Asian Journal of Islamic Management (AJIM)

Memorable volunteer trip: Unveiling the experience-mediated model from Gen Z Sharia-driven re-participation

2026-04-29T19:41:00+00:00

Purpose – This study aims to examine the role of Sharia-based personal norms (SN) in shaping Muslim Gen Z voluntourists’ re-participation intention (RI) in volunteer tourism (voluntrip), while investigating the mediating role of memorable volunteer tourism experience (MVTE).
Methodology – A quantitative approach was employed using survey data collected from 273 Muslim Gen Z voluntourists in West Java, Indonesia. Data were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM), complemented by multi-group analysis (PLS-MGA) to assess group differences based on activity orientation and participation duration.
Findings – The results reveal that SN influence both the MVTE and RI. Moreover, MVTE serves a complementary partial mediating role in the relationship between personal norms and behavioral intention. This infers that the continuation of voluntrip action hinges on how participation is experienced and remembered. In addition, this study assessed group differences in activity orientation and participation duration. However, no statistically significant differences were found, implying that Muslim Gen Z voluntourists are largely value-driven, with experiences and intentions shaped more by meaningfulness than by contextual factors.
Implications – The findings highlight memorable experiences as a partial pathway linking personal norms to sustained participation in voluntourism. Initiators and providers are encouraged to pursue the goal of maslahah by developing impactful and meaningful voluntrip designs.
Originality – This study incorporates maqasid al-Sharia on personal norms and investigates the mediating role of memorable experiences on norm activation theory, offering a novel faith-based perspective in voluntourism research and providing a deeper understanding of value-driven experience tourist behavior among Muslim Gen Z.

Examining e-commerce user’s switching intention through an extended push-pull-mooring model

2026-07-07T15:12:28+00:00

Purpose – This study investigates the determinants of Indonesian e-commerce users’ intention toward productive digital behavior using the push–pull–mooring (PPM) model. It further integrates the Homo Islamicus perspective, the technology acceptance model (TAM), and the marketing mix to provide a more comprehensive explanation of this behavioral transition.
Methodology – Primary data were collected from 231 Indonesian e-commerce users through an online survey using purposive sampling method. The eligible respondents were individuals who had actively engaged in online shopping. The proposed model was evaluated using a two-stage partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) approach.
Findings – The results indicate that push factors, represented by impulse buying and Homo Islamicus attributes, do not significantly explain the switching intention toward productive digital behavior. In contrast, pull factors, including perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, attitude toward e-commerce, and the marketing mix, significantly influenced switching intention. Mooring factors, including risk propensity, tolerance of ambiguity, and perceived educational support, also positively influenced switching intention.
Implications – Encouraging productive digital behavior requires more than just reducing consumptive tendencies. Policymakers and e-commerce platform providers should strengthen digital entrepreneurship education, mentoring, and risk management support to enhance users’ readiness for productive digital activities.
Originality – Previous e-commerce studies have primarily focused on purchase intention, online shopping adoption and impulse buying. This study extends the PPM model by explaining users’ switching intention from consumptive to productive digital behavior in the Indonesian e-commerce ecosystem.

Religious-digital tensions among Muslim Gen Z tourists: Phenomenology of NTB halal tourism

2026-05-27T13:06:06+00:00

Purpose – This study investigates the religious–digital tensions experienced by Muslim Gen Z tourists in West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), Indonesia, arising from the gap between their expectations of an integrated digital–halal ecosystem and the realities of infrastructure and destination governance. It conceptualizes these tensions as a systemic phenomenon with implications for the Islamic management of halal tourism.
Methodology – A qualitative phenomenological approach was employed using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA), combining in-depth interviews with seven participants and a focus group discussion (FGD) with four, totalling eleven Muslim Gen Z tourists selected purposively. Data were analyzed inductively and deductively, supported by member checking, back-translation, and source triangulation.
Findings – The analysis reveals six interrelated tension clusters: (1) universal connectivity versus discriminatory signals, (2) cashless ecosystem versus partial payment infrastructure, (3) digital halal certification versus informal trust, (4) comfortable halal accommodation versus rigid formalization, (5) accessible Islamic finance versus limited outreach, and (6) responsive versus fragmented governance. These tensions form a layered compound system across infrastructural, informational, and conceptual–regulatory levels.
Implications – The findings offer strategic recommendations for destination managers, Islamic financial institutions, and halal certification bodies to close the implementation gap in NTB's halal tourism, transferable within specified scope conditions to comparable subnational halal-branded destinations worldwide.
Originality – This study is among the first to conceptualize halal tourism tensions as a layered compound system through IPA of Muslim Gen Z tourists in a Muslim-majority subnational destination in India. It formally defines digitally compounded halal risk as an extension of Perceived Halal Risk.

