TEACHING HUMAN NATURE IN PSYCHOLOGY COURSES
ALIZI ALIAS
Department of Psychology
International Islamic University Malaysia
53100 Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia
03-20565096
alizi@iiu.edu.my
Paper submitted as a chapter in a book tentatively entitled ‘Guide to teaching and
studying psychology: A Islamic perspective’, 2008.
INTRODUCTION
Laypersons and students alike sometimes turn to psychology to get a straightforward
simple answer about human nature and behaviour. The problem is psychology cannot
agree on a lot of issues concerning human nature. The debates on the issue are still
ongoing and have led to various theoretical perspectives in modern psychology such as
psychodynamic, behaviourism, humanistic, physiological, and cognitive perspectives.
Using the issues of human nature outlined by Feldman (2007), this chapter explores how
Islamic scholars have interpreted these issues in relation to the existence of the soul (nafs)
which is absent in contemporary psychology. However, this chapter will first consider
when instructors of psychology courses should discuss issues of human nature, and
examine contemporary psychology’s varied perspectives on human nature.
WHEN DO WE TEACH ABOUT HUMAN NATURE IN PSYCHOLOGY?
Usually, the different theoretical perspectives of human nature are taught in courses such
as personality psychology, history and philosophy of psychology, and seminar in general
psychology. At the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), they are also
covered in courses such as Islam and psychology, and undergraduate seminar on the
Islamic perspective of psychology. However, what many people do not realise is that
these psychological theoretical perspectives are embedded not only in every subdiscipline textbooks of psychology, but also in published journal articles in psychology.
Even though an author may not state clearly his/her philosophical belief about human
nature, he/she may have provided a theoretical background and theoretical interpretation
of the research results consistent with a particular theory about human nature. The
author’s philosophical idea about human nature can also be unconsciously promoted
through his/her limited selection of references and his/her exposure to certain figures or
literature throughout his/her academic and/or professional life. Therefore, it is important
for all teachers of psychology to understand the extent to which modern theories about
human nature are Islamic, and to examine Islam’s view on human nature.
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As mentioned, current psychological perspectives on human nature include
psychodynamic, behaviourism, humanistic, physiological, and cognitive perspectives.
When discussing the issue of “which one is right?” Glassman (2000) answered by saying
“all of them and none of them” (p. 414). This chapter argues that “all of them are partly
right, we need to synthesise all of them, and add some more (spiritual factor).” The
human nature issues that are going to be discussed here are the ones raised by Feldman
(2007) and they include: (1) nature versus nurture, (2) conscious versus unconscious, (3)
observable behaviour versus internal mental processes, (4) free-will versus determinism,
and (5) individual differences versus universal principle. It is important for Muslim
researchers, teachers, and students to understand these issues and debates because they
are mentioned directly or indirectly in various discipline of psychology and may affect
how we perceived ourselves as `abid and khalifah of Allah in this world.
WHY DOES MODERN PSYCHOLOGY HAVE DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES?
First, we need to understand why psychology has different theoretical perspectives.
Glassman (2000) argued that theory formation is influenced by the theorist’s own
perceptual selection and interpretations of reality which may then lead to a biased view of
human nature. Glassman also reasoned that scientific empirical evidence in psychology is
good at disproving theories but cannot tell anything about the truth. Psychological
approaches or paradigms are never replaced by a newer approach simply because the new
approach is “more” popular. This is because it is not necessarily more accurate.
Glassman (2000) also argued that the limitations of scientific methods in studying
human behaviour also lead to different approaches to psychology. The obsessions of
finding the causal factors (as in natural science) from unobservable behaviour and mental
processes and the excessive usage of experimental methods without realising that both
the subjects and the experimenters are giving subjective “social” reactions to the
experimental procedures lead to the differences in understanding human behaviour
(Badri, 1979; Glassman, 2000). Glassman and Badri also mentioned that culture
influences both the researchers’ conception about human behaviour and participants’
reactions to certain stimuli. This leads to various issues of bias and choice of paradigm in
understanding human nature.
Since Muslims believe that Allah is all-knowing, perhaps we can use His words
and His prophets’ wisdom to reduce these different conceptions about human nature.
Although Islamic disciplines are full of different views in the forms of tafsir (exegesis) of
Qur’anic verses, sharh (detailed explanation) of hadith, and fatwa (rulings) in Islamic
shari`ah (law), Islamic scholars have a relatively unified framework of reference for
relatively accurate understanding of religious issues based on agreed principles.
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HOW DO CONTEMPORARY PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES VIEW HUMAN
NATURE?
The blind men and the elephant
As mentioned, five of the dominant perspectives in psychology are biological,
psychodynamic, behavioural, humanistic, and cognitive perspectives (although some
might want to add evolutionary and socio-cultural perspectives). Readers are referred to
Glassman (2000) for detailed descriptions of each perspective’s central ideas. When it
comes to understanding the various perspectives, Tavris and Wade (2001) in their
scientific review of Western psychological perspectives and Badri (1979) in his scientific
and Islamic criticisms of Western psychology, likened it to watching several blind
persons trying to describe an elephant by touching different parts of its body. Everybody
knows that the results of their descriptions are partially true about the elephant. The
problem occurs when each of them claims that the part of the elephant is the elephant
itself! A secular person may describe human nature in whatever way he/she wishes, but it
is not correct for a Muslim to describe human nature against how Allah has explained it.
