The role of Islamic culture in transformative learning: perspective transformation among convert Muslims

Yusuf, Abdulrahman Osman (2013) The role of Islamic culture in transformative learning: perspective transformation among convert Muslims. Masters thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

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Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the perspective transformation among convert Muslims and to understand the role of Islamic culture and religious beliefs in shaping Mezirow's transformative learning. Limited research has been conducted addressing perspective transformation and religious conversion. Therefore, this study contributes to understanding the effect of culture and religious conversion on transformative learning. This study uses Mezirow's transformative learning theory as its theoretical framework. To address this purpose, the study examines how convert Muslims perceive their perspective transformation in the context of their religious conversion. Five Canadian converts were selected through a purposeful sampling procedure. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and constant comparative analyses were employed. -- The findings of this study indicate that the participants experience perspective transformation as a result of their conversion, and meaning making is a major role in the understanding of their perspective transformation. The findings also confirm that Islamic culture and religious belief plays a significant role in the participants' meaning structure changes. From the findings, it is concluded that perspective transformation in the context of Islamic religious conversion is also enduring. -- Two practical implications of this study are deduced: the first implication focuses on adult learning and secondly how religion serves as a lens through which reality is recognized and the second implication concentrates on the concept of an Islamic worldview. An Islamic worldview is one based on the concept monotheism (tawhid). Muslims are urged to unify knowledge of understanding self, the creation around oneself, and untimely God and action in order to realize this worldview. This implication is especially important because of the great interest in religious extremism and religious practice in today's world, as it has been evident in recent years that religion has been used to create radicalism views contrary to real views of religion.

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