Religious symbols, family identity, and social reintegration among families of former terrorism convicts in East Java, Indonesia

This dissertation examines how religious symbols are constructed, interpreted, and transformed within families of former terrorism convicts in East Java, Indonesia. Moving beyond security-centered explanations of radicalization, the study explores how religious meanings are negotiated through everyday family interactions and social relationships. Drawing on symbolic interactionism, religious symbols are understood as socially constructed representations whose meanings emerge through continuous interaction among family members and their surrounding communities. A phenomenological qualitative approach was employed, involving participant observation and in-depth interviews with 12 informants, including former terrorism convicts and their family members across five locations in East Java. The findings reveal that both verbal and non-verbal religious symbols function as important resources for constructing family identity and fostering a shared sense of belonging. However, these meanings remain dynamic and contested. Wives frequently played key roles in reinterpreting religious commitments and facilitating social reintegration, while children actively negotiated and sometimes challenged inherited ideological expectations. Family relationships therefore became important arenas where competing understandings of religion, authority, and belonging were debated and renegotiated. The study contributes to broader discussions of religion, identity formation, and social reintegration in post-extremist contexts.