tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-42535806258574673852024-03-05T00:06:33.580-08:00The Happiness ProjectThis blog documents the perception of Dr Fontaine's students related to developing happiness in Islam. Students need to complete two assignments in which they improve their knowledge of Islam. This increased knowledge seems to lead to greater happiness.
Any comments can be sent to me at: fontaine008@gmail.comDr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.comBlogger67125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-23702478795579185852014-09-08T22:56:00.002-07:002014-09-08T23:00:28.112-07:00New Angle to the projectOver the last few months, I have stopped keeping track of the data that I have collected. I know that I have had more than 1,000 respondents but as the pattern of data is so predictable, I decided to shift my angle. In the past, the gist of my research was, "Does knowing more about Islam make you happier?". 75% generally said yes, 25% said there was no change. This semester, I am giving the same assignment but with a slightly different question. The new question is, "Does knowing more about Islam increase your eeman?". Eeeman is the Muslim's faith in God. It is generally defined as believing in the pillars of Islam and acting according to these beliefs.
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaO3fc-aKLv-7WFwqJ14wLDk2yfHbPbDVAivAGjsMkihnjyCS0AkTKUX7nW7DhMm_-rSQvmUTvaArfOs_0UvULLy0Usyww3FurtkKm3i_fpPGREB7Rv1CsIcKOavG0BGvmTDhUfZFB3NO3/s1600/Karl+Popper.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaO3fc-aKLv-7WFwqJ14wLDk2yfHbPbDVAivAGjsMkihnjyCS0AkTKUX7nW7DhMm_-rSQvmUTvaArfOs_0UvULLy0Usyww3FurtkKm3i_fpPGREB7Rv1CsIcKOavG0BGvmTDhUfZFB3NO3/s320/Karl+Popper.png" /></a></div>
If the statistics are the same, then there is a correlation between eeman and happiness. If the statistics are not the same, then it is possible that people's eeman increases without it translating automatically as an increase in their level of happiness. I guess that all this while, I have been looking for data that confirmed my beliefs rather than trying to falsify my beliefs. I should listen more often to Karl Popper. Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-82499825473369906232014-05-23T00:04:00.002-07:002014-05-23T00:04:25.841-07:00Progress Report on the Happiness in Islam ProjectWe are now finishing Sem 2 2014/2015. I have around 100 students that have submitted the Internet assignment and they have made about 15 videos for the Productive Teens project. I present here a synopsis of the whole project and my latest reflects. I will divide this report into three parts:
<b>Part 1</b>: This was the beginning of the project. It started with a comprehensive review of the concept of happiness. After a lot of reading, it boils down to the Western perspective vs. the Islamic perspective. The Western perspective says that happiness is something we create for ourselves. Depending on whether you are into sports, entertainment, politics, or business, you happiness depends on your achievements. A big debate is whether you should achieve what the Society wants (including your parents) or whether you should focus on your personal goals. The Islamic perspective is that happiness is a gift from Allah SWT. The more sincere you are in your relationship with Allah SWT, the more Allah SWT will put that feeling of tranquility in your heart. In Islam, it is understood that young Muslims will naturally seek the Western approach to happiness. They assume that to be happy, you have to satisfy your Self. Eventually, they experience a lot of frustrations. Slowly, they realize that their happiness foes not depend on satisfying their Self but on controlling the Self and aligning it with what is pleasing to Allah SWT. Once they have figured that out, Allah SWT puts that feeling of happiness and contentment in their hearts. Anybody who wants to understand and achieve happiness must therefore understand and appreciate the concept of al qadar.
<b>Part 2</b>: This includes all the activities that I made my students. A major activity is to get my students to listen to one Islamic talk on the internet every week throughout the semester. So far, about 1,100 students have done this. About 75% reported feeling happier as a consequence. I would argue that this change is probably a lasting phenomena as their increased in happiness is due to new knowledge of Islam. More importantly, the purpose of the assignment is so that they understand the process of transforming themselves. Their happiness must not depend on others. They must control the process. If they are going through hard times, the natural thing for them to do is to start watching Islamic talks. That will allow them to put thing their difficult experience in the right perspective. Other activities included doing assignments on al qadar and making videos for the Productive Teens project. Making these videos was an opportunity to find the true stories of Malays who had "gotten lost" and whose lives were messed up. They have rediscovered Islam and their lives improved since. These videos allowed my students to see al qadar in real life, as opposed to simply reading about it or hearing about it. This part of the project included a lot of data collection. I used a questionnaire to measure spiritual intelligence. I measure the spiritual intelligence of students at the beginning of the semester (before they watched Islamic videos) and I measured their spiritual intelligence at the end of the semester (after watching Islamic videos). No big surprise, there were significant differences between before and after. This data will be presented at an international conference in August 2014, insha Allah.
