razi through some translations. However, there still exist many texts that
require translation and psychological interpretations. This area of research requires and has
potential for growth and development.

4.3. Theoretical Models of Islamic Psychology

In Psychology of Personality: Islamic Perspectives, Haque and Mohamed (2009) identify

philosophical concepts related to human nature, Islamic concepts of soul, spirit, and heart,
and human motivation and personality types from the Qur’an. This book proposes many
frameworks for understanding human psychology. For example in the first chapter, it uses
Islamic principles from the Qur’an, prophetic traditions, and historical references (Ibn
Khaldun, Mulla Sadra, etc). This is perhaps the only book of its kind published in English
that addresses some fundamental principles of an Islamic Psychology.

While other books and publications touch on ideas from a more general perspective, Haque
and Mohamed’s book is very useful in that it starts from a foundational philosophical

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approach and presents the need to understand how the Islamic perspective views and
explains the nature of human psychology.

Aisha Utz’s Psychology from the Islamic Perspective (2011) describes basic psychological
concepts and covers many areas of psychology including emotions, motivation, lifespan
development, social, and abnormal psychology. This book is a good source of reference for
laymen as well as students of psychology, though it does not give suggestions for practical
applications of integrating such perspectives into practice. This book is mostly aimed at
linking Islamic concepts with notions of psychology and explains how the Qur’an presents
some of the phenomena generally covered by the discipline.

Whereas psychology is the foundational philosophy and body of knowledge for

psychotherapy, such general concepts do not constitute any overt understanding of how to
apply such principles in the process of helping people with mental health related issues.
Thus, while this work lends toward the conceptualization of Islamic Psychology, it does not
help toward the effort of translating this into a theoretical framework with practical
applications for psychology in practice.

With regard to articles, Keshavarzi and Haque (2013) present an islamically integrated
framework that offers a model based upon theoretical underpinnings that are inherently
Islamic. They provided insights into the psychology of Islam with respect to pathology,
health, human behavior, and spirituality, along with informing a guiding framework for
psychological intervention within an Islamic context. This model explored concepts from
Qur’an and Sunnah, such as heart (qalb), spirit (ruh), intellect (aql), and ego (nafs), and
how they inform the understanding of the human psyche in relation to treatment
interventions. This along with the reflection on insights from early Muslim scholars
provides the outline of a spiritual paradigm that permits room for the incorporation of
mainstream techniques that would be complementary and nonoppositional to the Islamic
model.

Hamjah and Akhir (2014) identify three concepts, aqidah (beliefs), Ibaadah (worship), and
akhlaq (character), which they assert are the three main components of Islamic teachings.
After interviewing nine counselors who use Islamic approaches in their practice, the
authors concluded that these three concepts are useful in psychotherapy for organizing the

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therapeutic approach for both the client and the therapist. While this could be a useful way
to understand a possible framework of an Islamic approach, the research identifies these
themes through the qualitative data recorded from the interviews of a small group
practicing at an Islamic counseling center in Malaysia, and does not outline a specific
approach.

Abu-Raiya (2015) published a dynamic, Qur’anic-based model of psychotherapy built on a

previous model of personality from the Qur’an. This approach focuses primarily on the
binary struggle within the human psyche between evil inclinations and good inclinations.
Psychotherapy based on this model addresses identifying inner conflicts, reducing anxiety
associated with the conflicts, strengthening ego functioning, and nurturing spiritual life by
bringing awareness to the client’s inclinations and helping to reframe or re structure the
cognitions around the behaviors.

5.0. DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The trends in this paper map out some natural phases of development of the daunting task
of integrating Islamic traditions into modern psychology. It is evident that publications are
steadily emerging in this area. It is also clear that this field is still in its infancy and each
category itself serves different functions and requires further investigation. In particular, the
segment on interventions is currently an impoverished domain necessary to help provide
clinicians with additional therapeutic tools in practically outlining methodologies for
integration into theoretical models being developed. After this phase of development,
clinicians may begin to explore empirical research on such interventions to help narrow the
clinical utility of islamically based intervention strategies for the therapeutic encounter.

Some cultural beliefs may posit that primary theological principles cannot be subjected to
empiricism, due to their divine nature. However, interventions inspired by what are
believed to be divine principles, known as tajraba (historical experiential trials through
various methodologies) can be critically explored in an empirical context. The
incorporation of religious interventions drawn from these Islamic principles in modern
practice is a necessary novel practice that can be subject to scientific inquiry.

Additionally, theoretical formulations that provide more specificity in helping uncover

Islamic perspectives and positions are necessary. Much of the current research tends to
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focus on general Islamic themes or concepts, rather than a more sophisticated formulation
of the human psyche that is likely to be found in the wealth of untouched literature in the
Islamic sciences. Such investigations require dual domain expertise, both in the Islamic
sciences that require familiarity with the structure and lay out of traditional source works as
well as modern psychology. Therefore, it is recommended that either such experts help in
directing these efforts or respective domain experts such as religious theologians or
research psychologist work together in helping inform the role of traditional Islam in
modern psychology. An example of such necessary research is on the nafs or behavioral
interventions that have been documented particularly in the works of the Sufis; in the
interest of behavioral reformation is a rich field that has yet to be mined.

Specifically, theoretical models that are grounded in the philosophy of Islamic thought and
within the Islamic tradition need to be expanded. As mentioned, there are few models of
psychotherapeutic care that are authentic to the Islamic tradition that does not begin with a
priori Eurocentric assumptions or reflect such notions of human psychology. These models
require the sophistication to answer the questions of defining psychopathology and laying
out a coherent framework of intervention that naturally emerges out of an understanding of
human psychology in Islamic terms. These models must be robust enough to permit
accommodation of empirical literature on human psychology in the field and best practices.
Lastly, several models may be required to accommodate different religious affiliations and
levels of religiosity among the Muslim populations.

Additionally, signature interventions that are uniquely Islamic are required. Such
interventions can be drawn specifically from the Islamic literature on behavioral
interventions that have been recorded in the books of the scholars as mentioned above.
Another area of exploration could be Islamic contemplative exercises such as muraqabah or
particular, cognitive strategies outlined in the books of Islamic spiritual practitioners. After
validation of a core set of interventions, such interventions can be complimented by modern
intervention tactics and compared against mainstream theories such as CBT,
Psychodynamic, Humanistic therapies and more. These are the most significant areas that
need to be explored.

References

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