Consumer Boycott: The Effect of Religiosity and Consumer Attitudes

One way for customers to express their distaste or dissatisfaction with a business or nation due to unethical actions is through a boycott. Despite the significant increase in consumer boycotts, marketing has paid little attention to consumer boycott involvement. The value-attitude-behavior model serves two purposes: firstly, it evaluates the effect of religiosity on consumer attitudes that lead to boycott involvement, examining this relationship from both a traditional viewpoint and the perspective of Fiqh Muamalat. Secondly, it aims to investigate the role of consumer attitudes as a mediator between religiosity and boycott involvement. The sample consists of 330 Malaysian consumers. Data were acquired via an online survey and analysed using partial least squares structural equation modeling in SmartPLS version 3.2.9. According to the findings, both religiosity and consumer attitudes have a positive effect on boycott involvement, with consumer attitudes mediating the relationship between religiosity and boycott involvement. This study has contributed greatly to the theory and practice of boycotts from both conventional aspects and from an Islamic perspective. As a result, from a theoretical standpoint, this study contributes to the existing literature on boycott involvement and enhances understanding regarding how religiosity affects boycott involvement. As a result, religiosity has a positive impact on boycott involvement, aligning with Muamalat principles. Consumer attitudes act as mediators, emphasizing ethical and religious concerns over economic action. Furthermore, legislators and business owners should be attentive to consumers' religious beliefs to avoid unfairly boycotting user involvement.


Definition of Boycott
The phrase derives from the English word 'boycott', which was coined by Captain Charles Boycott, an English farm agent in Ireland.Boycott used a strategy of collecting exorbitant rental rates in 1880.The implementation of this approach has sparked widespread anger and discontent within the Irish community.Consequently, they implemented measures to prevent enjoying the benefits of their hard work (McNamara, 2019).According to the Malay language dictionary, the term "boycott" refers to the deliberate act of isolating oneself from others and refusing to engage in any sort of communication.It can also be described as a collective action taken by a group of individuals or traders to exert pressure or compel the cessation of financial or social interactions between individuals, firms, or nations (Harver World Encyclopaedia, 1978).The Arabic phrase for boycott is al-Muqāṭa`ah aliqtişādiyyah, which is derived from the root word qāṭa`a.This term signifies the ban of any commercial or social relationship in conformity with the established social structure (Anis et al., 2004).Boycott is also associated with the concept that consumers have the power or right to choose or reject a product for an unexpected motive (Dekhil et al., 2015).
The act of not purchasing the products or services of a particular brand or corporation to voice one's disapproval or outrage towards a particular party or issue is known as a boycott.It is the driving force behind a variety of phenomena, including religious, political, ethical, environmental, and social problems.Whenever sensitive problems arise in Malaysia, particularly those about religion and Muslims, calls for a boycott are typically made.An example of this would be the chanting of a boycott of Swedish products when there was an insult to the Prophet and a copy of the Quran was read.In addition, boycotts are carried out against the products of non-Muslims whenever there is an insult to Islam and Jawi literature.Boycotts are also carried out against Israeli products or companies associated with them, particularly those that promote the killing of Palestinians.
Currently, when the Zionist authority launches an assault on Palestinians, the campaign to boycott products that are associated with the Jewish community is once again gaining traction.On behalf of several different parties, a boycott movement was initiated against a list of goods and services that are linked with Jews or that support Israel.Following that, there are a few innocent people who begin to worry and fear going out to earn a living.This is a consequence of the situation.This circumstance arises because of their collaboration with businesses that are on the list of companies that should be boycotted.They are in a difficult situation since, if the boycott continues, it is probable that they could lose their jobs, which would have an impact on their source of income.In general, scholars explain the law of boycott as a defense against the territory of Palestine and Jerusalem because they believe it to be fardu ain.As part of the spiritual warfare known as jihad fi sabilillah, numerous scholars have issued fatwas regarding the requirement to boycott goods and services that provide aid to Israel (Yunus et. al., 2014).
According to the Kamus Dewan Bahasa, the definition of "boycott" is "to refuse to deal with someone to express disapproval or to force the individual or institution concerned to accept certain conditions."As used in the fourth edition of the dictionary.However, according to the Cambridge Dictionary, a boycott is the refusal to purchase a product or participate in any of the activities associated with that product to express disagreement on a particular matter.
The history of boycotts that have had a great impact on the country of Israel is in 1945 when the resolution titled "The Boycott of Zionist Goods and Products" was released 1945 as a result of a meeting of seven members of the Arab League.This resolution was published because of the history of boycotts, which has had a significant impact on the nation of Israel.In it, it is said that any Jewish product should be seen as undesirable in Arab countries and that all Arab nationals, whether they be institutions, organizations, entrepreneurs, agents, or individuals, must refuse to trade with, distribute, or utilise Zionist products.Because of the significant impact that this boycott had on Israel's market economy and the resources available in the region, Israel felt compelled to express its displeasure to the United Nations (UN) (Yunus, et. al, 2020).
Boycott actions can result in many consequences, such as strikes, inclusion on lists of 'injustice' or 'do not buy', picketing, abstaining from interfering with other employers' pickets, and employers or employees refusing to work for a specific product.A boycott campaign has been initiated to convince consumers to refrain from purchasing items from non-union employers or those who are targeted by a boycott (The Encyclopaedia Americana, 1993).There is no doubt that a nation will experience rapid economic growth because of its numerous entrepreneurs, as they serve as the primary catalyst for a country's economic advancement (Usop et al., 2018).Nevertheless, boycotts might have an impact on entrepreneurs.
Boycotts other than product boycotts, as previously stated, can be characterized as investment withdrawal and restrictions, or divestment and penalty.Divestment is the inverse of investment in that it refers to the release of assets held by a firm to lower the financial burden or as a political action against an entity to change its attitude.It was previously imposed on Sudan (Ding et al., 2018).Sanctions are forms of punishment imposed by one or more countries to deter or punish a country that commits an act of aggression.
Therefore, because the boycott issue is still relevant and becoming a hot issue in today's world, it is essential to perform this study with great attention to analyse the function of consumer attitudes as a mediator between religiosity and involvement in the boycott.Therefore, the main purpose of this study is to determine whether consumer attitudes act as a mediator or not in the relationship between religiosity and boycott involvement among consumers in Malaysia.It is also believed that this study has the potential to make significant modifications to the theory and practice of boycotting, both from a conventional point of view and from an Islamic point of view.It is at least possible for it to provide legislators and business proprietors with an opportunity to provide input that will encourage them to dedicate more consideration to the role of religious views in boycott practices in Malaysia and to hope that this boycott practice does not persecute any innocent person.

