Qualitative Interviewing as an Ethical-Spiritual Encounter: An Islamic Reflexive Perspective

Abstract

Muslim scholars have articulated a rich epistemological foundation linking knowledge to moral and spiritual accountability. However, translating these principles into concrete qualitative research practice, particularly interviewing, remains underdeveloped, as interviewing continues to be framed by assumptions of procedural neutrality and researcher detachment. This gap motivates the present article, which reconceptualises qualitative interviewing as an ethical and spiritual encounter grounded in Islamic epistemology, arguing that interviews are morally conscious engagements rather than neutral data-collection tools. Rather than collecting new empirical data, the article critically revisits the author’s ethnographic and interview-based fieldwork at the Institute of Islamic Understanding Malaysia (IKIM), synthesising these reflections with literature on qualitative methodology and Islamic epistemology to build a conceptual framework. This framework theorises how Islamic values shape rapport-building, listening, interpretation, and conduct, and introduces five core values: niyyah (intention), adab (etiquette), ihsan (excellence), amanah (trust), and shahadah bil hal (witnessing through conduct). The article shows how da’wah bil hal, expressed through character rather than preaching, can deepen reflexivity, trust, and humanise the research encounter.