Counseling students’ experiences in an Islamic-based
counseling course
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to describe the experiences of learning and consequent
development of twelve students enrolled in a four-year undergraduate counseling
program at a higher institution of learning in Malaysia. The students' ages ranged from 20
to 24 years. Participants described their learning experiences after taking a three-credit
semester-long course on Islamic-based counseling, which was an attempt in integrating
religion and spirituality into counselor training. An experiential learning theory served as
the framework of reference, and a qualitative research design was adopted. Results
revealed four major themes: (1) increased understanding about Islamic-based counseling,
(2) gaining better self-understanding, (3) applicability to daily practice, and (4) enhancing
professional competence as a counselor. Finally, implications for research, counselor
education and training, and clinical practice were discussed.
Keywords: counseling, spirituality, counselor education, student, Islam.
Introduction
Spirituality has received increased attention in the counseling field and both
spirituality and religion have been acknowledged as important aspects of multiculturalism
(Fukuyama & Sevig, 1997). The role of spiritual and religious beliefs is mentioned
throughout the Standards of the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related
Educational Programs (CACREP) and guidelines for working with spiritual issues within
various cultural paradigms are emerging. In the past decade, a growing body of literature
on this topic has emerged (Cassidy, 2006; Lemkuil, 2007, Miller, 1999; Overstreet, 2008,
Pergament, 2007, Richards & Bergin, 2005; Young, Cashwell, Wiggins-Frame & Belaire,
2002). The majority of the publications articulate the importance of integrating
spirituality into clinical practice and training (Burke, Hackney, Hudson, Miranti, Watts &
Epp, 1999; Fukuyama & Sevig, 1997; Ingersoll, 1997; Kelly, 1995; Myers & Willard,
2003).
Recent development in the Malaysian society also shows the importance of
integrating religion and spirituality into counselor practice and training. According to the
Malaysian Population and Housing Census 2010, the majority of the Malaysian
population professed the religion of Islam (61.3%). As many of them reports allegiance
to the Islamic religion, there is an increasing need for counselors, especially those from
the Muslim origins, to have the experience and training to work with them. Since
spirituality appears to play an important role in clients’ lives, counselors have a
responsibility to explore how clients’ beliefs may serve as a resource for change (Becvar,
1997; Carlson, Kirkpatrick, Hecker & Killmer, 2002; Haug, 1998).
Previous publications in Malaysia on Islamic-based counseling support the notion of
the need to have counseling practices with an Islamic inclination. However, most are
from conceptual articles and books (Ahmad & Ghani 2006; Mardiana Mohammad & Lily
Mastura Hj. Harun, 2006; Mizan Adiliah Ahmad Ibrahim, Wan Mohd. Fazrul Azdi &
Hanit Osman, 2006; Othman Mohamed, Halimatun Halaliah Mokhtar, Maznah Baba &
Wan Marzuki Wan Jaafar, 2008; Mohammad & Harun 2006; Yatimah Sarmani & Mohd
Tajudin Ninggal, 2008). Only one empirical study so far is found to be related to the issue
and this study appears to support the arguments found in the conceptual literature
(Mazidah Mohd. Dagang, 2010).
Although issues of religion and spirituality are generally seen to be at least somewhat
important in clinical practice, only a few training programs at universities and colleges
have been integrating these issues into curriculum and practicum training in Malaysia.
There is a lack of study in looking at these training programs as well as the counselor-intraining experience of the integration of religion and spirituality into their training.
Therefore, the purpose of the present study is to develop a better understanding of
students’ experiences with training regarding religion and spirituality, specifically
Islamic-based counseling, in their own program. By developing a better understanding of
the students’ perspective of this important issue, counselor educators and training
programs may gain information that will make the integration of religion and spirituality
into their training models more successful. Because students' learning experiences can be
viewed as holistic, complex, comprehensive and context-bound occurrences, a qualitative
method of phenomenology was adopted to serve as the method of this study.
Method
Participants
Of 55 students enrolled in a course on Islamic-based counselling, twelve students
were willing to participate in the study. The participants include nine female and three
male students, with ages ranging between 20 and 24 years old. After completion of the
course, the students were invited to participate in an in-depth interview and describe their
learning experiences and consequent development. All of the participants were in a fouryear undergraduate counselling program and were preparing themselves to become
counsellors.