Some current introductory psychology textbooks (example, Huffman, 2006) argue
that at present, one of the most widely accepted and unifying themes of modern
psychology is the biopsychosocial model which believes that biological, psychological,
and socio-cultural factors interact with one another to influence human behaviour. Can
this be the solution to the phenomenon of the blind men and elephant described above?
While this perspective has its strengths, it is still limited in providing a coherent
understanding of man’s behaviour on three grounds. First, this perspective focuses on
only two or three aspects of human nature while ignoring the rest (e.g., biological and
cognitive perspective in a synthesised discipline called ‘cognitive neuroscience’
Glassman, 2000). Second, even if this perspective considers several different aspects of
human nature, these are usually combined with no proper theoretical justification (e.g.,
applying an eclectic approach using behaviour therapy and cognitive therapy at two
different times depending on the nature of the cases). Third, even if various aspects of
human nature are considered, the spiritual aspect is still missing.
Current efforts by Muslim scholars
If modern psychologists can accept a loosely developed model called biopsychosocial
approach, Muslim psychologists should be brave enough to provide an alternative. The
challenge for them is to provide Islamic and scientific answers toto the controversial
issues and debates in psychology. Muslim scholars in social sciences and Islamic
disciplines have tried to describe human nature from both the psychological and
theological perspectives but these scholars have used different themes in describing
human nature. Some of them wrote about Islamic criticisms of modern psychological
perspectives, while others have used Islamic concepts and have described them from
modern psychological perspectives, and still others have used the Qur’an, hadith, and
early Muslim contributions as a starting point to talk about human nature. This complete
work in the reference list of this chapter should be utilised in the teaching of any course
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in psychology. Please note, however, that all the references listed vary in terms of details,
quality, and relevance.
In the next section, the paper considers how Islamic scholars have used
knowledge about religion to come up with a theory of human nature in line with the
issues and debates in contemporary psychology.
WHAT ARE THE ISSUES AND DEBATES ABOUT HUMAN NATURE IN
PSYCHOLOGY?
According to Feldman (2001), there are five issues that pertain to the study of human
nature. These are the debates between (1) nature versus nurture, (2) conscious versus
unconscious determinants of behaviour, (3) observable behaviour versus internal mental
processes, (4) free-will versus determinism, and (5) individual differences versus
universal principles. Islamic psychology should be able to tackle these issues in order to
be a viable alternative to modern psychology. Each of these issues and debates is next
examined in light of the Islamic perspective about human nature.
First, Islam requires Muslims to believe that humans are created by Allah with
dual nature (body and spirit; Qur’an, 23: 12-16). A similar account (but more detailed)
has been reported in a hadith narrated by Bukhari (Vol. 9, Book 93, No. 546). When the
spirit enters the body, it is known as ‘soul’. It gives life to the body and interacts with
biological and environmental variables to produce various unique human behaviours and
mental processes. For example, the story of Adam’s (PBUH) creation and his nature
revealed a unique human biological make-up (Qur’an, 7:11), consciousness (Qur’an, 7:
20; 20: 117,120), cognitive ability (Qur’an, 2: 32-33; 7: 20), development (Qur’an, 7:
25), motivation and emotion (Qur’an, 2: 35; 7:,19; 20:,120-121), social behaviour
(Qur’an, 2: 36; 7: 24; 20: 123), but most importantly, the soul gives human beings the
ability to choose between good and bad (Qur’an, 2: 36; 7: 22), and receive guidance and
make repent (Qur’an 2: 37; 7: 23; 20: 122). More behavioural and cognitive issues are
revealed in the story of Adam’s (PBUH) two sons in terms of social behaviour (Qur’an,
5: 27), personality differences (Qur’an, 5: 28), abnormal behaviour (Qur’an, 5: 29-30),
sensation/perception (Qur’an, 5: 30), and learning (Qur’an, 5: 31). Thus, the Qur’an
touches briefly on major psychological topics when it talks about the first human event
i.e., the creation of man after the spirit enters the body and interacts with the
environment. These psychological themes are described, explained, or illustrated further
(briefly and in detail) throughout the Qur’an.
What contemporary psychology fails to consider are the values of human
behaviour and mental processes; that people are capable of doing good and evil (Qur’an,
91: 8-9), and that people need to be guided to differentiate between good and evil
(Qur’an, 90: 10). Muslims believe that these behaviours and mental processes are
manifestations of the soul as the result of interaction between body and spirit and the
extent to which they receive guidance on how to perform their duties to Allah as His
servant (`abid, Qur’an, 51: 56) and His vicegerent (khalifah) in this world (Qur’an, 2:
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30). Therefore, the issues and debates in contemporary psychology should be discussed in
light of the existence of the soul and how it provides a balanced view of those issues.
1. Nature (heredity) versus nurture (environment)
“How much of our behaviour is due to heredity (or “nature”) and how much is due to
environment (“nurture”), and what is the interplay between the two forces?”
(Feldman, 2001, p. 18).