<b>Part 3</b>: Over the last few weeks, I have become aware that I have fallen into the trap of quantitative data analysis. Although measuring the spiritual intelligence of my students was important (as I concluded in my paper for the conference, developing spiritual intelligence for Muslim employees is a straightforward process); it is a somewhat artificial endeavor. The videos that my students made [which are all on Youtube - from MIP77 to MIP92] are in fact case studies in pain, sorrow and happiness. All the people interviewed started by wanting to create their own happiness. They did things they knew were ethically wrong but they gradually fell into social traps. The experiences range from taking drugs, motorbike racing, to dating and all kinds of experiences in between. Typically, these people did not understand the risk they were taking - they all paid a heavy emotional price (one person attempted suicide). After experiencing this emotional pain, they looked at their Islamic knowledge acquired at school in a new light. What they saw as "old fashioned nonsense" turned out to be wisdom. They simply had to go through the emotional pain to appreciate the wisdom of the Islamic teachings. In the months ahead, I plan to analyse these videos in more detail. For better or worse, we can only discover real happiness after experiencing some kind of emotional pain. I am trying to understand that relationship better
Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-55547142304092631012014-03-26T07:33:00.000-07:002014-03-26T07:33:14.012-07:00Happiness, surah al Kawthar and surah al Tin<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTqrK0i4nB2x68HTiL4nq_UOIJeawjv4Gc_lDCx56KgQfLwyL1ZDAhKQ33GoLq4MeKThZ43ijfp0qcc8-zKc6R0NbKQlqeCYOeDKcAqXVgsPiOtCbQezVKHvEpeOeJAggshHdvEMRYfOy6/s1600/surah-al-kauthar1.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTqrK0i4nB2x68HTiL4nq_UOIJeawjv4Gc_lDCx56KgQfLwyL1ZDAhKQ33GoLq4MeKThZ43ijfp0qcc8-zKc6R0NbKQlqeCYOeDKcAqXVgsPiOtCbQezVKHvEpeOeJAggshHdvEMRYfOy6/s320/surah-al-kauthar1.gif" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjehzJrKT5NL-88k_doyNf2b3ZpTuEPErdLj_UwBB5H5W8PM_vxzCx80IQTn4HPsKXyFVRJsh4ed2mOUwE1DsDDcLvjTILTnaDB1a8coTrxPx6QfZoI9btu9CbUn5qiOYNY10lkaQlELJBp/s1600/tin.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjehzJrKT5NL-88k_doyNf2b3ZpTuEPErdLj_UwBB5H5W8PM_vxzCx80IQTn4HPsKXyFVRJsh4ed2mOUwE1DsDDcLvjTILTnaDB1a8coTrxPx6QfZoI9btu9CbUn5qiOYNY10lkaQlELJBp/s320/tin.jpg" /></a></div>
A number of people have asked whether I am still writing this blog. The answer is definitely. However, the number of postings depends on my activities. In 2010, I started focusing on the Western literature on happiness. Since 2010, I have started three projects: i) I am attending weekly lessons of Arabic grammar to be able to understand Islamic references in the original language, ii) I am attending weekly fiqh lessons with a IIUM scholar and iii) I am focusing on tafsir [explanation] of the Qur'an. In particular, there are two surah that appear very "simple", that most Muslims have memorized and yet have a very deep meaning. The first is surah al Kawthar and the second is surah al Tin.
These surah are important because the Western obsession of "happiness as satisfaction of the Self" leads to the paradox that "if the Self always wants more, we can never be happy with what we have". The Islamic perspective is to be grateful with what we have (surah al kawthar) and to know that Allah has created us with the ability to attain Paradise (surah al Tin). Whether we achieve that ultimate destination depends on whether we can develop an internal victory (faith) and an external victory (good actions).
