Research at the Institute centres around a number of select areas (listed below) that include the ten principles of Islam Hadhari. These principles address the political, legal, scientific, intellectual and social aspects of Islam in modern Muslim societies.

1. Overall Concept, Definition and Objectives of Islam Hadhari

2. Faith in God and Piety

3. Just and Trustworthy Government

4. The Islamic Conception of Freedom

5. Knowledge and the Pursuit of Excellence

6. Balanced Economic Development

7. A Good Quality of Life

8. Rights of Women and Minorities

9. Cultural and Moral Integrity

10. Safeguarding the Environment

11. Fiqh-based Harmonisation of Halal Standards

12. Outlines of a Model Islamic Family Law

13. Advancing Interfaith/Inter-civilisational Dialogue

Each of these areas cover a range of topics as follow:

1. The Islam Hadhari concept

• The meaning and definition of Islam Hadhari, its objectives and component principles.
• The issue over terminology of Islam Hadhari.
• Islam Hadhari and its grounding in the authentic teachings of Islam.
• Islam Hadhari and the goals and purposes (maqasid) of Shari'ah.
• The role of renewal (tajdid), reform and ijtihad in Islam Hadhari.
• The role of Islam Hadhari in the policy programme of the Government of Malaysia.
• Curbing extremist interpretations of Islam through the Islam Hadhari approach.
• What do we learn from the Qur’anic principle of moderation and balance (wasatiyyah).
• Identifying the priorities of Islam Hadhari for Malaysia and other Muslim countries: what are the most challenging issues?
• Social harmony in multi-religious societies from the perspective of Islam Hadhari.
• Consistency and convergence between the various principles and sub-themes of Islam Hadhari.

• The quest to promote faith and piety among Muslims.
• Identification and development of the most effective ways and Methods of teaching Islam to a modern generation of Muslims
• Divine Unity and its implications for the Muslim society and civilization.
• Ritualism versus substance in the understanding of faith and piety in Islam
• Islam and Islamic values in the constitution and laws of Malaysia
• Faith and piety: how are they manifested in the school and university curricula in Malaysia and other Muslim  countries?
• Islam in the constitutions and laws of Muslim countries.
• Freedom of religion and religious practices in Malaysia:   problems and prospects
• Apostasy and the challenges it poses in Malaysia and other Muslim countries

• Principles of governance in Islam: accountability and   Trust
• Social justice and the issue of equitable distribution of wealth: an slamic perspective
• Harmonisation of the Shariah and civil law: problems and prospects
• Separation or unity in the cause of justice: issues of jurisdiction between the civil and Syariahcourts in Malaysia
• Justice and the rule of law in the Muslim world: problems and prospects
• Violating the trust: an Islamic perspective on corruption
• Malaysia’s anti-corruption campaign under Abdullah Badawi’s leadership
• Detection and measurement of corruption: A survey of the available methods.

• Freedom from within: the role of tawhid and taqwa in the Islamic personality and culture
• The liberated individual: lessons from the Qur’an and Hadith
• Civil liberties as manifested in the constitution and laws of Malaysia
• Freedom of expression and freedom from unlawful arrest: problems and prospects
• Freedom in Islam and the liberal West: similarities and differences
• The gap between the theory and practice of constitutional freedoms in Muslim countries

• Tawhid and knowledge: a holistic approach to education in Mesjid Islam
• Advancing a perspective on knowledge: its priorities and characteristics in the writings of leading educationists of Islam
• The role of inductive/experimental methods in Islamic Epistemology
• Religion and science: An Islamic perspective
• Overcoming dualities: a comparative analysis of Islamic and modern educational methods
• The Islamic university movement: mission, priorities and Challenges
• Knowledge and capacity building: the Islam Hadhari approach

• Advancing the people’s welfare: an Islamic perspective
• The role of distributive justice in a balanced economy
• The role of charities and charitable endowments in advancing a balanced economy
• Trade and commerce: lessons from the Qur’an and hadith
• Aspiring to excellence in the workplace according to Islam
• Islamic business ethics and the role of morality in economic development
• Islamic banking and finance: past achievements and future Challenges
• Towards a better system of collection and administration of zakah in Malaysia

• Identifying the salient components of a good life
• The moral and material dimensions of well-being: an Islamic perspective
• Human dignity in the teachings of the Qur’an and Sunnah
• Good living and the civilisational objectives of Islam Hadhari
• Capacity building, human development, and the quality of life in Muslim countries

• Islam and pluralism: theological and juristic perspectives
• Adapting the fiqh tradition to contemporary realities: the role of the maqasid and ijtihad
• Social harmony and development: two of the overriding themes of Islam Hadhari
• Religious fraternity and human fraternity in the teachings of the Qur’an and Sunnah
• Fiqh of minorities with special reference to the rights of Muslim minorities in non-Muslim majority countries
• Closing the ranks and advancing unity between the Sunnis and Shias
• A survey of the laws of Malaysia concerning women: problems and prospects
• Developing outlines of a model Islamic family law

• Culture, custom and civilisation: similarities and Differences
• The quest for virtue: a perennial challenge and a common denominator of great civilisations
• Empowering the legal struggle against corruption with the teachings of Islam
• Moral integrity and the challenges of rampant secularity among Muslims
• Sex education without promiscuity
• Protecting the moral fabric of society without invasion of privacy: problems and prospects

• Spirituality and ecological degradation: the inter-linkage of Issues
• Protecting the natural environment: lessons from the Qur’an and Sunnah
• Man as the trustee and custodian of the earth: the Islamic principles of Divine Oneness (tawhid),vicegerency (khilafah), and trusteeship (amanah)
• Taking responsibility for environmental damage and rehabilitation: an Islamic perspective
• Malaysia’s agricultural policies under Abdullah Badawi’s leadership

• Basic guidelines on the determination of halal and haram in Islam
• A comparative analysis of the various schools of fiqh on halal and haram
• The role of custom in the popular acceptance or rejection of foods and beverages
• Developing methodological guidelines for the harmonization of global halal standards:problems and prospects

• Identifying issues affecting the status of family law in different countries and regions of the Muslim world
• Islamic family law reform: past achievements and future Challenges
• The failure of prescriptive reforms: a reappraisal of strategies
• Toward an egalitarian regime of family law: the role of maqasid and ijtihad
• Pernicious customary practices and women’s rights

• Beyond platitudes: attempts to identify approaches toward a meaningful dialogue of civilizations
• Common grounds and values among world religions
• The role of faith and reason in the conduct of interfaith Dialogue
• Taking stock of Malaysia’s interfaith dialogue: problems and prospects
• The Pope and Vatican: An evaluation of the “Common Word” between the Muslims and Christians worldwide.