Feldman (2001) provides a brief view of how each of the five psychological perspectives
views this issue. In general, the biological and psychodynamic perspectives believe that
nature (i.e., genetic, neuronal, hormonal, evolutionary, and instinctual unconscious
factors) plays an important role in influencing much of our behaviour. The behavioural
and humanistic perspectives, however, believe nurture (i.e., environmental and self
factors) to have more influence on our behaviour. The cognitive perspective believes that
both nature (brain) and nurture (learning and cognition) influence our behaviour. As can
be seen, apart from the cognitive perspective, the other psychological perspectives favour
one issue over the other.
Islam believes in a balanced view of both nature and nurture in human behaviour
where the concept of nature (fitrah) includes not only the biological and instinctual
unconscious aspects of behaviour, but also the spiritual aspect. The Qur’an mentioned in
general that all things are created in (biological) pairs (Qur’an, 51: 49, 13: 3, 36: 36, 43:
12). It also specifically mentioned about the pair being male and female (Qur’an, 53: 4546, 75: 39, 76: 2) and that both (chromosomes) are needed to develop an offspring. The
importance of nature’s role is further emphasized when the Qur’an says that Muslims are
forbidden from marrying close kin (Qur’an, 4: 23), suggesting that genetic factors may
influence physical and psychological features of the offspring. In addition, several
hadiths emphasized the importance of choosing one’s spouse based on lineage (most of
these hadiths are evaluated as da`if or weak, but strengthened one another to upgrade
their status to hadith hasan which are acceptable). One sahih (sound) hadith, however,
lists lineage as one of the factors for choosing a spouse: “A woman is married for four
reasons: her wealth, her lineage, her beauty, and her religion. You should marry more
because of religion...” (narrated by Bukhari, Vol. 7, Book 62, No. 027). This shows the
important influence of genetic and biological factors on behaviour and mental processes.
Islam also emphasises the influence of environmental factors on behaviour
especially education. This is supported by the famous hadith on fitrah “Every child is
born with true faith (fitrah). It is his/her parents who convert him to Judaism,
Christianity, or Magainism…” (narrated by Bukhari, Vol. 2, Book 23, No. 441). This
hadith also emphasises the potential for all human beings to be good as Allah has
instilled in them (human nature) their spiritual nature (fitrah) (Qur’an, 30:30). Prophet
Muhammad (PBUH) also emphasised choosing the right friends by saying: “The example
of a good friend in comparison with a bad one, is like that of musk seller and the
blacksmith’s bellows (or furnace); from the first, you would either buy musk or enjoy its
good smell while the bellows would either burn your clothes or your house, or you get a
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bad nasty smell thereof” (narrated by Bukhari, Vol. 3, Book 34, No. 314). This shows
that environmental factors (in this case the friends that we choose to be with) can
influence our behaviour and mental processes to a degree.
Islam also requires us to believe that no matter how strong the biological and
environmental factors, it is the soul (self – as used by humanistic perspective but without
the spiritual aspect) that is more powerful in thinking and reflecting on what is good and
what is bad (under the guidance of the Qur’an). For example, Prophet Noah (PBUH) had
a son who did not follow in his footsteps of truth and virtue, and was drowned by the
great flood (Qur’an 11: 42-43). On the other hand, Prophet Abraham’s (PBUH) father,
who prayed to idols was not influenced by his teachings and remained a polytheist
(Qur’an, 6: 74-76). These examples show that the soul can control the biological and
genetic influence on behaviour. Another example is the ability of Asiah (the wife of the
Pharaoh) to choose the truth and virtue despite living in the unIslamic environment of
Pharaoh’s castle (Qur’an, 66: 11). On the other hand, the wives of Noah (PBUH) and Lot
(PBUH) were not able to choose truth and virtue despite living in the blessed
environment of the prophets’ homes (Qur’an, 66: 10), similarly showing that the soul can
also control the environmental influence on behaviour.
In addition to the influence of biological, environmental, and self factors on
human behaviour, Islam requires Muslims to believe that Allah is the ‘ultimate’ factor
that controls all the biological and environmental factors. “But ye shall not will except as
Allah wills, the Cherisher of the Worlds” (Qur’an, 81: 29). This requires an Islamic
psychological perspective to include ‘soul’ (that professes iman or faith and accept divine
guidance) as an important element because it is the ‘soul’ that believes in the supremacy
of Allah. Thus, the spiritual nature (or the soul factor) plays a role despite the biological
and environmental factors in influencing human behaviour. To summarise, in the issue of
the nature-nurture debate, not only does Islam provide a balanced view, but also
introduces the element of the soul as a factor that moderates the issues of the nature and
nurture debate.
2. Conscious versus unconscious determinants of behaviour
“How much of our behaviour is produced by forces of which we are fully aware, and how
much is due to unconscious activity – mental processes that are not accessible to the
conscious mind?”
(Feldman, 2001, p. 19).
According to Feldman (2001), generally, the biological and psychodynamic perspectives
believe in unconscious determinants (i.e., unseen genetic, neuronal, hormonal,
evolutionary factors, and instinctual unconscious factors) of behaviour. The behavioural
and humanistic perspectives, however, believe more in conscious determinants (i.e.,
observable environmental and self factors) as determinants of behaviour. The cognitive
perspective believes in the factors which are considered as both conscious and
unconscious (decision-making, problem solving, language, thinking, memory,
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intelligence, perception, etc.) as determinants of behaviour. Therefore, apart from the
cognitive perspective, the other perspectives tend to favour one issue over the other.