This leads me to the two major projects that I have undertaken. The "Internet assignment" is still going on and about 100 students should complete that assignment this semester. The Productive Teens project is still running and the pilot projects in SMK Hillcrest and SMK Sri Gombak seem to be working. At SMK Sri Gombak, we have had feedback from the parents, the counsellors and the facilitators. Everybody agrees that the students are changing for the better. At SMK Hillcrest,students have taken their "private" time to shoot videos on weekends - I have yet to meet the parents to find out if the students involved changed their behavior at home. This leads me to conclude that "good actions" combines individual psychology (learning about Islam, setting personal religious goals, managing time,...) and social psychology (friends we hang out with, projects we get involved in....). For Muslims who are weak in faith (like the kinds in the SMKs we are working with), it is easier to use group dynamics to help them move from negative disruptive behaviour to neutral behaviour. At a later stage, they can clarify their understanding and their practice of Islam. And Allah knows best. Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-64423372344364763952014-03-08T18:29:00.000-08:002014-03-08T18:29:06.802-08:00Is Happiness A Process?Since early February 2014, my students have been working with students at SMK Hillcrest and SMK Sri Gombak. Having read the literature since 2010, I have an idea of the theory behind happiness. With IIUM students, I can get them to listen to Islamic talks once a week and they - as an indirect consequence - become happier in 75% of the cases. But how to apply this in secondary schools? My conclusion is that Project-Based Learning (PBL) can help. Many kids at secondary school have a choice: To have an easy life or to have a good life. Happiness requires some sort of planning and this is what most kids at secondary school lack. PBL - in our case, getting secondary school kids to make videos - forces them to consider alternative life options. It helps them to think about the difference between having an easy life and a good life. Sounds simple right? Believe me, it is a lot of work and I have to thank my facilitators for doing most of it.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbjTGEVjn0pK4Sp-sBfelN9UbYzoCLTQgpm3-WMvmGFayDlQqIpsmdaPgjIYiluZtPAqAhh9jgeJSfS5P0iAIrjJjBVmO__UnVMgUSpabEpeFcX7nwA63-C1npp-cPlB2KaWs-WNJ9uhHy/s1600/srigomabk12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbjTGEVjn0pK4Sp-sBfelN9UbYzoCLTQgpm3-WMvmGFayDlQqIpsmdaPgjIYiluZtPAqAhh9jgeJSfS5P0iAIrjJjBVmO__UnVMgUSpabEpeFcX7nwA63-C1npp-cPlB2KaWs-WNJ9uhHy/s320/srigomabk12.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSdfxoz6764ZqPebq26DWChhfk7yhkpAp2rXYBedyPLhRak5BNIZJn3CCWS6ie7eDK4lB92JwnMIGSXqd5ojN9yulBnpqD8xn7kqF_tWhnia3GGaeEpQHdRLgVTni1smG8eZ6cbbwDs9gB/s1600/srigombak11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSdfxoz6764ZqPebq26DWChhfk7yhkpAp2rXYBedyPLhRak5BNIZJn3CCWS6ie7eDK4lB92JwnMIGSXqd5ojN9yulBnpqD8xn7kqF_tWhnia3GGaeEpQHdRLgVTni1smG8eZ6cbbwDs9gB/s320/srigombak11.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbz3f-Dhpbedx8MuEnjlrxVbm8d0i80Iue7Rz5O05qxfpoBe5GFl_4G2tjyX54tAtdIhf1mwuh2IhWsz1s_0kjPkLJXistXJCWvVl4SBpCqpPwhmbelvh5Wo2zue6f-pz9muVXYxqUnnhb/s1600/srigombak13.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbz3f-Dhpbedx8MuEnjlrxVbm8d0i80Iue7Rz5O05qxfpoBe5GFl_4G2tjyX54tAtdIhf1mwuh2IhWsz1s_0kjPkLJXistXJCWvVl4SBpCqpPwhmbelvh5Wo2zue6f-pz9muVXYxqUnnhb/s320/srigombak13.jpg" /></a></div> Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-2884996668029397272014-01-24T02:55:00.000-08:002014-01-24T03:06:42.166-08:00Productive Teens Project launched in two schoolsSince 2010, I have - alhamdulillah - quite a clear idea of happiness from an Islamic perspective. Helping my students become happier is quite easy. Their lack of happiness is rooted in a lack of understanding of Islam. By asking them to listen to Islamic talks every week, I am "forcing" my students to improve their knowledge - and this helps them to develop a more optimistic and happier outlook on life. As an incentive, I dangle very good coursework marks to push them forward.
The trick is whether I can use a similar (but different) approach with school kids who I cannot reward by giving them coursework marks. One idea is to get teenagers to make videos about other successful teenagers. I launched this project today with two schools in Gombak. Hopefully, through a process of vicarious learning, they will find that their life (and level of happiness) improves.
