Exploring health information needs in Islamic contexts through health fatwa questions in Saudi Arabia

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Alblowi, Mahmoud and Ruthven, Ian and Innocenti, Perla (2025) Exploring health information needs in Islamic contexts through health fatwa questions in Saudi Arabia. Information Research. ISSN 1368-1613 (In Press)

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Abstract

Introduction. Many people with chronic illness in Saudi Arabia ask fatwas to align healthcare and worship with Islamic teachings. This study examines the health-religious information needs expressed in these questions. Method. The research adopted a qualitative approach and analysed 340 health-related fatwas about chronic illness collected from approved Sunni platforms (Ibn Baz, Ibn ʿUthaymīn, Saad al-Khathlan, IslamWeb, and IslamQA). Analysis. The 320 fatwa questions were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis to identify the main patterns of religion-related health information needs. Results. A range of religion-related health information needs were identified in the fatwa questions, showing how faith shapes people’s decisions and everyday health concerns. Conclusion(s). This study maps how chronically ill Muslims in Saudi Arabia express religion-related health information needs through fatwa questions, showing that faith routinely structures everyday health decision-making. Recognising fatwas as authoritative information sources can guide culturally sensitive health information services and encourage practical collaboration between clinicians and religious scholars.

ORCID iDs

Alblowi, Mahmoud, Ruthven, Ian ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6669-5376 and Innocenti, Perla ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1664-309X;
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)