As mentioned, Islam requires Muslims to believe in the dual nature of man (body
and spirit). The conscious elements of human nature come from the fact that the body is
created from clay (Qur’an, 18: 37; 22: 5; 30: 20; 35: 11; 40: 67; 38: 71; 6: 2, 7: 12, 23:
12; 32: 7; 37: 11; 38: 71, 76) whereas the unconscious elements of human nature
originates from the spirit breathed unto it (Qur’an, 32: 9; 15: 29; 38: 72), showing that
human behaviour and mental process are products of both conscious and unconscious
factors.
Usually, we are aware of our own behaviour and the reasons behind it (Qur’an 10:
41; 5: 105; 6: 60; 9:94, 105) as well as our mental processes and the reasons underlying
them (Qur’an, 34: 46; 2: 219, 266; 6: 50; 3: 191). Sometimes, however, we think or do
things without much awareness or reason (Qur’an, 2: 80, 169; 3: 66; 16: 74), which may
include being influenced by the devil (Qur’an, 114: 4-5; 7: 27; 35: 6; 17: 62; 2: 169; 5:
91; 7: 16-17) or our own lust (hawa) (Qur’an 4: 135; 37: 26; 7: 176; 18: 28; 20: 16;
28:50). In fact, Islam even acknowledges the unconscious sexual motives (which would
be of interest to psychodynamic perspective) as illustrated by the wife of Al-`Aziz who
wanted to seduce Joseph (PBUH) but eventually the soul triumphed over the base sexual
desires (Qur’an, 12: 23, 32; see also 24: 33). Thus, despite our behaviour and mental
processes being influenced by conscious or unconscious factors, ultimately, our
behaviour and thoughts are guided by the soul (Qur’an, 16: 93; 27: 84, 90; 29: 8-9, 55;
31: 15; 32: 13-15; 36: 54; 37: 39; 39: 7; 43: 72; 45: 28; 66: 7; 77: 43-44).
In most of the Qur’anic verses mentioned, it is the iman or faith (closely related to
the soul) that plays a stronger role leading to conscious behaviour and mental processes.
In most of the Qur’anic verses too, Allah has reminded human beings to be aware of
conscious and unconscious influences. There are several hadiths in the book of Sahih
Muslim that encourage us to ask for Allah’s forgiveness for the sins that we have done,
consciously or unconsciously, and that Allah knows better what is in our unconscious
(e.g., Book 4, No. 0980, No. 1691, No. 1695, No. 6563). Eventually, it is the conscious
effort of performing supplication (du`a’), to ask for forgiveness, and to seek divine
guidance (hidayah) is what matters. In a famous hadith, the Prophet (PBUH) said:
“There are three (persons) whose actions are not recorded: a sleeper till he awakes, a boy
till he reaches puberty, and a lunatic till he comes to reason” (narrated by Abu Dawud,
Book 3, No. 4389), implying that Islam acknowledges the unconscious factors when
assigning rewards and punishment to behaviours.
In the previous sections, it was mentioned that Islam emphasises genetic and
biological factors (which are in the realm of the unconscious) and also self and
environmental factors (which are in the realm of consciousness). Therefore, Islam gives a
balanced view of the factors that we are aware of (self, environmental factors, and some
cognitive factors) and unaware of (unconscious motives, biological, and some cognitive
factors), and also introduces the element of the soul as a factor that can moderate these
influences for better understanding.
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3. Observable behaviour versus internal mental processes
“Should psychology concentrate solely on behaviour that can be seen by outside
observers? Or should it focus on unseen thinking processes?”
(Feldman, 2001, p. 19).
Feldman wrote that only the behavioural perspective focuses on observable behaviour
while the others focus on internal mental processes, i.e., biological (neuronal and
hormonal activities), psychodynamic (internal unconscious conflict), humanistic (internal
self-actualisation), and cognitive (internal cognitive processes). Thus, none of the
psychological perspectives has a balanced view when it comes to observable vs. internal
issues.
As a human being is created from both observable element (clay) and
unobservable element (spirit), it is expected that it would also give a balanced focus on
observable behaviour and internal mental processes. Allah, in the Qur’an (7: 33) forbids
all shameful deeds either observable (zahir) or internal (batin). Whether human beings
hide their words or publicise them, He has full knowledge of them (Qur’an 67: 13). As
early as Chapter 2 (al-Baqarah), the Qur’an divides human beings into three categories
based on their behaviour and mental processes. These are: al-Muttaqin or the pious
(Qur’an, 2: 2-5) who received divine guidance from Allah by behaviourally performing
salat (prayers) and zakat (alms-giving) and cognitively accepting the Qur’an, the
previous sacred revealed books, and the existence of the hereafter; al-Kuffar or the
disbelievers (Qur’an: 2: 6-7) who reject the divine guidance behaviourally and mentally;
and al-Munafiqin or the hypocrites (Qur’an 2: 8-20) who do not receive divine guidance
and show acceptance to it only behaviourally. These consistencies or inconsistencies
between behaviours and mental processes depend on the soul factor.