Researcher as instrument
The researcher held a Master's degree in counselling and had completed courses in
qualitative research, interview skills, counselling theory, and research methodology. She
conducted several pilot studies to hone her interview skills before initiating the interview.
She built trustful relationships with the participants, and kept a genuine and nonjudgmental manner during the interviews.
2.3 Content and format of curriculum
The curriculum was designed to address the following topics: introduction to Islamicbased counselling, objectives of counselling from the West and Islamic perspectives,
view of human nature, nature of maladjustments, Muslim scholars and their
contributions, counselling processes, Islamic-based counselling ethics, and various
Islamic-based counselling tools and techniques. The time length for each topic was two
hours of in-class lecture. The first hour consisted of didactic teaching, the next twenty to
thirty minutes was for experiential activities, and the remaining time was for discussion
and sharing of observations. Students also have two hours of tutorial time allocated in
which tools and techniques are discussed and practiced.
Data collection and analysis
In this study, the researcher interviewed and tried to explore in greater depth to
understand the students’ experience with training regarding religion and spirituality,
specifically Islamic-based counselling, in their own program. Semi-structured in-depth
interviews (accompanied by a demographic questionnaire) was built on the conceptual
framework of the research, literature reviews, and research purposes so that the
researcher can be more focused on the purpose of the study during the interview sessions
with participants (Yin, 2009). In addition, follow-up question are also presented to obtain
the information needed for the study (Merriam 2009, Yin 2009).
Each interviewee participated in one 90 to 120-minute interview. Sample questions
included: Please describe your experiences during this course. Please describe your
changes, growth and development during taking or after completing this course. All of
the interviews were completed in the two weeks after the course ended, and participants
were encouraged to express their experiences, feelings, and thoughts about their learning
in the course.
Each interview was transcribed verbatim by the researcher and analyzed (Creswell,
2009). Strategies proposed by Creswell and Miller (2000) were utilized to ensure
trustworthiness. The researcher (1) triangulated different data sources by examining
evidence from the sources and using it to build a coherent justification for themes; (2)
employed member-checking to determine the accuracy of the findings through taking the
report, specific descriptions or themes back to participants and determining whether the
content was accurate; (3) used rich description to describe the setting, convey the
findings, and offer many perspectives about a theme; (4) initiated self-reflection to create
a narrative and to contemplate how the interpretation of the findings was influenced by
her own background; (5) presented negative or contradictory information; and (6) spent
prolonged time in the field, developed an in-depth understanding of the phenomenon, and
conveyed details about the site and the people that led credibility to the narrative account.
Results
Four themes emerged from the data analysis as follows: (1) increased understanding of
counselling, (2) students gain better self-understanding, (3) students applying knowledge
to daily practice, and (4) reflection on competence as a counselor.
Increase understanding of counseling
Participants experienced changes in their perception towards the counseling
profession after taking the course. Previously, participants had no idea on how religion
can be integrated into counseling practice. Examples can be found from statements such
as: “ ...I learn many new information throughout the semester….”, “I gain new
knowledge as an Islamic counselor….” In the same way, another participant said: “This
subject actually helps me open up my mind that counseling is also some kind of dakwah
(mission)… Muslim counselor should be aware that we have to use Islamic method in
order to consult people…. ”. They reported an increased understanding on how
counseling can be utilized in dakwah. Usually, the traditional method of dakwah in Islam
is only by preaching, advising, and teaching. Counseling provides a new method that is
emphasizes on non-judgmental and empathic understanding of people who become
subjects of dakwah.
The participants also mentioned about the realization that spirituality and counseling
is very much interconnected. Statement as follows highlighted this point: “Honestly,
before this I never thought that counseling is so related to spiritual and of course,
Islam”, “God has given us tools to solve our community problems by using Quran and
Sunnah. In addition, Islamic counseling in Quran and Hadith emphasizes spiritual
solutions based on love and fear of God and the duty to fulfill our responsibility as the
servants of God on this earth. Prophet Muhammad is our model and example…” and
“…counseling is just like dakwah. We help people to be in the right path.”
