URBAN MUSLIM COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT: A PARTICIPATORY COMMUNICATION MODEL BASED ON MOSQUES AS CENTERS FOR SOCIAL CHANGE
Abstract
Urbanization in many Muslim-majority contexts has led to significant social challenges, including community fragmentation and economic disparity. While mosques are central spiritual hubs, their potential as catalysts for comprehensive community development is often underutilized, and conventional top-down development models frequently fail to address localized needs. This research aims to develop and validate a participatory communication model that positions the mosque as a central actor for facilitating sustainable, community-led social change. Employing a Participatory Action Research (PAR) methodology over two years in three urban Indonesian mosques, the study engaged community members and leaders through collaborative workshops and in-depth interviews. The research resulted in the “Masjid-Centric Participatory Communication (MCPC)” model, a four-stage framework encompassing mutual assessment (Ta’aruf), participatory planning (Tashawur), collaborative implementation (Tanfidz), and collective evaluation (Taqwim). Application of the model successfully initiated community-led projects in micro-finance, youth digital literacy, and environmental care, demonstrating a marked increase in social cohesion and civic engagement. The study concludes that a culturally-resonant, participatory communication model centered on the mosque can effectively transform it from a place of worship into a dynamic hub for sustainable urban development, fostering both social and spiritual well-being.
Full text article
References
Ahmadi, R., Rofiqoh, L., & Hefni, W. (2022). BRANDS OF PIETY? Islamic Commodification of Polygamous Community in Indonesia. Journal of Indonesian Islam, 16(1), 153–174. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.15642/JIIS.2022.16.1.153-174
Ahmed, M., & Anbrine, S. (2022). Structural Positioning of Mosque in the Development Plan of the Federal Capital of Pakistan. Journal of Islamic Thought and Civilization, 12(1), 311–321. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.32350/jitc.121.19
Akbar, J. (2025). Why Imre Lakatos’ epistemological method best suits research in urbanization: The case of the Muslim built environments. Archnet-IJAR: International Journal of Architectural Research. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1108/ARCH-04-2025-0141
Avni, G. (2022). THE MARKETS OF JERUSALEM IN THE EARLY MUSLIM PERIOD – LOCATION, INTERPRETATION, AND THE CREATION OF A NEW URBAN ZONING. Jerusalem Studies in Arabic and Islam, 2022(53), 199–235. Scopus.
Batou, J. (2022). Structure and Dynamics of Islamic Social Formations (Seventh-Fourteenth Century) A Case of Uneven and Combined Development. Historical Materialism, 30(1), 164–208. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1163/1569206X-20221985
Buchert, U., Wrede, S., & Kouvonen, A. (2024). Persisting inequalities in the digitalized society: Migrant women facing coercive dimensions of everyday digitalization. Information Communication and Society, 27(5), 935–950. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369118X.2023.2230265
Cermeño, H., & Mielke, K. (2023). Endangered Urban Commons: Lahore’s Violent Heritage Management and Prospects for Reconciliation. Urban Planning, 8(1), 83–98. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.17645/up.v8i1.6054
Delledonne, N. (2024). Cultural Exchange vs. Marginality: A Project for an Islamic Culture House in Genoa, Italy. International Journal of Islamic Architecture, 13(1), 231–243. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1386/ijia_00135_1
Djekaba, N. (2025). The Systems of Fatwa and Judiciary in Algeria during the Ottoman Era: A Study of Administrative, Social, and Political Developments. Darulfunun Ilahiyat, 36(2), 313–335. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.26650/di.2025.36.2.1636146
Farhat, Z. (2023). Spatial Segregation and Muslims in India: A Review. Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs, 43(1–2), 60–69. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1080/13602004.2023.2241244
Feyisa, T., Bekele, D., Tura, B., Adem, A., & Nugusu, F. (2022). To eliminate trachoma: Azithromycin mass drug administration coverage and associated factors among adults in Goro district, Southeast Ethiopia. PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, 16(6). Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1371/JOURNAL.PNTD.0010169
Grant, A. (2025). Urbanization, relational space, and practicing Muslim ethnicity in Western China. Asian Ethnicity, 26(3), 439–458. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1080/14631369.2024.2417019
Gupta, B., Mangal, A., Thakur, A., Vaghela, J. F., & Sharma, A. (2022). Antenatal depression and its correlates—A cross-sectional study in an urban resettlement colony of Delhi. Indian Journal of Community Health, 34(4), 569–572. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.47203/IJCH.2022.v34i04.23
Hamidah, T., Furaida, A., Rosdiana, A. M., & Rahman, N. N. B. A. (2024). The Dynamics of Urban Muslim Families Post-Divorce: The Contribution of Islamic Law in Building Resilience of Indonesian and Malaysian Families. De Jure: Jurnal Hukum Dan Syar’iah, 16(2), 363–381. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.18860/J-FSH.V16I2.27461
Hasanah, E., Ikhwan Al Badar, M., & Ikhsan Al Ghazi, M. (2022). Factors That Drive the Choice of Schools for Children in Middle-Class Muslim Families in Indonesia: A Qualitative Study. Qualitative Report, 27(5), 1393–1409. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2022.5316
Hayden, R. M., Šiljeg, A., & Mari?, I. (2024). PATTERNS OF SEDIMENTATION AND EROSION OF SACRAL ARCHITECTURE AND SECULAR MEMORIALS IN MOSTAR, BANJA LUKA AND ZENICA. Geoadria, 29(2), 161–180. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.15291/geoadria.4509
