Strengthening digital Islamic activism: virtual ethnography of Bandung Hijrah Youth’s WhatsApp engagement

Muhammad Sufyan Abdurrahman; Aqida Nuril Salma; Slamet Parsono; Aditya Ali; Septiana Yustika  Widyaningrum

doi:10.25139/jsk.v9i1.9372

Muhammad Sufyan Abdurrahman Telkom University
Aqida Nuril Salma Goethe University of Frankfurt
Slamet Parsono Telkom University
Aditya Ali Telkom University
Septiana Yustika Widyaningrum Telkom University

https://doi.org/10.25139/jsk.v9i1.9372

Abstract views: 5 ,

PDF downloads: 5

Keywords: digital dawah, hijrah movement, hyper-personal model, virtual ethnography

Abstract

The Hijrah Movement in Greater Bandung represents a dynamic form of digitally mediated Islamic activism, where WhatsApp Groups (WAGs) play pivotal roles in dawah engagement. However, research on how digital platforms shape religious identity, trust formation, and communal accountability in online Islamic communities remains limited. This study examined how the hyper-personal model can explain the role of WAGs in fostering relational intimacy and sustaining collective identity within a movement.

Using a qualitative virtual ethnography approach, including in-depth interviews and content analysis of WAG Kopdar Masjid BDG Raya, this research investigates the mechanisms through which asynchronous communication, selective self-presentation, and feedback loops influence community engagement. Findings reveal that WAGs enhance perceived trust and belonging by enabling curated self-disclosure, reinforcing positive group norms, and facilitating collaborative decision-making. These digital interactions strengthen spiritual bonds and extend to offline initiatives such as charity programs and Dawah safaris, bridging digital and traditional religious mobilisation. The study advances the hyper-personal model by demonstrating its applicability to digitally mediated Islamic activism. It offers empirical evidence that digital platforms reshape authority structures, spiritual discourse, and social cohesion in contemporary Islamic communities. It also highlighted the potential risks of misinformation, echo chambers, and platform dependency. This research mainly contributes to Islamic studies, digital communication, and social movements, providing insights into the complex interplay between online and offline religious engagement.

References

Abdurrahman, M. S. (2020a). Aktivisme dawah generasi islam kontemporer (Aktivisme Dawah Bernuansa Hijrah Berbasis Computer Mediated Communication/CMC di Kopdar Masjid Bandung Raya) [UIN Sunan Gunung Djati Bandung]. https://digilib.uinsgd.ac.id/33965/10/ABSTRAK Sufyan 26 September 2020.pdf

Abdurrahman, M. S. (2020b). Generasi Muda , Agama Islam , dan Media Baru : Perilaku Keagamaan Gerakan Shift Pemuda Hijrah Bandung. Anida (Aktualisasi Nuansa Ilmu Dawah), 20(1), 48–49. https://doi.org/10.15575/anida.v20i1.8713

Addini, A. (2019). Fenomena Gerakan Hijrah di Kalangan Pemuda Muslim Sebagai Mode Sosial. Journal of Islamic Civilization, 1(2), 109–118. https://doi.org/10.33086/jic.v1i2.1313

Ali, J. A. (2022). Young Muslims in Australia and their Identity Formation. Australian Journal of Islamic Studies, 7(3), 35–59. https://doi.org/10.55831/ajis.v7i3.591

Castrawijaya, C. (2023). Da’i Technology Literacy in Perspective of the Qur’an. Ilmu Dawah: Academic Journal for Homiletic Studies, 17(1), 19–38. https://doi.org/10.15575/idajhs.v17i1.25807

CNN, I. (2019). Anak Muda Hijrah di Mata NU dan Muhammadiyah. https://www.cnnindonesia.com/nasional/20190516190532-20-395594/anak-muda-hijrah-di-mata-nu-dan-muhammadiyah

Cronjé, J. C., & van Zyl, I. (2022). WhatsApp as a tool for Building a Learning Community. Electronic Journal of E-Learning, 20(3), 296–312. https://doi.org/10.34190/ejel.20.3.2286

Fakhruroji, M. (2017). Dawah di Era Media Baru. Simbiosa Rekatama Media.

Fansuri, H. (2023). On the Road of Hijrah: Contesting Identity through Urban Mobilities in Contemporary Indonesian Muslims. Archipel, 105, 115–139. https://doi.org/10.4000/archipel.3485

Habermas, J. (1991). Habermas, Junger, The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere, Cambridge,The MIT Press, 1991, pp. 301. In an Inquiry Into a Category of Bourgeois Society (Vol. 68).

