The Operationalization of the Concept of Participation from the Islamic Perspective in Community Development Research Methodology

Abstract

1. A. Amir Zal[1]

Abstract

The operationalization of a concept is an important issue within social science research because it has to do with the content validity of the research concept and the accuracy of the variable. Nevertheless, the operating concept has been emphasized in the Western perspective on research, but it is not discussed much from an Islamic perspective. This is due to the fact that many Islamic perspectives emphasize the practical aspects of human life as seen through the revelatory source. To assess the situation, this paper reviews a comparative study that uses content analysis design and applied methods for comparing various dimensions of library methods. These methods operationalize both Western and Islamic perspectives in the area of community development. The data was coordinated and analyzed by QSR NVivo computer software. Overall, the study shows that the Islamic perspective has its own explanations with respect to the concept of participation, its own operationalization, and integral multiple-dimensions. Thus, this paper illustrates that the Islamic perspective has successfully proven its ability to conduct scientific research through its own ontology and epistemology of areas of community development.

     [1]    Department of Social Ecology, Faculty of Social Development, Universiti Malaysia Terengga nu, 21030 Kuala Terengganu, Terengganu, MALAYSIA.