Going to Hell or Heaven? An Analysis of Malaysian Muslims’ Perspectives on Extremism in Religion
Religion has long been the focus of research looking into terrorismand extremism. However, previous researches tend to focus heavily on terroristand extremist groups who have committed acts of terrorism. This study furtherexpands the literature by analysing how the public perceive extreme elements i...
Authors: | ; ; |
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Format: | Electronic Article |
Language: | English |
Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
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Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
Published: |
[publisher not identified]
2020
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In: |
Intellectual discourse
Year: 2020, Volume: 28, Issue: 2, Pages: 623-647 |
Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
Summary: | Religion has long been the focus of research looking into terrorismand extremism. However, previous researches tend to focus heavily on terroristand extremist groups who have committed acts of terrorism. This study furtherexpands the literature by analysing how the public perceive extreme elements intheir daily religious routines in a multicultural society in Malaysia, employingfour dimensions of religiosity, namely, physical, social, cognitive, and spiritual.This research utilised a survey method and distributed it to 497 Malay MalaysianMuslims in 2019. Using descriptive statistical analysis, it was found that thereis a tendency for Malaysian Muslims to be more perceptive towards religiousextremism, as the majority of the sampling population showed strong supporttowards the visible aspects of religiosity indicators, such as strict adherence toreligious dress code and physical rituals that can be managed and administeredthrough the establishment of a legal institution and can reinforce their statusquo as the majority group in society, rather than intangible aspects of extremereligiosity, such as cognitive and spiritual aspects. However, this study alsofound that extreme religiosity in religious practices is not necessarily an indicator for society to support extremist religious ideologies, as the MalaysianMuslims also showed positive tendencies of living in a multi-faith society.This finding provides insights into how the prevention of religious extremismshould address social elements of religiosity and should not be taken careof in isolation, as well as should consider the complex historical and socialdimensions of society. As such, this paper contributes to the understanding ofMalaysian Muslims’ perceptions of religious extremism in their daily religiouspractices in a multicultural society. |
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ISSN: | 2289-5639 |
Contains: | Enthalten in: Intellectual discourse
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