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtsrOpABUviakmNEHdzkAj9N_2IfCq04q_PV7C32KgWHC4g8kiPHEh5dNAkvLU1ldzFh6sj7MonVjdWicCewfdkXwYLeHgMdtlQhmzXPHlQ9YKR_ecluP4CzQ_3FXIoBOuY9AYLTE-qD7o/s1600/DSCN2176.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtsrOpABUviakmNEHdzkAj9N_2IfCq04q_PV7C32KgWHC4g8kiPHEh5dNAkvLU1ldzFh6sj7MonVjdWicCewfdkXwYLeHgMdtlQhmzXPHlQ9YKR_ecluP4CzQ_3FXIoBOuY9AYLTE-qD7o/s320/DSCN2176.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzmR1qq-SO1xAtMGTw5tdsxSeCOMBbjq8e1IW7_uwc_skBwOw4GOLCbBvB99Xq2y0FeKVm5XqsL713jkdTh_HsDuORLUq7gd_sEaFfFEHbl0-F2jZvdvVbZcKP7H8HfGi2A4twQ2fNLKad/s1600/DSCN2179.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzmR1qq-SO1xAtMGTw5tdsxSeCOMBbjq8e1IW7_uwc_skBwOw4GOLCbBvB99Xq2y0FeKVm5XqsL713jkdTh_HsDuORLUq7gd_sEaFfFEHbl0-F2jZvdvVbZcKP7H8HfGi2A4twQ2fNLKad/s320/DSCN2179.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw9RAc9M6Dq7_kGhf1pmFhN-H0ltByR3fV0Jg0Eb6VJ-pgddoQJ4iZDgWirOYCglR8k7vjzEXQY1faO1FKsvvPMI0dJtAh3pJtLoUSNQAgIqDWolhKECkRo325dXq8RxA3foZ0UC2VvRcX/s1600/DSCN2180.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw9RAc9M6Dq7_kGhf1pmFhN-H0ltByR3fV0Jg0Eb6VJ-pgddoQJ4iZDgWirOYCglR8k7vjzEXQY1faO1FKsvvPMI0dJtAh3pJtLoUSNQAgIqDWolhKECkRo325dXq8RxA3foZ0UC2VvRcX/s320/DSCN2180.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmCkjoru9AcJILf1OHN06MuJ2or_d6fY1eo_TAr9GE0w5h9xqcEJD_DFXJ1tKf9BRj2d_L0cmaFR-x-CPjx8ESMY3IueG69eee1fzFWf6i-QwVE1NSQq0xrFxJCQwFxuWyNRrawVkh0Jq6/s1600/DSCN2175.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmCkjoru9AcJILf1OHN06MuJ2or_d6fY1eo_TAr9GE0w5h9xqcEJD_DFXJ1tKf9BRj2d_L0cmaFR-x-CPjx8ESMY3IueG69eee1fzFWf6i-QwVE1NSQq0xrFxJCQwFxuWyNRrawVkh0Jq6/s320/DSCN2175.JPG" /></a></div>Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-16385495725882157282013-12-12T00:52:00.002-08:002013-12-12T00:52:56.303-08:00The Qur'anic view on sadness <iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/J1oK-MBVstg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-7804987441959772812013-11-19T01:51:00.001-08:002013-11-19T01:51:28.102-08:00The role of Taubah in becoming happy<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/kR4RshQ5lcQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-52653678416953604882013-11-09T19:30:00.000-08:002013-11-09T19:30:29.786-08:00Happiness, Intrinsic Motivation and Extrinsic Motivation<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/rrkrvAUbU9Y" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-60316530000629216672013-10-21T22:40:00.000-07:002013-10-21T22:40:09.210-07:00Happiness in Islam is based on patience (Sabr) and gratitude (Shukr)Alhamdulillah,I started this project with a vague intention of understanding the psychological source if happiness from an Islamic perspective. Having understood the non-Islamic perspective and the Islamic perspective, I have reached a point where for me, the source of happiness is obvious. What is important is that we can learn to become happy and we can learn to become unhappy. Insha Allah, our efforts with the Productive Teens project will see whether we can go from a theoretical discussion to a successful action research. In the meantime, everything that I have been working for over the last three years is summarized in this hadith
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAtww8g9XgiluZtKRcrD8Ux0ctaXCYtTvIS7RQB5EHM-QGHqWM1uWpY2dhYdC8fKvnHnC9fKz-p_61sjn4fCu4OAy2YW8Q5_AzjVV6G843YWbL563ZxCG4k8ZziA_dZ74wGIyRQmpAu_l6/s1600/patience1.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAtww8g9XgiluZtKRcrD8Ux0ctaXCYtTvIS7RQB5EHM-QGHqWM1uWpY2dhYdC8fKvnHnC9fKz-p_61sjn4fCu4OAy2YW8Q5_AzjVV6G843YWbL563ZxCG4k8ZziA_dZ74wGIyRQmpAu_l6/s640/patience1.jpg" /></a>Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-85027774457645971892013-09-24T03:23:00.002-07:002013-09-24T03:23:26.419-07:00Current statusLiterature review is on-going. I am now immersing myself is social psychology. I have about 200 students ++ working on making videos for the Productive Teens project. Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-73599965938274976152013-09-15T15:55:00.001-07:002013-09-15T15:55:51.013-07:00Is Happiness Dispositional or Situational?I did it again. Not for the first time, I thought that I understood something and then I read a book that forces me to re-think my assumptions about what I thought I knew was true. In this case, I read Philip Zimbardo's <i>The Lucifer Effect</i>. Zimbardo says that many disciplines take a dispositional view For example, a dispostional view of happiness is that happiness is "inside" an individual). It "belongs" to the individual. However, social psychologists tend to take a situational view oft hings. Yes, individuals are important but how they feel and behave depend on the group dynamics and other environmental factors. If that is the case, happiness would be an attribute "shared" by all group members when the social dynamics are just right. I will probably need a few months to do some more reading and think about it before I can formulate my opinion on this question.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1r2xNblUit42qDnAtsQ5XsdUlLEXypIGBjF3gZ37ysq0qdad4ebPWgesng9UJh_jZMTWhXQKKJwl1V1jDuyzNaOo8AO3w4yUfdEoNmWsK9AWOUtA7LFOpFj9gT54LWu9BhQ7MZg0stKN2/s1600/social+psychology.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1r2xNblUit42qDnAtsQ5XsdUlLEXypIGBjF3gZ37ysq0qdad4ebPWgesng9UJh_jZMTWhXQKKJwl1V1jDuyzNaOo8AO3w4yUfdEoNmWsK9AWOUtA7LFOpFj9gT54LWu9BhQ7MZg0stKN2/s640/social+psychology.jpg" /></a></div>Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-31865220295300577212013-08-25T00:52:00.000-07:002013-08-25T00:52:23.919-07:00Can You Find Happiness By Taking Drugs?For the last couple of weeks, I have focused my literature review (which never stops)on the question whether one can find happiness by taking drugs. The answer seems obvious: No. But why? Aren't drugs "sources of pleasure"? Let's briefly talk about the process of addiction. Whenever we do something, there are chemical reactions in our brains and electrical pathways are created on the surface of our brain. From a purely scientific perspective, happiness is what happens when certain chemicals are released in the brain. These chemicals can be released by taking certain substances (like alcohol, cigarettes, soft drugs or hard drugs)or by behaving in a certain way (like sexual relationships, shopping, working hard and being rewarded by the boss and so forth). Such behaviour creates stronger pathways in the brain. Repetition of such behaviour leads to deeper pathways. Ultimately, addiction arises when the structure of the brain (it's anatomy) and the way it is organized (physiology)changes so that the anatomy and physiology of an addict's brain is different from that of a normal person. Typically, addiction leads to a harmful way of living where short-term pleasure is always followed by long-term pain. The funny thing is that we now know - scientifically - that such an approach to finding happiness is totally counter-productive. We also know - scientifically - that one of the best ways to find happiness is through developing a spiritual connection with God. Andrew Newberg and Robert Waldman in their book "<b>How God Changes Your Brain</b>" tells of research in which brain scans of people who did not meditate (i.e. "baseline scans")were compared to brain scans of people who did meditate (i.e. "meditation scans"). They found that meditation and prayer did much more to stimulate the parts of the brain that leads to internal peace of mind. However, there is <b>ONE CONDITION</b>. Andrew Newberg and Robert Waldam found that when people perceived God as being a tyrant, the brain released chemicals that lead to a situation of fear and anti-social behaviour. When people perceived God as being loving, kind and merciful, the brain released chemicals that lead to happiness and pro-social behaviour.
