Course Descriptions

This course examines the family and the contemporary transformations it faces from an integrated social, legal and Sharia perspective, drawing on social theories that explain family transformation (such as Goode's theory of the global transition of family patterns, and Inglehart's theory of modernity and postmodernity). The course covers the social, economic, cultural, technological and legal transformations that the contemporary family undergoes, the role of the family in adapting to them and reducing their negative effects, and the analysis of applied models from the reality of the family in Emirati society, in light of national policies aimed at strengthening the cohesion of the Emirati family in the face of globalization and imported patterns.

This course is concerned with studying the impact of mental health on family stability, through examining the psychological indicators that affect behavior and communication within the family, and their reflection on the marital and parental relationship and their manifestations in patterns of family interaction. In addressing family stress, the course relies on the Cognitive Appraisal and Coping Theory of Lazarus and Folkman (Lazarus & Folkman) as a scientific frame of reference for the concept of "positive coping strategies." The course also addresses the disorders most frequently encountered in the family context (such as anxiety, depression, bipolar disorder and others) in terms of their classification, general manifestations and impact on family members, the limits of Sharia and counseling consideration of them, their relationship to psychological specializations, and the controls for referring them and their pathway within the institutions concerned with them.

This course forms the jurisprudential and usuli (legal-theory) pillar of the Master of Family Jurisprudence program. It addresses contemporary family issues through a methodical, grounded treatment based on applying the rules of usuli legal characterization (takyif) and tracing branch rulings back to their foundational principles (takhrij al-furu' 'ala al-usul). The course focuses on analyzing complex issues in the fields of medicine and human reproduction, genetic engineering, and economic and financial developments within the family structure, applying the methodology of collective ijtihad issued by fiqh academies and official fatwa bodies. The course also examines the Sharia evidence for the academy resolutions, engages with contemporary medical reports and material facts, and compares jurisprudential adaptations with the rulings issued by the UAE judiciary, thereby building in the Master's student the capacity for sound jurisprudential preference (tarjih) and judicial analysis.

This course is concerned with studying the system of family legislation and policies in the United Arab Emirates through two main axes: First: analysis of UAE family legislation, particularly the legislation governing personal status, child protection and protection from family violence, and its comparison with jurisprudential rulings and the objectives of Islamic Sharia. Second: analysis of national family policies and evaluation of their impact on family stability, cohesion and quality of life. In general, the course develops in Master's students the ability to critically analyze legal texts and family policies, and to assess their effectiveness and impact on the reality of the Emirati family, in light of the Sharia reference and the legal and social context of the United Arab Emirates.

This course addresses the Sharia objectives (maqasid) as the governing guide for balancing rights and interests in contemporary issues, starting from the meaning of the objectives of Sharia, the relationship between the objectives and the rationale of rulings, the evidence for giving weight to the objectives in Islamic law and the governing principles of family jurisprudence in Islam, the preservation of progeny and honor as a necessary objective, the partial objectives of the marriage contract, the objectives of choosing spouses and preparing for marriage, the objectives of managing marital rights and duties, the jurisprudence of managing family disputes and the objective of reform, the objectives of the legislation of separation between spouses, the objectives of the waiting period ('iddah) and its consequent effects, the Sharia objectives in protecting and caring for children, the objective-based adaptation of emerging family issues, and the objective-based adaptation of emerging family issues, and Sharia objectives and contemporary family legislation within the legislative system of the United Arab Emirates.

This course provides a scientific framework for understanding the family as an interconnected system in which roles, relationships and behavioral patterns interact, through the study of the most prominent theories that explain the family: Family Systems Theory, Attachment Theory, Family Life Cycle Theory, Role Theory, and Family Stress and Coping Models, together with analysis of the dynamics of communication, authority, boundaries and intergenerational relationships. This strengthens the researcher's ability to explain and analyze family problems and transformations in a comprehensive scientific manner. It is an independent theoretical tool, separate from the treatment of contemporary family issues, digital transformation, child protection or family reform, which are covered by other courses in the program. The course specifically addresses the dynamics of the marital relationship (such as marital adjustment in light of Gottman's theory) and models of family problems and crises with their methods of intervention and handling, from a purely systemic and psychological theoretical perspective, without entering into the jurisprudential treatment of the objectives of marriage or the management of marital disputes, which are covered by other courses, and without reviewing general social issues such as globalization, digital transformation and gender roles as general phenomena; rather, these are employed only where they serve the application of the established psychological and social theories.