The variety of teaching and learning method that the participants feel helped them in
improving their knowledge which includes interactive and experiential learning for
example discussion and exchange of opinion, videos, invited speakers, and e-learning
were also stated such as: “She always does group discussion during lecture and this way
actually helps us prevent sleepiness and make our brain fully working... this activity also
help me memorize and understand better, too.”, “…The class is comfortable and the
lecturer created a safe space as she always remind us about confidentiality… I’ll let
myself share everything that is related to the presentation or the subject… it has helped
my communication skill and my confident level.”, “…the two seminars by invited
speakers really attracted my attention. I was impressed by his words….”,“I love the
video of Prophet Muhammad that she has shown us. It was really great….”, “I like the
way the lecturer respect us and appreciate our work. She will ask us to submit our inclass presentation to be uploaded in the e-learning system” and “The assignment that we
were asked to interview a counselor also given me some advantage. I got to know a
counselor’s job better.”
In summary, through discussions with peer students or teachers as well as experiential
activities, participants recognized that this course was able to effectively introduce them
to the counseling profession from the Islamic perspective. Meanwhile, they also
recognized the practicality and effectiveness of this course.
Students gain better self-understanding
Participants utilized Islamic-based counseling tools and techniques to better
understand themselves, explore their experiences and relationships with God and others
as well as life event. Statements from some participants that show this are:
“The presentation on the topic hope and fear really touches my heart… I really
have to admit that this message really create a new identity of me. I tried to be a better
person….”, “Honestly, it opens my eyes about my role as Allah’s servant. Before this I
am a person that is not really aware about sunat practices in my life… after I learn more
deeply about Qiyamul-Layl, it create an awareness… I realized I was a negligent
person.” and “…in the beginning I really do not want to continue my study in this course,
but after one year I am here and after I began learning about this field, little by little, I
realized that my destiny is here. Allah has His own reason why He chose me to be in the
counselling field… I am aware that Allah had chosen me to help other people out there.”
and “I hope after this I will become a better person even if I only learn this subject for a
short period of time. This subject helps me realize and open my eyes and also my mind.
On the other hand, at the same time, it also helps me increase worship as Allah’s
servant.”
In summary, participants were able to reflect and apply spiritual counseling tools
and techniques to real life experiences. Studying and learning counseling has helped them
to do self-discovery as Muslims.
Students applying knowledge to daily practice
The participants utilized spiritual counselling knowledge learned in the course to
examine their mood and behaviours, understand them and enhance self-awareness so that
they could be more sensitive about themselves and able to function better in their daily
lives. This can be seen through the participants’ statements: “Now I learn how to
appreciate others… I learn how to listen to problems, to explore, to feel and to give
opinion as well as listen to the different opinion from other friends”, “I started to observe
myself, listen to myself, and understand myself after taking the course. I learned to ways
to be calmer. I was always short-tempered. I am grateful to my classmates because they
provide me ideas to overcome my anger such as to think positively and consider
something as a test to me from Allah.”
Participants also realized how important it is to practice and apply the tools and
techniques first before advising it for clients. Examples can be found from statements:
“To be an effective counselor, we should improve ourselves to be a good role model for
the client”, “…all those things (zikrullah, hope, tawakkal, sabar etc.) actually help us
strengthen our bond with Allah and may help us consult people during sessions…”,
“Counselling based on the Quran and Sunnah help client develop themselves in Islamic
personality so that they become good men and attain happiness in the world and the
Hereafter…as a Muslim counsellor, I should fully utilize the tools and techniques first… I
should apply and improve myself first before I help people apply it in their lives.”
When participants faced problems or issues, they began to utilize tools and
techniques they learn to find solutions to their problems. They carefully observed their
internal and external states, and continuously encouraged themselves to stabilize their
emotions, relieve stress, and eventually solve problems. Briefly, participants were able to
apply spiritual counselling to uplift self-understanding. They were able to observe their
own behaviours, emotions, thoughts, beliefs and values so as to raise their self-awareness
and to solve their own problems.
Reflections on competence as a counsellors
With an attitude of empathy, patience, respect and care, participants were able to
enhance their confidence in Islamic-based counselling. Participants applied counselling
theories and techniques to better understand about religion and spirituality to assist their
clients overcome obstacles in life.