Islam emphasises harmony between observable behaviour (`amal) and internal
mental processes (iman) and these two words can be repeatedly found in the Qur’an in
pairs. In addition, good deeds are evaluated based on the internal intention as mentioned
in a famous hadith “The (rewards of) deeds depend on the intention...” (narrated by alBukhari, Vol. 1, Book.1, No.001). In another hadith, the importance of al-Islam (the
observable behavioural component), al-Iman (the internal cognitive component), and alIhsan (the internal affective component) (narrated by Muslim, Book 1, No. 0001) is
highlighted showing the balanced treatment that Islam gives to not only observable
behaviour and internal mental processes, but also to the emotive-spiritual aspect. At
times, Islam seems to emphasise mental processes when reward is given to those who
intend to do good deeds, but are not capable of doing it; at another time Islam seems to
de-emphasise mental processes when sin is not given to those who intend to do a bad
deed but choose not to do it (based on a hadith narrated by Muslim, Book 1, No. 0234).
Internal mental processes are also an important element as mentioned in a hadith “Verily,
Allah does not look to your bodies nor to your faces but He looks to your hearts...”
(narrated by Muslim, Book 32, No. 6220). All these mental processes do not only refer to
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simple and limited cognitive activities such as information processing but also deep
spiritual understanding that can only be understood if we accept the existence of the soul.
In a more applied example such as punishment for a murder case (qisas), most
Islamic scholars or `ulama have divided murder cases into three: intentional,
unintentional, and seemingly unintentional, operationalised by the contextual factors and
the ‘murder’ weapon. This distinction shows that Islam considers both observable
behaviour and internal mental processes when making judgement about people. This is
further supported by two qawa`id fiqhiyyah or Islamic legal maxims; the first emphasises
observable phenomena “we make rulings based on the observables (zawahir), and Allah
knows the secret (sara’ir) underneath it”, while the second emphasises on internal mental
processes “acts are judged by the intention (maqasid) behind it.”
Therefore, Islam provides a balance between observable behaviour and internal
mental processes, unlike contemporary psychological perspectives which give too much
focus to internal mental processes (except behaviourism). These internal mental
processes, as discussed before, include biological activities, unconscious motives,
cognitive processes and the conscious self. In Islam, it is the soul that provides the link
between behaviour and mental processes.
4. Free-will versus determinism
“How much is behaviour a matter of free will (choices made freely by an individual), and
how much is subject to determinism, the notion that behaviour is largely produced by
factors beyond people’s wilful control?”
(Feldman, 2001, p. 19).
According to Feldman, the humanistic and cognitive perspectives hold that behaviour is a
matter of free-will (self-actualising, decision-making, problem solving, etc.) whereas the
other perspectives hold the behaviour is subject to biological (biological perspective),
environmental (behavioural), and unconscious sexual and aggressive (psychodynamic)
factors. Thus, none of the psychological perspective has a balanced view when it comes
to the issue of freedom of choice and determination of behaviours.
Islam requires Muslims to believe that human beings’ behaviour is determined by
Allah’s will, but it depends on their own freedom of will (Qur’an, 18: 29; 25: 29; 74: 37;
76: 30, 74: 54-56; 81: 27-29). There are numerous Qur’anic verses that indicate a human
being’s freedom of choice despite what has been ‘determined’ by Allah through His
knowledge, will and power (Qur’an, 73: 19; 92: 5-10, 6: 148; 11: 101, 29: 40). At the
same time, human beings are reminded that Allah too has His own will which is, unlike
human beings’, limitless and not bound by time and space, thus making the term
‘determinism’ somewhat a misnomer (e.g., It is not right to say that Allah has ‘pre’determined human beings’ behaviour ‘in advance’ because that is indirectly claiming that
Allah is bound by time and space [which He is not] and thus, rejecting Allah’s Godly
attribute or worse making Allah’s attributes similar to human attributes). In most
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Qur’anic verses, it is clearly indicated that the soul (i.e., iman or faith) influences human
beings’ freedom of choice.
There are several Qur’anic verses that state that ‘Allah knows what will happen’
(Qur’an, 10: 61, 6: 59), ‘anything that happens is based on the will of Allah’ (Qur’an, 2:
253), and ‘Allah had written all that will happen’ (Qur’an, 6: 38, 57: 22, 3: 154). The
Prophet (PBUH) said: “... The good deeds are made easy for the blessed, and bad deeds
are made easy for the wretched.” Then he recited the verses: “As for him who gives (in
charity) and is Allah-fearing and believes in the best reward from Allah… (Qur’an, 92: 510)” (narrated by Bukhari, Vol. 2, Book 23, No. 444), suggesting that whatever
behaviours have been ‘determined’ are actually chosen by human beings out of their own
free-will. Compare the deterministic perspective of Iblis when he blamed Allah for his
wrongdoings (Qur’an, 15: 39) and Adam (PBUH) who accepted that his wrongdoing is
based on his own free choice without denying Allah’s will (Qur’an, 7: 23). In other
words, having a deterministic perspective in psychology is akin to Iblis’ perspective.
Islam also does not deny the influence of worldly factors – though not to the
extent of total determinism – in influencing human behaviour and mental processes
without neglecting the soul. Allah said in the Qur’an “... except that who is forced
[environmental factors], and whose heart is at rest with faith [soul factors]...” (Qur’an,
16: 106; see also 2: 173). Allah also said “And there is no sin on you if you make a
mistake, except in regard to what your hearts deliberately intend [unconscious factor].