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKQ-FmE5N4ArnXBIWpzMIs-_3Gj2wAyJofaqzyBtL2ObFaySbAgNrWFmex_Grhv8ygpESxSszEVyaDN6N2wLR2dnbzIyV1pDd2YUxbciyCn2MiTrqGzM1UQLk9bsnlZsP4bp2_jbWupHBK/s1600/God.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKQ-FmE5N4ArnXBIWpzMIs-_3Gj2wAyJofaqzyBtL2ObFaySbAgNrWFmex_Grhv8ygpESxSszEVyaDN6N2wLR2dnbzIyV1pDd2YUxbciyCn2MiTrqGzM1UQLk9bsnlZsP4bp2_jbWupHBK/s640/God.jpg" /></a>Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-17266730678661250302013-07-27T18:09:00.001-07:002013-07-27T18:09:33.309-07:00Happiness: A summary of the literature so farHappiness is something people have been seeking since the dawn of humanity. For many centuries, people assumed that happiness was linked to good character (the Greeks in particular). In those days, happiness was a concept that we would translate roughly as "peace of mind" rather than "enjoyment". With the advent of Islam, the Qur'an tells us about the source of unhappiness (our desires as described in 57:20) and the source of happiness (remembering Allah in 13:28).
As history continued and the paradigms found in the west started to influence the rest of the world, a shift started. Happiness became about possessing things and achieving goals (I am referring to Gretchen Rubin's "The Happiness Project" which I reviewed in April 2012 in this blog). The paradox is that we have limited resources and unlimited wants. Thus, we can never be happy unless and until we control our wants. In particular, we need to be able to deal with problems effectively. For the last 30 years, many psychologists have worked on understanding the psychological processes linked to happiness (i.e. people like Martin Seligman). Underlying all of this, the assumption is still that people can create happiness for themselves. Most people assume that you won't find happiness by referring to Revelation.
I now come to the Happy in Islam project. In 2008, I had a Malay student that was having problems in his academic performance. I tried all the usual stuff - explaining the need for setting goals, managing time, learning more effective study skills - and so forth. Nothing worked. Not giving up, I asked him to watch Islamic videos. It turned out that his difficulties were rooted in his pessimistic view of the future. If you believe that tomorrow is going to be worse than today, there is no reason for you to plan for tomorrow. You just want to enjoy today. When I joined the International Islamic University Malaysia in 2010, I tried to get my class to watch Islamic videos on a weekly basis. It worked for 75% of students. I have now done this project with over 700 students and the results are almost always the same. I have used questionnaires that measure spiritual intelligence so I have an idea of which constructs change significantly every semester. With the launching of the Productive Teens project starting in 2014, we will see whether we can see a similar pattern with Malay youth. If we do, then the data will confirm the ayat in 13:28
"Those who believe and whose hearts are set at rest by the remembrance of Allah; now surely by Allah's remembrance are the hearts set at rest."
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcKmEkNZtGj5BqG3oTvPjCS_xWAQ41hZCyX3oNjWJ_kLex0IBBUEGAUSuRMwegqgn881GO1PzGuYS4pDTjNMQwk63hoYWHL_ERBGcUmZQR4DjJrQ1zE8YTPtvcQuDo8MU0TCgsYHSlR15f/s1600/13_28.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcKmEkNZtGj5BqG3oTvPjCS_xWAQ41hZCyX3oNjWJ_kLex0IBBUEGAUSuRMwegqgn881GO1PzGuYS4pDTjNMQwk63hoYWHL_ERBGcUmZQR4DjJrQ1zE8YTPtvcQuDo8MU0TCgsYHSlR15f/s400/13_28.png" /></a></div>Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-75834398911411652652013-07-27T17:11:00.000-07:002013-07-27T17:11:26.074-07:00Surah Al Hadid, Ayat 20: Real Happiness as described in the Qur'anThis is lecture by Nouman Ali Khan. He gives an explanation of 57:20. It describes five stages of happiness: play, entertainment, beautification, pride and spending money on children. An insightful look into happiness from the perspective of the Qur'an.