Hajam, H. (2019). Inclusive Da’Wah Methods in the Milineal Era. PROCEEDING IAIN Batusangkar, 121–130. https://ojs.iainbatusangkar.ac.id/ojs/index.php/proceedings/article/view/1545%0Ahttps://ojs.iainbatusangkar.ac.id/ojs/index.php/proceedings/article/viewFile/1545/1261

Hamdani, A., & Aziz, M. A. A. (2024). Digitalization of Islamic Philanthropy: Development of a Philanthropic Da’wah Model rumahzakat.org. Ilmu Dawah: Academic Journal for Homiletic Studies, 18(1), 97–116. https://doi.org/10.15575/idajhs.v18i1.30332

Hine, C. (2012). Virtual Ethnography. Virtual Ethnography. https://doi.org/10.4135/9780857020277

Ibrahim, I. S. (2014). Komunikasi & Komodifikasi. Yayasan Pustaka Obor Indonesia.

Ismail, A. I. (2018). Menggagas Paradigma Baru Dawah Era Millenial. Prenadamedia Grup.

Jusup, N. B. (2023). Da’wah Strategy for Jabatan Hal Ehwal Agama Islam Negeri Sabah (JHEAINS) in the Tuaran Region Towards Muallaf. Ilmu Dawah: Academic Journal for Homiletic Studies, 17(1), 223–242. https://doi.org/10.15575/idajhs.v17i1.26225

Kahmad, D. (2011). Sosiologi Agama. Pustaka Setia.

Khotimah, K., & Amaluddin, A. (2022). Contextualization of Da’wah based on the Civil Society Concept in Kroya. Ilmu Dawah: Academic Journal for Homiletic Studies, 16(2), 307–326. https://doi.org/10.15575/idajhs.v16i2.19450

Kuswana, D., & Pauzian, M. H. (2023). Religious Authority in the New Media Era: Sabilul Huda Islamic Boarding School Da’wah on Social Media. Ilmu Dawah: Academic Journal for Homiletic Studies, 17(2), 415–444. https://doi.org/10.15575/idajhs.v17i2.26480

Ma’arif, B. S. (2010). Komunikasi Dawah Paradigma untuk Aksi. Simbiosa Rekatama Media.

Meisyaroh, S. (2014). Instant Messaging Dalam Perspektif Ekologi Media Dan Komunikasi. Semiotika Jurnal Komunikasi , 8(1), 118–130. https://journal.ubm.ac.id/index.php/semiotika/article/view/961/851

Meyrowitz, J. (1997). Understanding of Media. Culture, 11(3–4), 44–52.

Nasrullah, R. (2012). Internet dan RuangPublik Virtual, SebuahRefleksi atas TeoriRuang PublikHabermas. Jurnal Komunikator, 4, 26–35. www.kangarul.com

Nasrullah, R. (2014). Teori dan Riset Media Siber (Cybermedia). Kencana Prenada Media.

Nasrullah, R. (2015). Media Sosial Perspektif Komunikasi, Budaya, dan Sosioteknologi. PT Simbiosa Rekatama Media.

Nur Hasanah, A. (2017). Transformasi Gerakan Sosial Di Ruang Digital. Jurnal Pendidikan Sosiologi, 6(6), 1–15. https://journal.student.uny.ac.id/index.php/societas/article/download/9126/8797

Ridho, S. (2018). Pesan Instan Muslimah Kelas Menengah Baru: Studi Identitas Islam di Group Whatsapp “Islam.” Maarif, 13(1), 137–157. https://doi.org/10.47651/mrf.v13i1.15

Ritonga, M. (2019). Komunikasi Dawah Zaman Milenial. Jurnal Komunikasi Islam Dan Kehumasan, 3(1), 60–77.

Robardet, C. (2011). Data mining techniques for communities’ detection in dynamic social networks. Handbook of Research on Methods and Techniques for Studying Virtual Communities: Paradigms and Phenomena, 1, 88–102. https://doi.org/10.4018/978-1-60960-040-2.ch005

Salleh, N. M., Ismail, A. M., Haridi, N. H. M., Daud, Z., & Usman, A. H. (2016). The unbelief thinking among muslim youth in Malaysia. American Journal of Applied Sciences, 13(2), 163–170. https://doi.org/10.3844/ajassp.2016.163.170

Setia, P., & Dilawati, R. (2021). Tren Baru Islam melalui Gerakan Hijrah: Studi Kasus Shift Pemuda Hijrah. Khazanah Theologia, 3(3), 131–146. https://doi.org/10.15575/kt.v3i3.12708

Sya’adtul, D. (2020). Hijrah dalam Al- Qur ’ an : Studi Analisis Semantik serta Nilai-nilai Pendidikan. Al Islah Attarbiyah.

Walther, J. B. (1996). Computer-mediated communication: Impersonal, interpersonal, and hyper-personal interaction. Communication Research, 23(1), 3–43.

Wiktorowicz, Q. (2004). Islamic Activism A Social Movement Theory Approach,. Indiana University Press,.

Zaleski, J. (1999). Spritualitas Cyber Space. Mizan.