And Allah is Most Forgiving and Most Merciful [soul factor]” (Qur’an, 33: 5). Similarly,
the Prophet (PBUH) said: “There are three (persons) whose actions are not recorded: a
sleeper till he awakes (unconscious factor), a boy till he reaches puberty (biological
factor), and a lunatic till he comes to reason (cognitive factor)” (narrated by Abu Dawud,
Book 3, No. 4389). In another hadith, Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said: “Verily, Allah
will forgive people’s behaviours which are unintentional (unconscious factor), out of
forgetfulness (cognitive factor), and out of being forced (environmental factor) (narrated
by Ibn Majah, No. 2045).
In sum, it can be said that human beings have freedom of will, but their will
depends on the will of Allah who has the knowledge of all our wills and deeds, has
written all His knowledge in Lawh al-Mahfuz (the Preserved Tablet) and has the power
to allow human beings to perform their deeds. The soul factor such as iman plays a very
important role in influencing human behaviour and mental processes. At the same time
human behaviours are, to an extent, influenced by various worldly factors such as
biological/physical activities, cognitive factors, their own selves, environmental stimuli,
and unconscious motives. In addition, these factors can still be moderated by the soul.
5. Individual differences (idiographic) versus universal principles (nomothetic)
“How much of our behaviour is a consequence of our unique and special qualities and
how much reflects the culture and society in which we live? How much of our behaviour
is universally human?”
(Feldman, 2001, p. 19).
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Feldman stated that the idiographic approach is subscribed to by the humanistic
(uniqueness of self) and cognitive (uniqueness of each individual’s cognition)
perspectives whereas the nomothetic approach is subscribed to by the biological
(universality of genes and physiology) and psychodynamic (universality of unconscious
sexual and aggressive motives) perspectives. The behavioural perspective, on the other
hand, subscribes to both idiographic (people’s unique experience) and nomothetic
(people’s shared experience). Thus, apart from behaviourism, the other psychological
perspectives favour one approach over the other.
Islam reminds us of the similarity that each person has to the rest of human being.
But, Islam also highlights exceptions to show the uniqueness of each individual. This
uniqueness usually stems from the iman (spiritual cognition) and `amal (spiritual
behaviour) of the individuals. The Qur’an in one of its most famous chapters mentions
that all human beings (nomothetic perspective) are in loss except (idiographic
perspective) those who have faith and do righteous deeds, and recommend to others the
Truth, and one another to patience (Qur’an, 103: 1-3). There are many verses in the
Qur’an that show human beings’ inability to accept the truth, the difficulties in
performing certain desirable behaviours, or the tendency to be led astray, except for those
who possess certain spiritual quality such as khushu` or humility (Qur’an, 2: 45),
acceptance of the divine guidance (Qur’an, 2: 143), understanding (Qur’an, 2: 269; 3: 7),
repentance (Qur’an, 3: 89; 4: 146; 19: 60; 24: 5; 25: 70), patience (Qur’an, 11: 11; 28:
40), have knowledge (Qur’an, 29: 43), have faith and perform good deeds (Qur’an, 38:
24), piety (Qur’an, 43: 67), and devotion to salat (Qur’an, 70: 22). Therefore, even
though all human beings generally behave in the same way, each individual may differ
based on the influence of cognitive (e.g., understanding), unconscious (e.g., khushu`), or
self (e.g., repentence) or behavioural (e.g., devotion to salat) factors. The distinction
between contemporary psychology and Islam is that, these factors are primarily spiritual
which further shows the importance of the soul in studying psychology.
From the nomothetic perspective, the Qur’an mentions several negative attributes
which are generalised to all human beings (which would be of interest to the
psychodynamic perspective) such as being aggressive (Qur’an, 2: 30), ungrateful
(Qur’an, 2: 243; 10: 60; 11: 9; 12: 38; 17: 67; 22: 66; 27: 73), weak in controlling sexual
desire (Qur’an, 4: 28), unjust and ignorant (Qur’an, 16: 38; 33: 72; 34: 28; 45: 26), selfish
(Qur’an, 10: 12), rebellious (Qur’an, 10: 23; 16: 4), disagreeable and arrogant (Qur’an,
11: 118; 17: 83; 18: 54; 36: 77), inclined to evil (Qur’an, 12: 53), hasty (Qur’an, 17: 11;
21: 37), and miserly (Qur’an, 17: 100). However, if one reads the above Qur’anic verses
closely, one will see that the soul factor (iman) is more powerful than the natural
‘unconscious’ instinct. The Qur’an also mentions several positive attributes which are
generalised to all human beings (which would be of interest to the humanistic
perspective) such as having a religious inclination (Qur’an, 7: 87; 7: 172; 30: 30), and
being self-actualising (Qur’an, 39: 53; 13: 11; 17: 17). While these attributes are
considered to be in the realm of the unconscious they are positive, which is contrary to
the assumptions of the psychodynamic perspective.
