International Journal of Islamic Psychology

IAMP Incoming President’s Message 2024

Bagus Riyono — 2025-03-27

IAMP Incoming President’s Message 2024

International Summit on Islamic Psychology 2024 in Indonesia: Review of Reports and the First Results

Olga Pavlova — 2025-03-27

The article provides an overview of the speeches of the main speakers at the Islamic Psychology Summit-2024 (IPS-2024), held in October 2024 in Yogyakarta (Indonesia). The theme of the summit is: “The Transformative Power of Islamic Principles in Elevating Human Dignity”. The summit is organized by the International Association of Muslim Psychologists and the largest State University in Indonesia, University of Gadjah Mada. The summary of reports from speakers from different countries presented in the article allows us to see the main contexts in which Islamic Psychology and psychological counseling and therapy for Muslims are developing at the present time. It is shown that by using the methods and practices of Islamic Psychology, Muslims strive to resolve socio-psychological problems of an individual and of the society, and to develop science and educational programs and social support for Muslims around the world, and to contribute to the growth of spiritual and psychological well-being.

The First Islamic Psychology Summit Resolutions

Shukran Abdurrahman — 2025-03-27

The first Islamic Psychology Summit brought together scholars, researchers, and practitioners to explore and discuss the theme “Redefining Psychology: The Transformative Power of Islamic Principles in Elevating Human Dignity.” The Summit organized by the International Association of Muslim Psychologists (IAMP) and Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indonesia, has manifested the commitment of various parties to contributing to the development of Islamic Psychology. This Summit urges a collective responsibility to redefine psychology through Islamic principles, fostering a discipline that recognizes the totality of human experience and the importance of spiritual, mental, and physical health.

Integrating Islamic Principles in the Curriculum of Psychology

Bagus Riyono — 2025-03-27

The discipline of psychology is a very important knowledge to guide human life in this world. Psychology is a knowledge about ourselves with all the dynamics that could happen to us. The current mainstream psychological science is dominated by the western secular atheistic perspective. Psychology defines human beings as human animals as one of the products of evolution. The evolutionary perspective on human beings leads us to accept that human beings are evolving overtime, meaning that there is no basic nature of human beings that remains the same until the end of the world. In the Quranic word this basic nature of human beings is called fitrah. This issue could and already mislead the muslim Ummah in understanding their self and their social life. Therefore, as a muslim we should define psychology that is based on the Islamic teaching through the Quran and Hadith.

In order to establish the discipline of psychology from the Islamic perspective, at least we have to redefine the purpose, the object of study, and the methodology. The purpose of the discipline of psychology on Islamic worldview is to maintain and grow the health of the human soul. The Islamic teaching teaches us that life in this world is a journey that eventually we will come back to Allah in the hereafter. This purpose is different from conventional psychology which is hedonistic in nature and also materialistic. All individuals living in this world will experience happiness and sadness and sometimes multiple degrees of suffering. The Quran already warns us about these multiple possibilities in life and as a human we should endure this up and down while still preserving our dignity. That is why the discipline of psychology from the Islamic perspective embraces happiness and also difficulties in life with the belief that everything has meaning for us to learn from.

The object of the study in Islamic psychology is the human soul (nafs) which is sometimes also called the human heart. On the other hand, conventional psychology always changes their object of study across history. Concerning the methodology, the science of Islamic psychology expands the scientific evidence not only from something that can be observed, but also from the psychodynamics of human beings and the Quranic messages. Therefore, in Islamic psychology a multimethod approach is used in all levels and all areas of the discipline. For example, in developing theories, the muslim psychologist can start from Quranic study and then combine with observation and also be supported by logical contemplation.

Shah Wali Ullah Dehlavi: Spiritual Faculties, Human Dispositions, and Self-Transformation

Amber Haque — 2025-03-27

This article explores key concepts such as spiritual faculties, human dispositions, and self-transformation as discussed in the writings of Shah Wali Ullah. It outlines three levels of Lataif, the concept of fitrah (natural disposition), and the idea of secret depositions. Additionally, the article addresses the causes of thoughts, stages of personal development, and variations in people's dispositions. These topics are relevant to the emerging field of Islamic psychology, which draws on the spirituality articulated by early Muslim scholars who extensively wrote about Islamic spirituality and philosophy

Exploring Client Perspectives in Islamic Psychology Therapy: A Thematic Analysis

Zakia Jabeen — 2025-03-27

This qualitative research paper explores clients’ perspectives of therapy from an Islamic Psychology paradigm. Employing a thematic analysis methodology, this study extracts meaningful insights from client narratives to shed light on the unique aspects of Islamic psychological therapy. The main themes that emerged from the analysis encompass the transformative potential of Islamic therapy, the discernible pitfalls inherent to Western therapy, the substantial impact of Islamic therapy on wellbeing and opportunities for service development in the field of Islamic Psychology. Through an in-depth exploration of these themes, this paper seeks to contribute a better understanding of the potential benefits and implications of therapy from an Islamic Psychology paradigm.

