Islamization of Psychology From Adaptation to Sublimation

Abstract

This article argues that modern secular psychology with its antireligious
origins depends on a limited ontology of human nature which
excludes human volition as well as its transcendental and unchanging
elements. This article challenges the negation of human nature by
demonstrating how the metaphysical presuppositions of Freud and
Skinner actually assume a specific conception of human nature while
denying its existence. This conception of human nature undermines the
possibility of human volition, effectively excluding responsibility, selfdetermination,
and moral choice as factors that shape human action.
This article then turns to the ideas on psychology embedded in the
works of classical Muslim scholars to argue that Islamic psychology is
based on volition and sublimation.