This study investigates the factors driving Indonesian youth’s voluntary compliance with the Fatwa to boycott Israeli-affiliated products amid governmental ambivalence. Grounded in moral foundations theory, it examines the extent to which national solidarity, self-enhancement values, religious beliefs and boycott impact beliefs interact to shape faith-driven consumer activism.
This study employed a quantitative approach, analyzing data from 410 Millennial and Gen Z respondents using SmartPLS 4 to assess direct, mediating and moderating effects. Framed within the ongoing Israel boycott, it captures real-time responses, revealing the extent to which contextual factors influence voluntary adherence to non-binding religious directives.
Defying conventional assumptions, the study reveals that national solidarity alone does not drive compliance with the Fatwa. Self-enhancement emerges as a key mediator, transforming collective identity into action. Beliefs about the boycott’s impact further moderate this relationship – stronger convictions shift focus toward practical efficacy, while weaker beliefs amplify reliance on collective identity and moral obligation. Religious belief intensifies the influence of self-enhancement, underscoring its pivotal role in shaping voluntary compliance.
Policymakers, religious authorities and civic advocates can leverage these findings to design evidence-based campaigns that strengthen moral identity, integrate faith-based motivation with civic responsibility and enhance public confidence in the collective efficacy of ethical boycotts, particularly in contexts where moral authority substitutes for direct state intervention.
This study extends moral foundations theory to a non-Western, faith-driven context, illuminating how moral authority, care and fairness interact with religiosity, self-enhancement and perceived efficacy to shape voluntary compliance with a non-binding Fatwa. It offers fresh insight into faith-based collective action sustained by moral persuasion rather than legal enforcement.
