BEYOND BRAIN-CENTERED COGNITION: A THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK INTEGRATING THE QUR’ANIC CONCEPT OF QALB WITH CONTEMPORARY COGNITIVE SCIENCE

Abstract

This theoretical study examines dominant brain-centered models of cognition in contemporary psychology and explores their limitations in accounting for moral, interpretive, and spiritual dimensions of human experience. While cognitive neuroscience explains perception, memory, and decision-making through neural mechanisms, it often provides limited frameworks for understanding meaning and inner ethical awareness. Using a qualitative theoretical design based on comparative conceptual analysis, the study integrates findings from cognitive neuroscience, moral psychology, and selected Islamic epistemological sources. It proposes a Brain–Qalb integrative model in which cognition is conceptualized as a multi-layered process involving sensory input, neural processing, affective-cognitive appraisal, and a higher-order interpretive dimension associated with the Qalb (heart).The model frames cognition not as a purely brain-based function but as a recursive system in which meaning and moral direction are shaped through interaction between neural processes and inner interpretive awareness. The study highlights the limitations of reductionist approaches and suggests the need for more integrative frameworks that can accommodate both empirical and interpretive dimensions of human cognition. Overall, the research contributes a conceptual framework for interdisciplinary dialogue between psychology and Islamic thought, offering a broader understanding of cognition that includes both biological mechanisms and moral-spiritual interpretation.