ALGORITHMIC SOCIETIES AND MUSLIM MORAL AGENCY: ISLAM AT THE THRESHOLD OF DIGITAL CIVILIZATION
Abstract
The rapid advancement of digital technologies has led to the emergence of algorithmic societies, where automated systems increasingly govern decision-making processes. In such societies, ethical concerns regarding human agency and moral decision-making have become more pressing, especially for Muslim communities navigating a digital world. Islamic moral teachings, which emphasize justice, equity, and individual responsibility, provide a comprehensive ethical framework that can address the challenges posed by algorithmic governance. This study explores the intersection of Islamic ethics and algorithmic societies, focusing on how Islamic moral agency can be preserved in the face of technological transformation. The research employs a qualitative approach, analyzing Islamic ethical principles alongside the impact of algorithmic systems on governance and social structures. The findings reveal that while Islamic ethics offer a robust framework for addressing the ethical challenges of digital governance, there is a significant gap in their integration into algorithmic decision-making processes. The study concludes that it is crucial to incorporate Islamic values such as fairness, transparency, and social responsibility into digital technologies to safeguard moral agency. This paper contributes to the discourse on digital ethics by proposing an Islamic ethical model for the digital age, advocating for a more inclusive and just digital civilization.
Full text article
References
Abubakari, Y. (2024). Modelling the modus operandi of online romance fraud: Perspectives of online romance fraudsters. Journal of Economic Criminology, 6, 100112. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeconc.2024.100112
Addadzi - Koom, M. E. (2024). “You deserve mob justice too”: Discursive justifications of mob (In)Justice on social media in Africa. International Journal of Law, Crime and Justice, 79, 100697. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijlcj.2024.100697
Aditya, B., & Sumini. (2025). Meeting refugees on Instagram: Platformisation of news and knowledge production about refugees in digital social space. Digital Geography and Society, 9, 100129. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.diggeo.2025.100129
Aksoy, Ç., Demi?rezen, M. U., & Sa??ro?lu, ?. (2026). Hate speech detection in Turkish: An ensemble transformer-based deep learning approach. Engineering Applications of Artificial Intelligence, 164, 113147. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.engappai.2025.113147
Albalawi, A. F., & Abdul-Ghafour, A.-Q. K. (2026). An investigation into human vs AI English translations of Qur’anic euphemisms. Social Sciences & Humanities Open, 13, 102249. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2025.102249
Alharbi, A., & Albawardi, A. (2025). The social representation of ‘women’ on X platform before and after the launch of Saudi vision 2030. Applied Corpus Linguistics, 5(3), 100140. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acorp.2025.100140
Ang, S. Y., & Alawattage, C. (2026). Ethnic domination and subaltern resistance: Rituals and games of calculative transparency and secrecy in Malaysia’s whispering fish market. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 103, 102849. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpa.2026.102849
Arslan, A., Yener, S., & Akturan, A. (2025). Moral identity and the ethics of digital piracy: a self-regulatory model of contextual reasoning and religious norms. Journal of Information, Communication and Ethics in Society, 24(1), 145–174. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1108/JICES-05-2025-0097
Ash, E., Stammbach, D., & Tobia, K. (2023). What is (and was) a person? Evidence on historical mind perceptions from natural language. Cognition, 239, 105501. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2023.105501
Aysan, A. F. F., Lemine, A. S., & Kayani, U. (2024). Kingdom of Fintech: crowdfunding shaping the future in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Journal of Science and Technology Policy Management, 17(4), 810–828. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1108/JSTPM-05-2023-0066
Babu, M. A., Alam, M. T. U., Jaman, S. M. S., & Islam, M. R. (2025). Understanding the psychology behind the boycott of Israeli-affiliated brands: A TPB-based study in Bangladesh. Acta Psychologica, 260, 105572. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actpsy.2025.105572
Battour, M., Ratnasari, R. T., Ahmi, A., Sukmana, R., & Hendratmi, A. (2024). The current state of published literature on halal tourism and hospitality: a bibliometric review. Journal of Islamic Marketing, 15(4), 963–989. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1108/JIMA-02-2023-0054
Billah, M., Amar, A. Ben, & Balli, F. (2023). The extreme return connectedness between Sukuk and green bonds and their determinants and consequences for investors. Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, 77, 101936. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pacfin.2023.101936
Birgün, M. (2026). Integrating AI into Qur’an learning: Technical advances and pedagogical gaps. Social Sciences & Humanities Open, 13, 102499. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2026.102499
Botes, M. B. T.-D. in N. and B. (2026). Draw closer to me: Participatory visual storytelling to include socio-cultural perspectives in neuroethics and policymaking. Academic Press. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.dnb.2026.02.011
Bouteraa, M., Chekima, B., Amin, H., Tamma, E., Lada, S., Ansar, R., & Lim, M. F. (2024). Does consumer religiosity matter for green banking adoption? Evidence from a Muslim-majority market. Journal of Islamic Marketing, 15(7), 1807–1823. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1108/JIMA-02-2023-0049