58
It is generally accepted that Islamic laws and rulings should be applied to all
human beings (Qur’an, 7: 3; 24: 1) with the assumption that all human beings have been
awarded the same `aql or ability to think and the freedom to choose. Complementary to
Islam’s acknowledgement of the concept of universality of human behaviour, the Qur’an
also recognises individual differences and does not burden any individual beyond his/her
capacity (Qur’an, 2: 286; 23: 62). The Qur’an also acknowledges the subjectivity and
different levels of contributions made by different individuals (Qur’an, 99: 7-8). In fact,
Islam acknowledges the inability of certain individuals to follow some of Allah
commands such as those who are weak (Qur’an, 4:98), under compulsion (Qur’an, 6:
119; 16: 106), or make unintentional mistakes (Qur’an, 33: 5). Furthermore, some Islamic
legal maxims consider individual differences in terms of difficulty (e.g., ‘Any difficulty
will open the door to facility’), harm (e.g., ‘Harm should be abolished’ AND ‘Harm will
lead to permissibility of the prohibited’) and culture (e.g., ‘Culture is considered when
making judgements and rulings’). Therefore, even if the majority of human behaviours
can be influenced by various worldly factors, the soul still plays an important role in
making each individual a unique person.
To summarise, Islam provides a balanced focus between universal principles of
human behaviour (with its universal natural laws and shari`ah laws) and individual
differences (with its exceptional rules). The universal laws may include biological law,
unconscious instinctual law, socio-cultural law, and the law of perception and cognition.
However, these laws do not influence human beings totally depending on the soul factor
particularly iman. The Qur’an mentions some distinct characteristics of human beings
who possess iman and at the same time highlights similarities among those who possess
iman in terms of positive behaviour and mental processes (cf. Qur’an, 2: 132-135; 8: 2-4;
9: 111-112; 23: 1-10; 25: 63-77). It is the soul that makes human beings similar to some
people and at the same time different from some others. The table below, taken from
Feldman, shows how the Islamic perspective of human nature compares with
contemporary psychological perspectives.
Table 1: Comparison between contemporary psychological perspectives and the Islam
perspective regarding issues relating to human nature
PERSPECTIVE
ISSUES
Nature vs.
Nurture
Conscious vs.
unconscious
Observable vs.
internal
Free-will vs.
determinism
Individual vs.
universal
Biological
P/dynamic
Cognitive
Behavioural
Humanistic
Islam
Nature
Nature
Both
Nurture
Nurture
Both
Unconscious
Unconscious
Both
Conscious
Conscious
Both
Internal
Internal
Internal
Observable
Internal
Both
Determinism
Determinism
Free-will
Determinism
Free-will
Both
Universal
Universal
Individual
Both
Individual
Both
Source: Feldman (2001), p. 19.
59
WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR RESEARCH AND TEACHING IN
PSYCHOLOGY?
On the basis of the Qur’an and hadith, the nature of man is complex, encompassing many
different aspects of the physical and the inner self. These sources also emphasize the
socio-cultural factors in shaping man’s nature. However, at present, Muslims have yet to
develop a coherent framework or approach that can incorporate all these different aspects
of man as an alternative to the biopsychosocial model. There has been an attempt in the
West to synthesise at least two psychological perspectives to form a new sub-discipline
or area of research in psychology such as biological and cognitive perspectives (in the
form of cognitive neuroscience), biology and behaviourism (in the form of sociobiology), and behaviourism and cognitive perspectives (in the form of social cognition).
It is difficult and rare to find any integration between psychodynamic and humanistic
perspectives with other more ‘scientific’ perspectives like the biological, cognitive, and
behavioural perspectives.
The alternative Islamic framework must incorporate the spiritual side of man
because this is what distinguishes the Islamic perspective of human nature from
contemporary perspectives in psychology. By acknowledging this spiritual presence, man
concedes to be a transcendent being, created by God (and thus accountable to Him).
Based on the framework, Muslim psychologists can develop an Islamic theory (or
theories) of human nature which can be used as a guide for research, to be empirically
tested and eventually accepted as an alternative psychological perspective by the
scientific community.
This Islamic psychological perspective should provide a better unified and
integrated model of psychology because it considers the biological, psychological, sociocultural, and spiritual factors in describing and explaining human behaviour and mental
processes. As mentioned, although the Qur’an touches on all these perspectives, their
relationship with one another is not obvious due to the organisation of the Qur’an itself.
What can be discerned is that these perspectives are united by the concept of the soul
(most notably, the concept of iman), which forms the umbrella under which all the
different perspectives are subsumed. Using this alternative framework, Muslim
researchers and students must conduct research to obtain scientific evidence and then
interpret the research findings based on the general understanding of human nature as
stipulated in the Qur’an and hadith. Existing research from modern psychology can
always be used to support the Islamic framework. The challenge is to further refine the
theories developed under this Islamic framework to make it more testable.
As suggested by Badri (1979), the Qur’an and hadith should be used to guide us
to the laws of human nature. These laws can be used as the backbone to build a theory (or
theories) about human nature based on the writings of early Muslim scholars and
contemporary research findings. When teaching any topics in psychology we need to
understand the underlying philosophy of human nature of the Western theories and its
applications. We can also (re)interpret any research result in the light of how Islam views
human nature. Finally, applications of psychological principles should also consider our
60
understanding of the Islamic view of human nature. This needs constant effort from
teachers and students alike in using Islamic perspective as the theoretical framework to
guide research on human behaviour and mental processes, and/or using it to explain and
make sense of research results reported by both Islamic and secular researchers.
