ABSTRACT
The chapter's aims are to examine the concept of Islāmic psychology, the evolution in the development of psychology, and the different approaches to Islāmic psychology. Contemporary psychology has been promoted on a global scale, and this knowledge has been increasingly criticised for Orientalist and Eurocentric perspectives and biases due to colonisation and globalisation. The publication of Malik Badri's magnum opus The Dilemma of Muslim Psychologists acted as a beacon in the development of contemporary Islāmic psychology. The Islāmic awakening motivated by a desire to return to the fundamentals of Islāmic teaching and practices based on the Qurʾān and Sunnah and the work of Islāmic scholars. The emergence, current conceptualisations, and status of Islāmic psychology should be viewed in their broader context, namely, the Islamisation of Knowledge (IOK) movement. From a historical perspective the study of the soul held prominent place in discussions related to psychology before the separation of science and religion and before the emergence of the Western scientific paradigm. Islāmic psychology has been articulately defined as “the study of the soul, mental processes, and behaviour according to the principles of psychology and Islāmic sciences.” The definition infers that aspects of the soul and cognitive, affective and behavioural processes are studied within an evidence-based paradigm that is compatible with Islāmic beliefs and practices and Islāmic sciences. This dual discipline examines the understanding of the nature of human behaviour and experiences involving all the dimensions of human nature from an Islāmic perspective. Since the 20th century many kinds of Islāmic psychology have been developed and are in existence, including Hakim psychology, Muslim psychology, Islāmic psychology, and Qurʾānic psychology. Rassool has identified four schools of thought in the Islām and psychology movement: the Orientalist approach, the Eurocentric approach, and the Sufi approach, and the Tawhîd Paradigm approach. Currently, the concept of Islāmic psychology is vulnerable to simplification, distortion, and false dichotomies when pounced on by lay and Muslim psychologists with ideological or academic agendas.