This course moves the student from describing family problems to analyzing them and building scientifically appropriate interventions to address them. It develops the ability to determine the nature of a problem, its causes and its parties, and to choose the appropriate intervention approach within the bounds of specialization. The course prepares the student to practice family mediation and organized Sharia arbitration in the courts of the United Arab Emirates to resolve marital and family disputes, and to manage complex family disputes with intertwined psychological and legal dimensions. It trains the student to evaluate the effectiveness of family intervention models and programs applied in official institutions in the UAE, and to formulate mechanisms for procedural coordination between the family counselor and the judicial and health authorities, in consideration of legislative and professional controls and the protection of family privacy, thereby qualifying the student to practice family guidance according to a disciplined scientific method that is consistent with the Sharia reference and the specificity of the Emirati context. B– Elective Specialized Program Requirements

This course establishes an independent academic understanding of the impact of digital technologies and artificial intelligence on marital relationships, upbringing, privacy and communication within the family, drawing on specific theoretical frameworks for measuring the impact of algorithms and virtual environments on the dynamics of family interaction and the cohesion of its members, as well as on the governing jurisprudential frameworks (weighing benefits against harms, and blocking or opening means to ends) and the legislative and institutional system of the United Arab Emirates (protection of personal data, combating rumors and cybercrime, electronic transactions and trust services, and the National Policy for Digital Quality of Life). The course trains the researcher in the ethical critique of artificial intelligence applications in family counseling and marital guidance bots, in critiquing the algorithms of family platforms, and in analyzing models from concise Emirati court files related to family cybercrime, and in building advanced practical strategies to promote positive digital parenting and reduce the risks of virtual family breakdown, in line with the National Policy for Digital Quality of Life.

This course addresses the major jurisprudential theories (right, contract, capacity, guardianship, harm, liability, and guarantee) as overarching frameworks that transcend schools of jurisprudence, not confined to any single school, while explaining the treatment of each theory by the Maliki school and comparing it with the treatment of other schools when needed. The course is specifically concerned with employing these theories in analyzing complex contemporary family issues, rather than revisiting established traditional topics such as maintenance (nafaqah) and custody (hadanah), which the student studied in the bachelor's stage, and with directly linking each theory to its corresponding texts in UAE legislation: the theories of contract, harm and liability in Federal Decree-Law No. (25) of 2025 issuing the Civil Transactions Law, and the theories of capacity and guardianship in Federal Decree-Law No. (41) of 2024 on Personal Status. This course is distinguished from the courses "Family Jurisprudence Issues" and "Family Legislation and Policies" by its focus on the overall theoretical construction of the jurisprudential theories themselves as a shared analytical tool, and by training the student, in a cumulative and graduated manner throughout the semester, to apply more than one theory together in addressing a single complex family situation, rather than limiting this integration to a single concluding week.

This course qualifies the student to design and conduct rigorous scientific research in Family Jurisprudence and in Family and Social Studies, in a manner suited to the complex nature of its issues. The course draws on the standard methodological frameworks for social research design (such as Creswell's model for quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods, and Yin's approach to case study), including mixed designs that combine jurisprudential grounding with applied social analysis. The course addresses building the research problem; selecting research methods (case study, content analysis and descriptive survey) and data collection tools (questionnaire and interview); analyzing data descriptively and at a preliminary inferential level using one of the digital software programs; and training the student to read and interpret official family indicators and statistics issued by the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Centre and national institutions of the UAE. The course combines the Sharia grounding of research methodology in family issues with modern social research tools, training the student to design a research instrument and apply it in practice, and to employ the case study method in addressing family issues in a manner that preserves family privacy and the dignity of its members, observing research ethics, confidentiality of information, and sensitivity in dealing with families and human cases, in preparation for drafting the thesis research plan.

This course addresses one of the most sensitive and important areas of family concern in contemporary jurisprudence and legislation. It introduces the student to the concepts of family and child protection, the causes and patterns of violence and abuse (physical, psychological, sexual and neglect), and their indicators and social, Sharia and psychological effects. The course strengthens the psychological dimension of early detection of abuse, drawing on the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) theory and Trauma-Informed Care models as a scientific frame of reference. The course aims to develop the student's ability to deal scientifically and responsibly with cases of violence and abuse, and to identify urgent protection measures, referral procedures, and institutional coordination among the Public Prosecution, the police and official social institutions in the UAE. The course links Sharia grounding and the objectives of Sharia in preserving progeny, life and property with the legislative frameworks in force in the State, such as the Child Rights Law (Wadeema's Law) and the Law on Protection from Domestic Violence