Factors affecting gen z’s intention to pursue higher education in Islamic economics : an integrated model of TPB, SDT, and alignment with maqasid al-shariah

Abstract

The study examines the determinants of the intention of Gen Z to pursue higher education in Islamic economics by combining the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), SelfDetermination Theory (SDT), and alignment with Maqasid al-Shariah. With the increasing fear of the shortage of professional talents and experts in Islamic economy, the study aims at discovering the psychological, motivational and value-based factors that can be used to explain and improve educational decisions of students in the field. The study of 280 Gen Z participants that are active students or graduates in Islamic economics in higher education was conducted using Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to assess the direct and indirect links between the essential constructs: attitude, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, the satisfaction of basic psychological needs, autonomous motivation, controlled motivation, and alignment with Maqasid al-Shariah. The results indicate that attitude is the most influential variable of intention in the TPB framework, followed by perceived behavioral control, and lastly subjective norm. This implies that the interest of Gen Z is mainly influenced by their personal assessment of Islamic economics and belief in their capability, but not by social pressure. Moreover, SDT variables have an important role in the intention by means of TPB components. Namely, the satisfaction of psychological needs is the strongest total indirect influence on intention through autonomous motivation. Controlled motivation, in its turn, possesses a weaker and narrower effect, which supports the significance of self-endorsed motives. Moreover, the research concludes that the congruence with Maqasid al-Shariah positively and significantly directly influences the intention of Gen Z to study Islamic economics. This implies that when people feel that this discipline is in line with greater Islamic goals like the maintenance of religion and wealth, they will have higher chances of viewing this field as a worthwhile academic and career choice. In general, this study has shown that educational institutions and policymakers must popularize Islamic economics as a goaloriented and spiritually satisfying field. Considering both motivational factors and value alignment, the institutions will be able to develop more effective outreach strategies and curricula that appeal to the aspirations and beliefs of Gen Z.