Designing a Comparative Conceptual Model of Morality-Centered Affective Education: A Cognitive-Epistemological Framework Based on Islamic Teachings and Humanistic Psychology for Healthcare Professionals

Background: Affective education, emphasizing emotional guidance and cognitive-affective regulation, plays a foundational role in shaping ethical behavior and social competencies. This qualitative-descriptive study, employing content analysis and hermeneutics, compares the cognitive foundations of affective education within the teachings of Imam Ali (PBUH) and humanistic psychology theories. It aims to provide an ethical-scientific framework for designing educational interventions in health professions. Methods: This fundamental qualitative research adopts a descriptive-analytical approach, utilizing content analysis, theoretical-inductive inference, and conceptual development. Relevant propositions on affective education were coded from the full text of Nahj al-Balagha as the primary religious source and key humanistic works (Maslow, Rogers, Yalom), undergoing open, axial, and selective coding stages. Inter-rater reliability and content validity were ensured through collaboration with Islamic scholars and humanistic psychologists. Results: Three core components were extracted from Imam Ali’s (PBUH) teachings: 1) Faith (Iman), 2) Recognition of Eschatology (Ma’ād), and 3) Self-Mastery (Qahr al-Nafs). These link affect regulation to prayer, remembrance of death, and divine orientation. Concurrently, two components emerged from humanistic texts: 1) Unity and Fraternity (Wahdat wa Barādari) and 2) Recognition of Spirituality (Ma’rifat-e Ma’nawiyyāt), highlighting empathy, self-awareness, and secular meaning-seeking. Convergence exists in self-awareness, responsibility, and empathy; divergence lies in teleology (theistic vs. secular). Conclusions: Integrating the spiritual teachings of Imam Ali (PBUH) with the humanistic approach can facilitate the design of hybrid training programs. These would concurrently offer emotion regulation skills, empathic dialogue techniques, and practices such as prayer and Quranic reflection. While requiring empirical validation through field evidence and quantitative data, this model provides groundwork for quantitative intervention research in schools/clinical settings and the development of objective assessment tools for "Spiritual Affective Education."