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/QrOXQ2ycU50" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-47970903190846263272013-07-09T02:55:00.000-07:002013-07-09T02:55:05.659-07:00Happier becauseof a different and more positive perspective<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFjFbXasy19l_xPdDs50YSWw3kYgXilDsqd7dWmEXc7hAgaTs08Cv-JE8JFWOcYt1m7Qi3kbcr0mPCS3TVWPdpqJ3M2c1lJMENvXBLf7aUNeU_jajWum_gr5qLw7j8QEzEHbjRWSdVqJ3J/s1600/Student_Writing.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFjFbXasy19l_xPdDs50YSWw3kYgXilDsqd7dWmEXc7hAgaTs08Cv-JE8JFWOcYt1m7Qi3kbcr0mPCS3TVWPdpqJ3M2c1lJMENvXBLf7aUNeU_jajWum_gr5qLw7j8QEzEHbjRWSdVqJ3J/s320/Student_Writing.jpg" /></a></div>
I am re-reading the assignments submitted by my students last semester and keying in the data into SPSS. One of my students, Muhammad Iqbal bin Abdul Aziz, summarized his experience by saying "I feel happier because I see the world from a different and more positive perspective." I think he summarized what I have been doing with this project since 2010. Thanks Iqbal :)Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-67400923753976577752013-06-28T14:50:00.002-07:002013-06-28T14:50:26.234-07:00Down-time, dyslexia and happinessOver the next few weeks, I will do very few postings as my students are 'on holiday'. Nonetheless, my work is on-going. I am more and more interested in how certain processes - like dyslexia - affects Muslims. My understanding is that there are hundreds of thousands of Malays who are dyslexic and don't know about it. A really cool website is "The Dyslexic Advantage". Anyway, dyslexic is not a problem but it does have to be managed. Whether or not you are successful / happy / grateful to Allah depends on your ability to understand yourself (including the way your mind processes information) well enough to turn apparent disabilities into strengths. Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-13551521511450734472013-06-07T06:56:00.000-07:002013-06-07T06:56:20.024-07:00Giving hope to people without hope<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZe5hQIfEPflYj0-TrGYEhFdMHLg-EGtcQKxx538UWoB84SfnW2qm2Kbc652TaOfDZnf_kovzGM8hhGxpOmSgnH9Wsit5iami9Wgu3u7jjwKZNJoagRuS0UIW0YWhpXlgl-JGeimsKU-Au/s1600/hope.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZe5hQIfEPflYj0-TrGYEhFdMHLg-EGtcQKxx538UWoB84SfnW2qm2Kbc652TaOfDZnf_kovzGM8hhGxpOmSgnH9Wsit5iami9Wgu3u7jjwKZNJoagRuS0UIW0YWhpXlgl-JGeimsKU-Au/s320/hope.jpg" /></a>
Earlier today, I meet a trainer. He has to organize a 4 hour workshop for about 100 teenagers in trouble. These teenagers have been 'rejected' by their parents and their teachers. They are involved in pretty much every social problem you can think of. He asked me whether he could show some of the videos that MGT4110 / MGT4820 / MGT6610 students made......Hopefully, these videos will give hope to those without hope.... Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-43121867922044450152013-05-11T23:11:00.000-07:002013-05-11T23:11:28.064-07:00From Allah to AllahI have re-read Paul Coelho's "<i>The Zahir</i>". There are some things that made sense and some things that I disagreed with. He says that this life is a journey. We need to have goals but these goals are there to guide us on the way, not to become obsessions. Unfortunately, many people get lost because achieving the goals becomes the purpose in their life, not simply a means of completing their journey. Worse, they betray who they truly are in order to become what Society expects them to be.
From an Islamic perspective, min Allah ilaa Allah. We come from Allah and we are journeying towards Him. I agree that many people betray who they truly are in order to become what Society wants them to be. However, I disagree with Paul Coelho because it is not an individual journey. It is a collective journey. The first steps on this journey has to do with seeking knowledge about our purpose in life. The answer to that question is found in the Qur'an. It is a simple answer and we don't need to make it more complicated than it is. The next steps have to do with understanding how to live according to what Allah wants us to be, not what Society wants us to be. That is more difficult because we have to rebel against some of our cultural traditions. The last point is that 7 billion people are undertaking the same journey. It's all very simple.
Relating thia posting to the Happiness in Islam project, if you get obsessed with your goals, you will never be happy. If you take goals as simply signposts but you never forget your true origin (min Allah) and your true destination (ilaa Allah), then Allah will - in His Mercy - make you feel content and happy during your journey to Him.