Corre, J., Giangualano-Fusina, P., Lançon, C., Tuchtan, L., Delteil, C., Fernandez, A., Bartoli, C., Boyer, L., & Guivarch, J. (2026). Mental disorder and discernment in jihadi terrorists: A study of 100 pre-sentence forensic psychiatric evaluations in France. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 107, 102225. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijlp.2026.102225
D’Acunto, F., Ghosh, P., & Rossi, A. G. (2026). How costly are cultural biases? Evidence from FinTech. Journal of Financial Economics, 175, 104202. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jfineco.2025.104202
Fantinelli, M. (2026). Dialogic ecologies: producer–audience dynamics in Arabic youtube environmental communication. Language Sciences, 116, 101815. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.langsci.2026.101815
Ferreira, J. M. A., Bauerová, R., Ta?l?beyaz, E., Giannouli, V., Koyuncu, M., Agatonovi?, M., O’Higgins Norman, J., Meehan, A., & Boji?, L. (2026). A systematic review of emerging technologies and their impact on adolescent well-being and religious identity. Acta Psychologica, 264, 106601. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actpsy.2026.106601
Herman, M. D. A. S., & Salehudin, I. (2025). How faith fuels boycotts: consumer activism against pro-Israel brands in a religiously diverse society. Journal of Islamic Marketing, 17(1), 371–399. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1108/JIMA-10-2024-0490
Higueras-Castillo, E., Rialp-Criado, J., Buhmann, K.-M., & Liébana-Cabanillas, F. (2025). “Should I stay or should I go?” a dual-theory behavioral analysis of electric vehicle adoption and retention. Transport Policy, 173, 103792. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tranpol.2025.103792
Jiang, S., Tang, W., Chen, X., Tang, R., Wang, H., & Wang, W. (2025). ReZG: Retrieval-augmented zero-shot counter narrative generation for hate speech. Neurocomputing, 620, 129140. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neucom.2024.129140
Kasmon, B., Ibrahim, S. S., Daud, D., Raja Hisham, R. R. I., & Ratnasari, R. T. (2024). Future behavior in waqf digitalization: integrating UTAUT and DIT theories. Journal of Islamic Marketing, 16(4), 1051–1072. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1108/JIMA-03-2024-0111
Kumar, S., & Choudhury, S. (2023). Cognitive morality and artificial intelligence (AI): a proposed classification of AI systems using Kohlberg’s theory of cognitive ethics. Technological Sustainability, 2(3), 259–273. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1108/TECHS-12-2022-0047
Mariyono, D., Jalil, A., Mustafida, F., Muslim, M., & Mazhabi, Z. (2025). Navigating ethical boundaries in death and mourning: A hybrid analysis toward a globally replicable framework. New Ideas in Psychology, 79, 101187. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.newideapsych.2025.101187
Martín, J. C., & Indelicato, A. (2025). The effects of climate change and environmental regulation analysing U.S. citizens’ typology. Social Sciences & Humanities Open, 11, 101529. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2025.101529
Mayer, M. J., Horgan, J., Herrenkohl, T. I., & Osher, D. (2024). Violent extremism in the U.S.: Causes and consequences for youth, families, schools, and communities. Journal of School Psychology, 106, 101345. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsp.2024.101345
Müller-Hansen, M. (2026). Slow violence in digital food environments: App-food-body assemblages in urban India. Cities, 174, 107070. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2026.107070
Mursid, A., Amron, A., Hidayat, D. S., & Latan, H. (2025). The role of religious respect in elevating Muslim travelers’ experience and satisfaction. Journal of Islamic Marketing, 17(1), 236–269. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1108/JIMA-12-2024-0583
Parrish, J., & Saeed, K. (2025). Understanding the impact of culture on the teleological evaluation of delegation to artificial intelligence-enabled information systems. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 219, 124247. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2025.124247
Pearce, H. (2024). Christian perspectives on the regulation of posthumous medical data donation (PMDD): An empirical study. Computer Law & Security Review, 55, 106052. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clsr.2024.106052
Rajan, B. (2025). “It follows you home”: Emotional and psychological impacts of dating-app harassment on Indian women. Women’s Studies International Forum, 112, 103129. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wsif.2025.103129
Schuessler, E., Maric, S., & Dobusch, L. (2026). Digital platforms and democratic publics: How social media platforms selectively appropriate and strategically subvert institutional logics. Information and Organization, 36(1), 100612. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.infoandorg.2026.100612
Ta?tan, ?., & Ozdamar Ertekin, Z. (2024). Ideological capacities in consumer communities: an exploration of the “presenteers” tribe. Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal, 27(5), 724–749. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1108/QMR-05-2023-0059
Teo, S. A. (2025). Artificial intelligence, human vulnerability and multi-level resilience. Computer Law & Security Review, 57, 106134. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clsr.2025.106134
Tyulina, N. (2026). Tweeting war and peace: Linguistic analysis of pro- and anti-war messages on Russian Twitter. Journal of Pragmatics, 253, 1–15. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pragma.2025.12.007
van Voorst, R. (2025). “What do you mean, we use intuition?” The productive silence of diagnostic intuition: Examining the impact of the “absent present” in healthcare. Social Science & Medicine, 384, 118507. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2025.118507
Wang, A., & Bhatt, I. (2025). Big sister, dog, and ethnic names: Semiotic ideologies of self-naming on Xiaohongshu (RED). Discourse, Context & Media, 66, 100898. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dcm.2025.100898
Authors
Copyright (c) 2026 Yana Dwi Christanti, Sevda Kara, Murat Arslan
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
