Methods Methodologies And Perspectives In The Humanities And Social Sciences With Particular Reference To Islamic Studies A Critical Rationalist Interpretation

This book presents the first comprehensive introduction to methods and methodologies in the humanities and social sciences in general, and Islamic Studies in particular, from a critical rationalist point of view. The book aims to be a self-sufficient theoretical and practical guide to the topics that it introduces. It contains a large selection of fully worked out review activities and review questions plus topics for further discussion which are devised to assist readers to better understand the issues which are discussed in the book. Last but not least, all efforts have been made to make sure that most (if not all) of the reading materials which are recommended in the book are not only of the highest quality but also freely available on the internet.

This book deals with Islamic studies and with the question how the scholarly study of religion can contribute to the study of Islam. The author advocates studying Islamic phenomena as signs and symbols interpreted and applied in diverse ways in existing traditions. He stresses the role of Muslims as actors in the ongoing debate about the articulation of Islamic ways of life and construction of Islam as a religion. A careful study of this debate should steer clear of political, religious, and ideological interests. Research in this area by Muslims and non-Muslim scholars alike should address the question of what Muslims have made of their Islam in specific circumstances. Current political contexts have created an unhealthy climate for pursuing an “open” approach to Islam based on reading, observing, listening and reflecting. Yet, precisely nowadays we need to look anew at ways of Muslim thinking and acting that refer to Islam and to avoid certain schemes of interpreting Muslim realities that are no longer adequate for present-day Muslim life situations. Muslim recourses to Islam can be studied as human constructions of value and meaning, and relations between Muslims and others can be seen in terms of human interaction, without blame always falling on Islam as such.

This volume draws attention to and moves beyond the traditional methodological frames that have governed knowledge production in the academic study of Islam. Departing from Orientalist and largely textual studies, the chapters collected herein revolve around three main themes: gender, the political, and what has come to be known as "lived Islam." The first involves ascertaining how to read gender and gender issues into traditional sources. The second encourages an attunement to the often delicate intersection between the spheres of religion and politics. The final provides a corrective to our traditional over-emphasis on the interpretation of texts and a preoccupation with studying (mainly male) elites. Taken as a whole, this volume encourages a multi-methodological approach to the study of Islam. Contributors include Abbas Aghdassi, Aaron W. Hughes, Eva Kepplinger, Taira Amin, Betül Avcı, Ali Abedi Renani and Seyyed Ebrahim Sarparast Sadat, Meral Durmuş and Bahattin Akşit, Walid Ghali, Isabella Crespi and Martina Crescenti, Brian Arly Jacobsen, Pernille Friis Jensen, Kirstine Sinclair, and Niels Valdemar Vinding, Magdalena Pycińska, Zahraa McDonald, Emin Poljarevic, Abdessamad Belhaj.

The articles included in this Yearbook of the Sociology of Islam are focused on two perspectives: Some link the comparative analysis of Islam to ongoing debates on the Axial Age and its role in the formation of major civilizational complexes, while others are more concerned with the historical constellations and sources involved in the formation of Islam as a religion and a civilization. More than any other particular line of inquiry, new historical and sociological approaches to the Axial Age revived the idea of comparative civilizational analysis and channeled it into more specific projects. A closer look at the very problematic place of Islam in this context will help to clarify questions about the Axial version of civilizational theory as well as issues in Islamic studies and sociological approaches to modern Islam. Contributors among others: Said Arjomand, Shmuel N. Eisenstadt, Josef van Ess and Raif G. Khoury.

Changing attitudes to Islam profoundly influence political cultures and national identities, as well as policies regarding immigration, security and multiculturalism. Given that the majority of relevant scholarly works have either adopted monocultural perspectives, or approached Islam in its general, non nation-specific dimension, the need for in-depth, multi-nation studies is urgent. Islam itself, and responses to its rise, are becoming increasingly internationalised. It is therefore important that analyses of Islam-related phenomena are sensitive to the particular cultures in which they are encountered. This volume does precisely that. Contributions, some explicitly comparative, others implicitly so, cover perspectives from across Europe, the USA and the Middle East, along with new treatments of the rich diversity to be found in Islamic art, and discussions of inter-faith exchanges. They also represent a range of disciplinary approaches. Among the many issues addressed are: the challenges posed by the rise of Muslim radicalism to multicultural societies; various media treatments of the ‘War on Terror’; the national specificities of Islamophobic xenophobia; contemporary visual arts in Islamic societies; differing attitudes to the translation of religious texts. The authors include authoritative, international experts, balanced by promising, younger scholars.

This ebook is a selective guide designed to help scholars and students of Islamic studies find reliable sources of information by directing them to the best available scholarly materials in whatever form or format they appear from books, chapters, and journal articles to online archives, electronic data sets, and blogs. Written by a leading international authority on the subject, the ebook provides bibliographic information supported by direct recommendations about which sources to consult and editorial commentary to make it clear how the cited sources are interrelated related. A reader will discover, for instance, the most reliable introductions and overviews to the topic, and the most important publications on various areas of scholarly interest within this topic. In Islamic studies, as in other disciplines, researchers at all levels are drowning in potentially useful scholarly information, and this guide has been created as a tool for cutting through that material to find the exact source you need. This ebook is a static version of an article from Oxford Bibliographies Online: Islamic Studies, a dynamic, continuously updated, online resource designed to provide authoritative guidance through scholarship and other materials relevant to the study of the Islamic religion and Muslim cultures. Oxford Bibliographies Online covers most subject disciplines within the social science and humanities, for more information visit www.aboutobo.com.

"This book provides a foundation of the methodology of research scholarship in Islāmic studies, psychology, and psychotherapy, offering an understanding of the concepts and techniques of Islāmic research methodology integrated with qualitative and quantitative research. Integrating Islāmic moral and epistemological values into research methodologies, the text synthesises research methodologies and approaches (empirical, rational) with Islāmic research scholarship. Chapters include a range of topics including research ethics from an Islamic perspective, systematic methodology of research in Islamic studies and social sciences, and inductive and deductive approaches. Other questions covered include how to integrate the Qur'ân and Hadith (rules, concepts and statements) with psychological phenomena and how to write a research proposal, and research proper. Each chapter includes rich case examples and relevant practical examples. This book is ideal for researchers and students in Islāmic psychology and psychotherapy wishing to learn more about the techniques and principles of Islāmic research scholarship in the field"--