Firdaus Journal

Incorporating spirituality and religiosity in managing organization resiliency

Guest Editor:

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mohd Nabil Almunawar, University of Brunei Darussalam

Overview of Special Issue

The current COVID-19 pandemic posts daunting challenges for any organization with many uncertainties. To control the contagiousness of SARS-CoV-2 that constantly come with new variants, authorities control strictly all physical contacts and enforcing contact tracing and tough quarantine rules. Although the use of technology has helped prevent the spread of COVID-19, misinformation and hoax from the Internet has also brought about many uncertainties about the pandemic.

Within an educational setting, conducting online classes has also been troubled with uncertainties. Issues from the quality of teaching to the medium of instructions have together highlighted the impact of the global pandemic on education. In some places, where the pandemic is successfully controlled, schools or universities are re-opened with strict rules and restrictions; nonetheless, the anxiety and psychological wellness of individuals are still being affected.

Considering ones’ internal belief systems and feelings, it could be said that human emotionality has been a constituent element of religiosity and that the feeling of one sort or another has been integral to society and religion. The role of spirituality in religiosity, as well as the experience of the relationship with the Divine, has been a subject of various disciplines such as Theology, Religion Studies, Anthropology or Social Science in general. However, in the recent past, this subject has also aroused a modest interest in the field of psychology, explicitly investigating that religion may serve as a source of certain emotions and may also lead to emotional health. This also holds in the context of the current COVID-19 pandemic, wherein religiosity, spirituality and emotions are essential factors that influence the calmness of a person or group of people in coping with the hardship caused by the pandemic. Thus, it can be considered that spirituality and religiosity, which includes religious beliefs and practices are closely linked to people’s emotional experiences and wellbeing. Irrespective of religious affiliation, people across the spectrum of various geographic locations experience and express an array of emotions in their religious conduct, which is inseparable from a dogmatic or informal belief in God or the Divine.