Gratitude to God and its psychological benefits in Islamic contexts: a systematic review of the literature

Abstract

ABSTRACT Over the last two decades, the positive psychology movement has inspired interdisciplinary inquiries into the nature of religious gratitude and its beneficial health effects. However, the majority of this research has been conducted with Christian populations and informed by assumptions about the theological significance of gratitude that are grounded in Judeo-Christian religious traditions. This systematic review identified 125 scholarly articles available in Arabic, English, Farsi, and Turkish related to the topic of religious gratitude to provide a synthesis of the theological significance of gratitude to God within Islamic doctrine and everyday practices, according to the presently available scholarly literature. Empirical findings on the relationship between religious gratitude and mental health among Muslims are analyzed and reviewed, with particular attention paid to the metrics and methodological approaches employed by authors in diverse cultural and linguistic contexts. From this qualitative synthesis, the authors propose promising areas for future research on this topic.