Some of the statements include: “After taking the course, I was more confident in
myself and in providing spiritual-based counselling to clients.” and “I am able to be
more patient and empathetic in sessions. I utilized counselling techniques for myself and
started to look at things from clients' viewpoints.”
However, students also stated that they feel the one-semester course is not
sufficient for them. Amongst the comments are: “Although this course is valuable, I feel
it is not enough as other course lack integration of the Islamic components.” and “I hope
that I would be able to apply all that I have learnt in this course however, I am concern
that we are learning too much of the Western theories that may not be suitable in our
own culture and society.”
In summary, participants were able to practice what they have learned to deal with
their real life issues, enhanced self-understanding and improved their knowledge and
skills.
Discussion
Few counselors are exposed to spirituality during their training (Constantine,
1999; Ganje-Fling & McCarthy, 1996; Kelly, 1995; Matthews, 1998) thus they risk
alienating clients who present with spiritual issues, particularly if the counselor is
unaware of his or her own spirituality (Hinterkopf, 1994). Without training in spiritual
issues, counselor may miss essential aspects of a client’s concern. It is vital for counselor
to understand that spirituality is an aspect of client diversity (Souza, 2002). Few articles
have examined spirituality as a distinct concern within counselor educators (Matthews,
1998). It seems that counselor educators are only beginning to consider how to educate
counseling students about spirituality.
Students enter counseling program with very different experiences and comfort
levels regarding spirituality. Some may view spirituality as a positive influence in their
lives. Proper attention to spirituality in counselor training can assist students in
recognizing or putting these experiences in line with the counseling process. A concern in
the area of counseling is counselor imposing values on client (Souza, 2002). However,
this is not the case in Islamic-based counseling as Islam is the way of life.
The results show students recognized the value of the integration of religion and
spirituality into their learning. The various method of teaching allows them to transfer
what they learned in the course to their daily lives. They identified that real life
experiences could stimulate and facilitate their counseling learning experiences. Students
recognized that learning was not just limited to knowledge and skills learned in the
classroom, but that experiences outside of the classroom were crucial to continuously
transforming theories and skills into practical practices. The findings echoed that adult
learning was quite often triggered by daily life incidents (Merriam & Clark, 1991).
Results of this study show that experiential learning was one of the most effective
approaches to be applied to the integration of religion and spirituality into counseling
training (Furr & Carroll, 2003) and an effective tool for individual development
(Merriam & Clark, 2006).
It is also important for counselor educators to create a safe, respectful
environment in the classroom (Souza, 2002). Educator-student and student-student
relationship in the class are also indicative of how client may be treated. Modeling
respect of student opinion is also a way of creating a safe atmosphere. Educator and
student readiness to explore the issues on religion and spirituality is essential in
generating a healthy discussion amongst them as well as to see how spirituality topics
may be introduced to counseling process by the client or counselor.
Students supported counselor training on spirituality. However, they commented
that the period of the course is too short and about the lack of Islamic elements
integration in other courses. Possibilities of workshops on religion and spirituality and
incorporation of the spirituality component in supervision can be considered (Souza,
2002). There is support in the literature for this inclusion (Kelly, 1994; Matheson, 1996;
Pate & Bondi, 1992; Souza, 2002). The consequence of not addressing spiritual issues in
counselor education program includes the possible unethical treatment of a client by a
counselor who undervalues spiritual beliefs systems and the failure of counselor to
recognize a potentially positive coping skill.
Implication of if spirituality is not addressed in a counseling program in a way
that encourages counselor to explore their own belief system, counseling students will
miss an opportunity to explore how individual belief system might influence their
counseling work with client. And the counselor will thus, diminish their potential to make
a difference in their client’s life.
This study has important implications to counsellor educators, practitioners, and
supervisors in understanding the issues of integrating religion and spirituality into
counselling training and practice. Counsellors and helping professional must be aware the
importance of understanding local culture before applying models and theories that were
originated in the West. Simple importation of the models may drive potential clients to
shy away from counselling. Counsellors are recommended to explore techniques and
methods that are more culturally sensitive to their clients. Islamic based counselling is
one of the techniques that they may consider in their work with Muslim clients.
This is an initial study to explore the students’ experience in Islamic-based
counselling course. Future research using quantitative method may be useful in providing
more information regarding the students’ level of competencies and how it may affect
their sessions.
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