This article examines Islam's position on wife beating in the context of intimate partner violence (IPV). Though research indicates multiple causes of IPV, Islam is singled out as the main cause for violence against women in Muslim societies, based on the interpretation of verse 4:34 (which seemingly supports wife beating). This verse is often interpreted out of context and Islam's position on IPV is confused with the issue of nushuz (contentiously translated as wife's disobedience, flagrant defiance, and/or misbehavior). The lack of accurate translations compounds the problem for English readers. This article critically examines the legal meanings and implications of nushuz found in verse 4:34 within the context of IPV; and the authors contend that contextual understating of this is imperative for positive clinical engagement with Muslim clients.

The confidence of intimate partner violence (IPV) survivors/victims in the criminal justice system (CJS) is important to consider when exploring intervention and prevention strategies toward deterring IPV. Information on the experiences of IPV survivors/victims with the justice system is greatly lacking. This issue is even more so for IPV survivors/victims for minority communities such as Australian–Muslims. The lack of cultural and religious sensitivity that many immigrant women experience with the CJS deters them from accessing the CJS. In addition, the contrast between the mediation processes in courts and those of religious requirements may make the mediation processes ineffective if they do not include the perpetrators in the mediation process. Furthermore, for many migrant women, their lack of knowledge about their rights under the Australian legal system renders them powerless to undertake active action against IPV in their relationships. Due to the lack of research on Muslim women’s experiences, it is difficult to ascertain how the justice system response can effectively address IPV issues for Australian Muslim women. It is therefore necessary to solicit Muslim women’s views and explore past experiences with the justice system to inform future reforms that will better meet the justice response needs of Muslim women in Australia. This article explores Muslim women’s positive and negative experiences with the justice system in response to their IPV victimization. It also investigates the constraints that have deterred Muslim women from seeking assistance from the Australian criminal justice system (ACJS), particularly in the reporting of intimate partner violence. The findings of this research give voice to Muslim women’s past experiences with the CJS. It is expected that the findings will influence practical outcomes that can facilitate strategies by the CJS to promote inclusiveness among Muslim women to increase their confidence in the CJS.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is currently recognized as a critical public health concern and a human rights issue. Not surprisingly, Muslims -a religiously and socio-culturally diverse faith-based populace -are not an exception. To address this complex area of criminal justice and social policy, some scholars advocate implementing restorative justice (RJ) approaches.While RJ approaches have been traditionally used in Islamic cultures for conflict resolutions, to date, few studies have investigated how RJ operates in dealing with IPV in Muslim countries and communities. This article explores how RJ approaches towards IPV operate in some Muslim countries/communities, and offers insights into developing culturally and religiously appropriate ways of implementing RJ in IPV situations among Muslims. Given the prevalence of IPV among Muslims, the question is particularly important and timely. Taking exclusively limited examples of RJ approaches that have been used to mediate IPV cases in Muslim countries and communities, this paper found one significant challenge in the RJ approaches among Muslims: inappropriate norms/understandings about IPV. To reduce IPV in Muslim society, it is necessary to develop treatment models and techniques that meet cultural and religious needs. This paper found that since RJ is not alien to Islamic teachings, RJ approaches can be implemented effectively in dealing with IPV among Muslims by ensuring justice and equity of the abused woman. The findings of this paper will assist policymakers, practitioners, and service providers in providing religiously and culturally appropriate care when addressing IPV issues among Muslims.

The ideal body image displayed in social media often makes women vulnerable to body image issues, one of which is body dysmorphic disorder (BDD). This study aims to examine the role of social media pressure in predicting the tendency towards such a disorder in emerging adult women, with each of the three dimensions of perfectionism as a mediator. The participants were 385 women aged 18-25 years who used social media and were selected using the convenience sampling technique. Data were collected using the Body Dysmorphic Disorder Screening Scale, Social Media Pressure Scale, Almost Perfect Scale-Revised (APS-R), and some open-ended questions distributed online through various social media. The BDD tendency model tested using structural equation modeling has a good fit with the data (χ2/df = .019, RMSEA = .001, CFI = 1.00) and shows that the role of social media pressure in women's BDD tendency was fully mediated through the discrepancy dimension of perfectionism. The findings indicate that a program is needed to develop media literacy and promote positive body images for women who use social media to prevent body image issues.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is currently recognized as a critical public health concern and a human rights issue. Not surprisingly, Muslims -a religiously and socio-culturally diverse faith-based populace -are not an exception. To address this complex area of criminal justice and social policy, some scholars advocate implementing restorative justice (RJ) approaches.While RJ approaches have been traditionally used in Islamic cultures for conflict resolutions, to date, few studies have investigated how RJ operates in dealing with IPV in Muslim countries and communities. This article explores how RJ approaches towards IPV operate in some Muslim countries/communities, and offers insights into developing culturally and religiously appropriate ways of implementing RJ in IPV situations among Muslims. Given the prevalence of IPV among Muslims, the question is particularly important and timely. Taking exclusively limited examples of RJ approaches that have been used to mediate IPV cases in Muslim countries and communities, this paper found one significant challenge in the RJ approaches among Muslims: inappropriate norms/understandings about IPV. To reduce IPV in Muslim society, it is necessary to develop treatment models and techniques that meet cultural and religious needs. This paper found that since RJ is not alien to Islamic teachings, RJ approaches can be implemented effectively in dealing with IPV among Muslims by ensuring justice and equity of the abused woman. The findings of this paper will assist policymakers, practitioners, and service providers in providing religiously and culturally appropriate care when addressing IPV issues among Muslims.