Do social media influencers shape halal purchase intentions among Gen Z?

2026-05-27T13:06:03+00:00

Purpose – This study aims to describe the influence of influencers on Gen Z in halal purchase intention, especially in Gen Z in cities with high socio-religiosity, and to test whether religiosity is able to moderate the attitudes of influencers in their role as mediators.
Methodology – This study employs a quantitative approach using structural equation modeling–partial least squares (SEM-PLS) with SmartPLS 4.0, based on data collected from 262 Gen Z respondents in Pekalongan, a city characterized by strong socio-religious values. Drawing on the theory of planned behavior (TPB), the model integrates trust, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, credibility, attitude, and religiosity to explain halal purchase intention in a social media environment.
Findings – The results reveal that attitude is the strongest predictor of halal purchase intention. Trust, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control significantly and positively influence attitude, although their effect sizes are relatively weak. In contrast, credibility does not significantly affect attitude. Attitude significantly mediates the relationship between influencer-related factors and purchase intention. Religiosity, however, neither directly influences purchase intention nor moderates the relationship between attitude and purchase intention.
Implications – These findings suggest that marketers should focus on strengthening positive consumer attitudes through trust-building, social endorsement, and perceived consumer control, rather than relying solely on influencer credibility or religiosity cues.
Originality – This study extends halal consumption literature by integrating religiosity and attitude within the TPB framework and provides empirical evidence on influencer-driven halal purchase behavior among Gen Z in a highly religious social context.

Predicting boycott intention and participation among urban Muslim consumers in Indonesia

2026-05-10T12:19:49+00:00

Purpose – This research aims to extend the classic theory of planned behavior (TPB) framework by incorporating social media influence and religiosity as key predictors, thereby providing a more comprehensive explanation of boycott intention and subsequent participation among Muslim consumers in a high-digital-penetration, Muslim-majority emerging market context.
Methodology – A quantitative cross-sectional survey was conducted among 250 Muslim consumers aged 18 years and above in Semarang, Central Java, Indonesia. Respondents were purposively selected based on their recent fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) purchases and awareness of ongoing boycott campaigns. Data were collected via questionnaires and analyzed using structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) in SmartPLS 4.0.
Findings – The results show that attitudes towards boycotting, perceived behavioral control, and social media influence have a significant positive effect on boycott intention, and the latter has a strong predictive power for actual boycott participation. Social media influence was the most powerful predictor. Religiosity did not significantly moderate boycott intention.
Implications – Multinational FMCG companies operating in Muslim-majority emerging markets should prioritize digital reputation management, transparent ethical and halal communication, proactive engagement with social media influencers, and rapid response strategies to mitigate boycott risks. Local brands can leverage digital momentum to strengthen their market position.
Originality – This study pioneers the integration of social media influence as a distinct antecedent and religiosity as a moderator within an extended TPB framework in the context of geopolitically motivated boycotts in Indonesia’s digitally advanced Muslim-majority market. The finding that social media influence outweighs religiosity challenges the prevailing assumptions in the Islamic marketing literature.

Exploring religious motivation as a moderator of word-of-mouth in Islamic banking

2026-02-15T16:03:48+00:00

Purpose – This study examines the effects of service quality, service convenience, religious motivation, and customer satisfaction on word-of-mouth (WOM) behavior in Indonesian Islamic banking. It also investigates whether religious motivation moderates the relationship between customer satisfaction and WOM.
Methodology – A quantitative approach was employed using purposive sampling of Islamic bank customers who had maintained an active account for at least one year. Data were collected from 195 respondents and analyzed using WarpPLS 6.0 to assess the measurement and structural models and test the proposed hypotheses.
Findings – The results demonstrate that service quality and service convenience significantly enhance customer satisfaction. Furthermore, service quality, religious motivation, and customer satisfaction have significant positive effects on WOM behavior. However, service convenience does not directly influence WOM, and religious motivation does not moderate the relationship between customer satisfaction and WOM. These findings indicate that customer satisfaction is the primary driver of customers’ willingness to recommend Islamic banks, regardless of their level of religious motivation.
Implications – Islamic banks should prioritize improving service quality and sustaining customer satisfaction to encourage positive WOM and strengthen customer advocacy. Although religious motivation does not strengthen the satisfaction–WOM relationship, reinforcing Sharia values remains an important strategy for differentiating Islamic banks in an increasingly competitive market.
Originality – This study extends the Islamic banking literature by examining the moderating role of religious motivation in the customer satisfaction–WOM relationship, an area that has received limited empirical attention. Unlike previous studies emphasizing customer loyalty and behavioral intention, this study identifies WOM as a distinct and important behavioral outcome in the Islamic banking context.