Our association members, Zeynep Ebrar Paşa and Fikriye Bilge Bircan, participated in the European Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Therapies (EABCT) Congress held in Glasgow between 3–6 September 2025 with their poster presentation and short oral presentation studies.

The Effect of Religiously Integrated Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (RCBT) Intervention on Psychological Symptoms: A Single-Case Experimental Study

In this study, the TMTT Model (Tafakkur, Muhasabah, Tawbah, Tawakkul) was applied to a 20-year-old participant who presented with complaints of rumination, worry, and behavioral avoidance, and requested a religiously sensitive therapy, with the aim of reducing psychological symptoms.

The TMTT Model, developed by Toprak (2025), is a staged framework of Religiously Integrated Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) that systematically incorporates Islamic concepts into cognitive and experiential dimensions. It consists of the stages of Tafakkur (Contemplation), Muhasabah (Self-Reflection), Tawbah (Repentance), and Tawakkul (Trust in Allah), and supports motivation and emotional regulation through practices such as intention, prayer (dua), patience, and gratitude.

The stages of the model are as follows:

Tafakkur aims to gain cognitive insight by reflecting and engaging in self-evaluation in the light of Islamic sources.

Muhasabah focuses on addressing faults in thoughts and behaviors with reference to values and Islamic sources and fostering a sense of responsibility

Tawbah seeks to transform guilt into genuine motivation for change.

Tawakkul supports taking action by relying on divine guidance.

The study was conducted as a single-case experimental design (A–B design). Following a 7-day baseline period, the TMTT model was applied. Rumination, worry, behavioral avoidance, and religious/spiritual involvement were assessed through daily self-reports, while rumination, worry, depression, anxiety, life satisfaction, and religious coping were evaluated at multiple time points using standardized scales.

Post-intervention assessments indicated significant decreases in rumination, worry, behavioral avoidance, depression, and anxiety, accompanied by a reliable increase in life satisfaction. Importantly, the declines in rumination and worry, together with the improvement in life satisfaction, were maintained at the two-month follow-up and exceeded pre-intervention levels. In contrast, only minor variations were observed in religious coping and religious/spiritual involvement, which did not attain statistical significance.

The findings indicate that the TMTT Model has the potential to facilitate psychological recovery while offering a religiously sensitive framework capable of addressing faith-based needs within the therapeutic context.

Religiously Integrated Cognitive Behavioral Therapy  for Traumatic Grief:  A Case Study

This case study examines a 17-session therapeutic process conducted with a client experiencing traumatic grief following the loss of several relatives in the 2023 Kahramanmaraş earthquakes. The client met the diagnostic criteria for traumatic grief, major depressive disorder, and agoraphobia.

Behavioral activation was applied to address depressive symptoms, and the process was structured based on the BEP-TG protocol (Smid et al., 2015). The client’s Islamic values were integrated into therapy, and religious meaning-making was facilitated through Socratic questioning.

The Prophet’s experience of grief was utilized as a role model, and the client’s association of Surah Al-Inshirah with their deceased relative was drawn upon to facilitate meaning-making in the mourning process. These verses provided a foundation both for the transformative processing of bereavement and for behavioral activation.

In the sessions, gradual exposure was also applied to address avoidance behaviors (e.g., contact with the belongings and photographs of the deceased relative). By the end of treatment, the client had returned to work, was able to maintain parental responsibilities, and coped more adaptively with grief-related reminders. 

The assessment results indicated significant improvement: the client’s score on the Grief Cognitions Questionnaire decreased from 77 to 21.

This case study demonstrates how traumatic grief in the aftermath of a mass disaster, such as an earthquake, can be addressed and processed within a CBT framework integrated with cultural and religious values