CHALLENGES FOR MUSLIMS TO ACCEPT THE SOUL AS A
PSYCHOLOGICAL VARIABLE
Even if Muslim psychologists accept the existence of the soul in psychology, there are
still challenges that they will encounter. The first is whether iman is a continuous variable
(increases and decreases) or a discrete variable (either/or). Sometimes the Qur’an uses the
word ‘iman’ (belief) to mean ‘acceptance of Islam as a religion, including the unseen’ as
opposite to ‘kufr’ (disbelief) which is ‘total rejection of the truth’ (Qur’an, 2: 255). As
early as surah al-Baqarah, the Qur’an has already differentiated the behaviours of almuttaqin (the pious), kuffar (the rejector), and munafiqin (the hypocrites) based on their
acceptance and rejection of the truth (Qur’an, 2: 1-20; see also 6: 20; 16: 106-107). A
classic definition of ‘iman’ involves acceptance of the religion not only with the heart,
but also acceptance with the tongue and behaviour. Classic Islamic literature has also
listed behaviours and mental processes that can nullify the iman/shahadah which means
that iman can be interpreted as a discrete variable. At the same time the Qur’an also
highlights that a person who already possesses iman (al-mu’min) may realise that his
iman may increase and decrease (Qur’an, 8: 2; 3: 173; 48: 4) without reaching the kufr
level. Abu Darda’ (RA), a companion of the prophet said: “One of the indicators of a
person’s understanding is when he/she knows whether his/her iman increases or
decreases.” Behaviours that lead to the increase of iman are, in general, `amal (good
deeds), dhikr (rememberance), and tafakkur (contemplation), just like any ma`siyah (bad
deeds) will lead to decrease of iman. Therefore, psychologists need to differentiate
between iman as the opposite of kufr (discrete variable); and iman as the level
differentiating between a good mu’min and a bad mu’min (continuous variable). As
mentioned, even the iman of a good mu’min may fluctuate from time to time depending
on his `amal (behaviour). Psychology teachers and students have to be able to
differentiate between these two different conceptualisations of the soul when reading and
interpreting psychology literature, and when studying psychological variables.
This bring us to the second challenge regarding the direction of relation between
the soul and behaviour (also mental processes); is the soul the only determinant of
behaviour and mental processes, or can behaviour and mental processes also influence
the soul, or is there a bi-directional relationship between them? Reading the Qur’an
carefully one will notice that the term `amal salih (good deeds or behaviours) is paired
with the term iman more than 70 times indicating their close relationship. As discussed in
various Qur’anic verses, iman plays an important role in influencing behaviours and
mental processes. Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said: “Iman is not just about hope and
observable decoration, but it is what grows inside the heart (mental processes) and made
evidence by the (observable) behaviour” (narrated by Ibn Najjar and Dailami). On the
other hand, behaviours and mental processes can also influence iman, as mentioned by
the Prophet (PBUH), “Purity is part of iman” (narrated by Muslim Vol. 2, No. 0432) and
61
his companion by the name of `Abdullah ibn Mas`ud “The slave continues to lie (an
observable behaviour) and a black spot grows in his heart (a soul factor) until all his heart
becomes black. Then he is written, in Allah’s sight, among the liars” (narrated by Malik,
Book 56, No. 018). The Qur’an also mentions that although the hypocrites behave
observably like the believers (including declaring their iman or faith), because their
mental processes (Qur’an, 2: 8-9) are contradictory to their observable behaviours, their
heart is full of disease and because of that Allah increases their disease (Qur’an, 2:10)
indicating the influence of the behaviours on the development of the soul. Psychology
teachers and students have to be able to differentiate between the soul as an independent
or predictor variable and the soul as a dependent or criterion variable when reading and
interpreting psychology literature, and when studying psychological variables. There are
also other challenges that will need to be dealt with such as the measurement of the
construct ‘soul’ or iman, its validation, and others.
CONCLUSION
Muslim psychologists need to be aware of the various psychological perspectives and the
underlying theories in contemporary psychology textbooks. We need to know how these
theories perceive human nature, and how similar to or different from the Islamic view on
human nature they are. While Islam has given its view on the various issues regarding
human nature, it is up to us as teachers and students to critically think and carry out
empirical research to ensure that the Islamic psychological perspective is viable. Finally,
teachers should portray Islamically-oriented psychology as a balanced alternative
philosophical view of human nature as mentioned in the Qur’an “In order that you may
not transgress (due) balance. So, establish weight with justice and fall not short in the
balance” (55: 8-9) and “Thus We made of you a nation justly balanced, that you might be
witnesses over all human being” (2: 143). At the same time, Muslim psychologists need
to be aware of the challenges they will face in conceptualising and operationalising the
soul as a variable and identifying its relationship with behaviour and other factors such as
biology, environment, the unconscious, self, and cognition. Through the hard work of
Muslim psychologists (behaviour), and the right Islamic mindset (mental processes),
guided by their iman (soul), it is hoped that a general Islamic framework (which allows
several sub-theories) will one day be a viable option in contemporary psychology
textbooks and journals.
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