Given the evident interconnection between the characteristics of a society and the process of education in sociological theory, social support and its various dimensions—as structural components—can directly and indirectly influence individuals’ upbringing and behavior. Since education and socialization are lifelong processes aimed at human development and flourishing, this qualitative study employs a thematic analysis approach to explore different types of social support and their educational consequences within the Qur’an and narrations from the infallible Imams (peace be upon them).
Findings indicate that the dimensions of social support discussed in sociology are presented in the Qur’an with broader and more detailed meanings. In the Qur’anic perspective, social support manifests in instrumental support (including charity and generosity, benevolent loan, leniency toward debtors, and ease in transactions); emotional support (comprising kinship ties, forgiveness of faults, confidentiality, cooperation and solidarity, forbearance, benevolence, and reconciliation); and cognitive support (including enjoining good and forbidding evil, admonition, consultation, and the teaching of critical thinking).
The results demonstrate that social support, both in the Qur’an and prophetic traditions, is addressed in its most comprehensive and practical forms. Operationalizing these dimensions in different social settings can promote educational growth through cognitive learning models based on informational and observational support, mediated by emotional and instrumental assistance. Consequently, such implementation may lead to behavioral transformation, moral improvement of societies, enhancement of social capital, and reduction of social harms.