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEide6mZIs7j4-pDoXylj4cVPX0gtt694ejkIptpmd7PQ4bm4t6nvr4UfZ02bI5lDbshlBG4Fgy-oE4SSXnN0OJEm2ApxGX4dzxFXSDDG6A7UbWTPQhCbRAklgEFYJaFq_WOXKOUwL8gHmfc/s1600/journey.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEide6mZIs7j4-pDoXylj4cVPX0gtt694ejkIptpmd7PQ4bm4t6nvr4UfZ02bI5lDbshlBG4Fgy-oE4SSXnN0OJEm2ApxGX4dzxFXSDDG6A7UbWTPQhCbRAklgEFYJaFq_WOXKOUwL8gHmfc/s320/journey.jpg" /></a> Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-31405172607961182332013-03-17T02:29:00.000-07:002013-03-17T02:29:16.074-07:00Happiness: An Islamic definitionA simple definition of Happiness from Hamza Yusuf: to be satisfied with the Qadar of Allah by serving others
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/JRvIN8eI1UQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-62295778154781991242013-03-14T04:58:00.002-07:002013-03-14T04:58:39.974-07:00Plans for 2013Alhamdulillah, I have about 200 students shooting 30 videos this semester. I plan to do another 30 videos starting in September 2013. In the meantime, I am looking for 5 secondary schools in the Gombak area to agree to a pilot project for 2014. Mr. Fazrul Ismail, of Total Success Sdn Bhd, has agreed to provide some free training for the teachers so that they improve their facilitation skills. By 2014, we hope to do a year-long validation of the Productive Teens methodology. By the end of 2014, we would like the schools to issue a testimonial in regards to the outcome of the Productive Teens project in their schools. Hopefully, with these testimonials, we can start talking to the Ministry of Education ....Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-77957826114432844422013-02-06T21:27:00.000-08:002013-02-06T21:27:21.927-08:00210 students shooting videosLearning from the experience of last semester, I now have 210 students (MGT6610, MGT4110 and MGT4820) shooting videos. These videos will be linked to the productiveteens.com website (which will be totally re-vamped thanks to the help of En. Fazrul Ismail at Total Success Sdn Bhd). Hopefully, in 2014, problematic teenagers in selected schools will surf the Internet under the supervision and coaching of one of their teachers. They will go through the productive teens videos one by one (which will, insya Allah, combine Islamic content and everyday self-management skills)as the school year progresses. These weekly discussions will focus around the content of the video and include group discussions and appropriate role-play. As the school year progresses, these problematic teenagers should (insya Allah) be able to changer their behaviour (first) and then change their perception of themselves (later). We hope that a few successful pilots would help persuade schools that using productive teens is an effective way to help some of their under-performing students. We hope that the students would become happy and productive Muslims at the outcome of this project. I don't (by the way) blame these students for their current situations. Many teenagers are exposed to mixed and confusing messages from their peers, their parents and their teachers. We simply want to show these kids practical steps to change their lives for the better.
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Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-40069691455438349992013-01-30T21:18:00.002-08:002013-01-30T21:18:36.801-08:00WE will not be the lost generationThis video captures very well the spirit of the Happy in Islam project
<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/42E2fAWM6rA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-17138599722893607932013-01-20T04:44:00.000-08:002013-01-20T04:44:17.995-08:00Conference in Thailand: 14th to 16th JanuaryAlhamdulillah, I presented a paper that documented the results so far of the Happy in Islam project and outlines some ideas regarding the Productive Teens project. So far, so good.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-33303067496281486232013-01-07T04:36:00.001-08:002013-01-07T04:36:55.742-08:00Next milestone: Conference in Thailand and the Productive Teen websiteSlowly, things are moving. Insha Allah, I will be presenting a conference paper in Thailand on January 13 2013. It will summarise all the data collected (including the measures of spiritual intelligence). It will describe the next stage of the project which is the building of the Productive Teen website and the production of more videos by students at the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM). The next group starts this Thursday and two other groups will start in February. Hopefully, I will have about 200 students trying to help Malay teenagers empower themselves Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4253580625857467385.post-32577070078699320902012-12-27T00:30:00.000-08:002012-12-27T00:31:23.146-08:00Update on the data collected so farI have finished keying data on two batches of students. One was a group of postgraduate students taking Management Policies and a group of undergraduates taking principles and practices of management. The summary of the data is
- 586 students have done the assignment and completed a report
- 79% said that they feel happier after doing this assignment
- 9.5% did the assignment but did not provide a conclusion
- 9% said there was no difference or they were not sure of the benefits of the assignment
- 2.5% were "others"
Several themes were repeated:
1. Students did not like the assignment at the beginning but after the 2nd, 3rd or 4th video, most say they started to get interested.
2. Many students have questions about Islam. This assignment was an opportunity to find the answers.
3. Almost everybody reported enjoying the tafsir of the Qur'an most Dr. Rodrigue "Ridhwan" Fontainehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10252974728989150039noreply@blogger.com0