Islamic Psychology and Counselling in India

Akbar Husain — 2025-03-27

During the 21st century, the development of Islamic Psychology and Counselling in India was spearheaded by Muslim psychologists, with Professor Akbar Husain from the Department of Psychology, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, making significant contributions. He made his foray into this field in 2002 through publications and article presentations at national-level conferences.

Religiosity, Resilience and Psychological Well-Being Among University Students in Indonesia

Erisa Oksanda — 2025-03-27

Having a good quality of psychological well-being is essential for university students because it helps them to develop academic and non-academic skills optimally. In addition, religion and resilience are known as factors that help individuals develop psychological well-being. Therefore, the aim of this study is to see the influence of religion and resilience on psychological well-being among university students in Indonesia. A cross-sectional study was conducted with participants who are Indonesian college students aged 18-23 years old. The data measurement in this study will use the Psychological Well Being Scale Short Form by Ryff (1995), the Individual Religion Inventory by Zagumny et al. (2012), and the Brief Resilience Scale by Smith et al. (2008). Data was collected using quota sampling by distributing questionnaires through social media. Multiple linear regression analysis was used to anal yze the data of this study. Furthermore, the results can be used as a basis information for policy makers, college authorities, and mental health professionals to develop interventions to promote mental health among university students.

Validity, reliability and cross-cultural adaptation of Muslims’ Perceptions and Attitudes towards Mental Health scale (M-PAMH) among Muslims in Malaysia

Nadzirah Ahmad Basri — 2025-03-27

The Muslims have unique attitudes and perceptions towards mental health. However, studies on this are mostly limited to Muslims in minority Muslim communities possibly due to presumption that Muslims in majority Muslim countries all share the same beliefs and perceptions. This study aims to examine the cultural adaptation and psychometric properties of the Muslims’ Perceptions and Attitudes towards Mental Health Scale (M-PAMH) among Muslims in a majority Muslim country, namely Malaysia, among both Muslim men and women. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis were conducted. The M-PAMH Malay was found to be valid and reliable to assess the four domains outlined in earlier study. Two new items were added that indicated unique cultural differences. The rigorous process of translating and adapting the M-PAMH scale for the Malaysian Muslim population highlights the need to consider religious terms, cultural nuances, and contextual differences to ensure both semantic and conceptual equivalence.

The Essence of Marriage from an Islamic Psychological Perspective

Radhiya Bustan — 2025-03-27

Marriage from a psychological perspective refers to an exchange system. Meanwhile, marriage in the Islami is a sacred covenant between a man and a woman (mitsaqan ghaliza) witnessed by Allah SWT. Therefore, this study aims to construct the essence of marriage from the Islamic psychological perspective. Maqasid methodology is used in this research to discover the messages behind the texts and concepts contained in the Qur'anic verses. The process carried out is first, tartill that looking for root words related to marital themes, i.e. the Arabic words nikāḫ (نكاح , marriage); zawāj (زواج or ازواج or زوج , spouseses/husbands/wives); baʻal (بعل , husband) and thalāq (طلاق , divorce). The total number of verses analyzed is 90. The second stage is to collect and summarize the verses based on Ibn Kathir's Tafsir. Third, interpret the meaning or message of the verses from a psychological perspective. Fourth, linking and summarizing the verses with tadabbur techniques, that involves understanding the implied meaning and message. The analysis yields seven essential meaning of marriage from the Quranic perspectives: perfecting faith, to achieve tranquility, guaranteeing sustenance, preserving and protecting lineage, elevating dignity, contributing to a better society, and attaining happiness in this world and the Hereafter.

Efficacy of Panginam: A Low-Intensity Psychological Intervention (LIPI) for Armed Conflict Family Survivors in Bangsamoro

Aminoding B. Limpao — 2025-03-27

This study seeks to measure the efficacy of Panginam, a researcher-constructed low intensity psychological intervention (LIPI) program, among family survivors of armed conflict in Bangsamoro from the internally displaced persons (IDPs) of the 2017 Marawi Siege. Panginam as LIPI incorporated teachings of Islam as it is designed for Bangsamoro family survivors of armed conflicts. Using a Mixed Methods sequential exploratory research design utilizing ethnographic research and quasi-experimental methods, results reveal the adverse impact of armed conflict on the living situations of participants. A significant decrease was noted in the mean score of pre-test and post-test measures on levels of stress, anxiety, and depression of participants. Thus, Panginam as LIPI is efficacious in reducing levels of stress, anxiety, and depression of family survivors of armed conflict. Further, Panginam improved family processes and dynamics. Lastly, Panginam changed the view of Marawi Siege family survivors on armed conflict from negative to positive meaning.