Hewlett, S. A., Anto, F., Blankson, P. K., Tormeti, D., Ayettey-Adamafio, M., Bayitse, P., Danso-Appiah, T., & Amoah, A. G. (2022). Periodontitis prevalence and severity in an African population: A cross-sectional study in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. Journal of Periodontology, 93(5), 732–744. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1002/JPER.21-0329
Hosseini, A., & Zavar, N. (2024). Empire builders: Tracing the urban footprints of Seljuk women from Khorasan to Anatolia. A/Z ITU Journal of the Faculty of Architecture, 21(3), 637–654. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.58278/0.2024.69
Huriani, Y., Haryanti, E., Zulaiha, E., & Haq, M. Z. (2022). Women religious congregation as driving force behind alleviation of urban poor nutrition. Cogent Social Sciences, 8(1). Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2022.2113599
Idrus, M. M., Ahmad Mahir, N., Massari, N., & Ismail, H. (2025). Reimagining de-urbanised madrasa and self-place interaction through the lens of psychogeography. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 12(1). Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-025-05333-6
Jiménez-Castillo, P. J., Simón García, J. L., & Moreno, J. M. (2023). The colonisation of rainfed land in al-Andalus: An unknown aspect of the eleventh-century economic expansion. Journal of Medieval Iberian Studies, 15(3), 484–521. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1080/17546559.2023.2244477
Kabue, M., Abubakar, A., Ssewanyana, D., Angwenyi, V., Marangu, J., Njoroge, E., Ombech, E., Mokaya, M. M., Obulemire, E. K., Mugo, C., Malti, T., Moran, G., Martin, M.-C., Proulx, K., Marfo, K., Zhang, L., & Lye, S. (2022). A community engagement approach for an integrated early childhood development intervention: A case study of an urban informal settlement with Kenyans and embedded refugees. BMC Public Health, 22(1). Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-022-13185-x
Karavaeva, D. (2023). British Muslims and In-Between Identities from Urban Anthropology Viewpoint. Etnografia, 2023(1), 225–253. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.31250/2618-8600-2023-1(19)-225-253
Khabutdinov, A. Yu., Imasheva, M. M., & Khabutdinova, M. M. (2023). THE SOCIO-POLITICAL MOVEMENT OF MUSLIM WOMEN IN THE VOLGA-URAL REGION IN 1917. Woman in Russian Society, 1, 135–151. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.21064/WinRS.2023.1.10
Khamami, A. R. (2022). Nasionalis-cum-Nahdliyin: A new identity for nominal Javanese Muslims. Contemporary Islam, 16(2–3), 507–527. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11562-022-00505-6
Muhyi, A. A., Anwar, R., Fajrussalam, H., & Islamy, M. R. (2025). Tourism Based onAncient Manuscripts: Opportunities, Challenges and Development Strategies in Indonesia. Salud, Ciencia y Tecnologia, 5, 1–19. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.56294/saludcyt20251534
Orekhov, A. (2023). THE EVOLUTION OF INFRASTRUCTURES AND PRACTICES FOR THE DISSEMINATION OF ISLAMIC KNOWLEDGE: THE CASE OF THE MUSLIM COMMUNITY OF THE TOWN OF BOR, NIZHNY NOVGOROD REGION. Antropologicheskij Forum, 2023(59), 155–170. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.31250/1815-8870-2023-19-59-155-170
Rabie, D. (2024). The Abu Dhabi adhan: An orienting soundmark through scaled configurations of space and time. Journal of Linguistic Anthropology, 34(3), 376–395. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1111/jola.12438
Rochani, A., Yuliastuti, N., & Sudarwanto, B. (2022). THE EXISTENCE OF WAQF IN ESTABLISHING A SUSTAINABLE COMMUNAL SPACE. Journal of Islamic Architecture, 7(1), 57–66. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.18860/jia.v7i1.15310
Setiawan, A., Sunjayadi, A., Ramlan, Y., & Alatas, A. (2024). From Alienation to Industrialisation: Hijab Activism and the Transformation of Indonesian Urban Society from the Late 1970s to Today. Journal of Al-Tamaddun, 19(2), 155–168. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.22452/JAT.vol19no2.11
Sk, S. K. (2022). What matters most for early childhood development? Evidence from Malda district, India. PLOS ONE, 17(6 June). Scopus. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0268985
Smetanin, F. A. (2022). Religious leaders as actors in the production of Islamic spaces in Tomsk. Vestnik Archeologii, Antropologii i Etnografii, 2, 180–190. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.20874/2071-0437-2022-57-2-14
Suni, S., Firdaous, M. H., Zailani, F. F., Gödeke, S., Raffi, R., & Abas, P. E. (2025). Urban Water Management and Public Acceptance of Rainwater Harvesting Systems: Insights from Young and Educated Respondents in Muslim Communities. Sustainability (Switzerland), 17(7). Scopus. https://doi.org/10.3390/su17073046
Suprapto, n., & Huda, M. (2023). Religious Commodification: Muslim Housing and Identity Affirmation in Lombok, Indonesia. Studia Islamika, 30(1), 97–127. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.36712/SDI.V30I1.23818
Tahar, F., Mehan, A., & Nawratek, K. (2023). Spatial Reflections on Muslims’ Segregation in Britain. Religions, 14(3). Scopus. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14030349
Wanto, D., Jamin, J. A., & Ali, R. (2022). Asserting Religiosity in Indonesian Muslim Urban Communities through Islamic Education. Journal of Islamic Thought and Civilization, 12(2), 116–135. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.32350/jitc.122.09
Yi, S., & Koo, G. Y. (2025). Beyond Islamophobia: Unpacking economic motivations in South Korea’s Mosque construction debates. Indonesian Journal of Islam and Muslim Societies, 15(1), 109–141. Scopus. https://doi.org/10.18326/ijims.v15i1.109-141
Authors
Copyright (c) 2025 Pahmi Pahmi, Sara Hussain, Aung Myint, Yasir Al-Zahrani
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
