The Integrating Islamic Spirituality into Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: A Pilot Model for Reducing Bullying in Islamic Boarding Schools
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32806/jf.v15i02.1958Keywords:
Islamic cognitive behavioral therapy; bullying prevention; Islamic boarding schools; pilot study.Abstract
Bullying is pervasive in Islamic boarding schools (pesantren), where intensive dormitory life heightens peer-aggression risk, yet cognitive-behavioral interventions rarely integrate Islamic spiritual values relevant to Muslim adolescents. This pilot study tested an Islamic Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Bullying Prevention (ICBT-BP) model. A pretest–posttest quasi-experimental design with a control group was implemented at one pesantren. Using intact-class assignment, 120 students received an eight-week ICBT-BP program integrating cognitive restructuring, emotion regulation, empathy development, and Islamic practices (muhasabah, sabr, ukhuwah, ihsan) (n = 60) or routine guidance (n = 60). Bullying, empathy, and self-control were measured with adapted scales, analyzed via two-way ANOVA on gain scores. Bullying scores fell 30.6% in the experimental group (75.40 to 52.30) versus 6.3% in controls, yielding a significant main effect of group, F(1, 116) = 32.78, p < .001, partial eta-squared (η²ₚ) = .220 (likely an upper-bound estimate given the two-cluster design). Neither the main effect of gender, F(1, 116) = 1.22, p = .273, nor the group × gender interaction, F(1, 116) = 0.85, p = .360, was significant. Empathy and self-control gains were also significantly greater in the experimental group. Because the design relied on two intact clusters at one site and did not correct for multiple comparisons, results should be read as promising preliminary evidence, not definitive causal proof. ICBT-BP offers a culturally responsive bullying-prevention framework warranting a fully powered cluster-randomized trial
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