Islam as a source of resilience among Muslim adults in South Africa.

Abstract

The ways in which Islam in the South African Muslim context facilitates resilience has not been extensively interrogated. Therefore, the study focuses on Islam as a source of resilience among Muslim adults in South Africa. The study was directed by implementing the social ecological framework on the context of Muslim adults in South Africa. A qualitative research design was used whereby data was collected by interviews that were conducted via the online platform Zoom. Embedded within a social ecological framework and social constructivist paradigm, this study used purposive sampling to recruit resilient Muslim adults and Muslim religious leaders who worked with Muslim adults into the study. The total sample consisted of nine participants (four Muslim religious leaders and five resilient Muslim adults). The researcher used thematic analysis to analyse the data and identified three themes, namely maintaining mental health through an extended support structure, the positive role of prayer in Islam and mental health, and the blurring of Indian culture with Islam, and the negative impact this has on mental health. The findings indicate that although extended support structures and several types of Islamic prayer were used as resilience enablers, the blurring of “Indian culture” with Islam could have an adverse influence on the resilience and wellbeing of Muslim adults.