Boycotting Involvement
Boycotting, also known as anticonsumption behaviour (Sen et al., 2001;Yuksel, 2013;Yuksel & Mryteza, 2009), is an expression of animosity that results in an unwillingness to make selected purchases due to reasons such as military violence, political injustice, economic inequality, or a firm's irresponsible behaviour (Abd-Razak & Abdul-Talib, 2012).There are two categories of consumer boycotts: micro boycotts, which refer to firms, and macro boycotts focuses on countries (Friedman, 1999;Klein et al., 2004) Religiosity plays a significant role in Malaysia's social life, with Islam being the most widely practiced religion at 63.3% (Malaysia Official Statistic, 2020).It provides direction and meaningful goals for people's actions and choices (Peterson and Roy, 1985).Consumer boycotts due to international crises are not new, with Muslim consumers calling for boycotts of Israeli, American (Fakriza & Nurdin, 2019), and French products (Tee, 2020).Exploitation of religious symbols may trigger boycott involvement among religious believers (Jensen, 2008).
From the Islamic perspective, some scholars, such as Muhammad al-Ghazali, have distinguished between the true and claimed religions, or between the desired and deluded religions, as well as between the real and false religions.Some argue that human legal judgment Contemporary Islamic philosophy is likewise very interested in the topic of religiosity, so much that some contemporary academics, such as Abdullah Darraaz and Muhammad Adh-Dhahabi, have centred their definition of the term plays a role in depicting the concept of religiosity and its actuality, which can lead to rigidity, extremism, extremism, or moderation (Sekou Marafa Toure, 2020).As a result, contemporary Islamic philosophy regards the term "religion" as distinct from religiosity, which has its actuality, attributes, and features.So, what is the relationship between religion and religiosity, and what are the principles that allow each feature to be identified and distinguished from others?This study aims to provide a concise explanation of the notion of religiosity and its developmental history in Islamic thinking from the time it was considered synonymous with religion until today when the term has become independent of religion.
The concept of religiosity has evolved through several ideological phases, with four versions of its interpretation based on different Islamic scholars' perspectives.
The second version saw "religiosity" as synonymous with "religion" equated with religion (Abu al-Husayn Ahmad bin Faris bin Zakariyya, 1979).The third version introduced the distinction between religion and forms of religiosity, requiring differentiation between the two.However, there was a disparity among scholars during this phase, with some arguing that religion and religiosity were two different things without discussing their differences or clarifying their concepts (Āl Dāwud distinction between the two terms (Muhammad 'Ayāsh Al-Kubaysi, 2003).
Therefore, based on the views of some Islamic scholars above, it can be concluded that there is no denying that, linguistically, at-tadayyun (religiosity) is a gerund according to the verbal form of tafa'ul.Anyone who practices the verbal form of religiosity, which is tadayyana, means that he is characterized by adhering to certain doctrines and beliefs, which are different from the faith itself.While in technically, religiosity is a state that is legitimately obtained by an individual because of his association with what he believes.This is not equivalent to the belief itself to which he submits, rather it is the fruit and interpretation of it (Yāsīn, 'Abdul Jawwād, 2014).
It is also understandable that religiosity for an adult youth is a form of influenced significant agents around his life like parents, friends and peers, schools, and places of worship.Hood et al (2018) noted that the evidence empiricists find parents as the most influential socialization agents for the formation of individual religiosity.Previous studies have merely looked at the conventional boycott concept (Abdullah et al., 2021;Klein et al., 2004), but there has not been much research that considers Islamic scholars' perspectives (Farouh & Abdelrhim, 2021).Additionally, factors motivating individual boycott involvement remain unexplored.Thus, this study aims to examine the effect of religiosity and consumer attitude towards boycott involvement, as well as the mediating role of attitude between religiosity and consumer boycott involvement.

Value-Attitude-Behavior Model
This study applied the value-attitudebehaviour model as an underlying theory proposed by Homer and Kahle (1988).This theory posits that religiosity (value) influences attitudes, while attitude influences boycott participation (behaviours), and these relationships can be visualized in the form of a causal sequence: Value-Attitude-Behaviour (VAB).

Religiosity
Religion is an organized system of beliefs, practices, rituals, and symbols, which allows one to be closer to the sacred or the transcendent (God, a supreme power, ultimate reality, or truth), and to understand one's responsibility and relation to others in the life of a community" (Koening et al., 2000).More simple and precise religiosity is defined as "individual preferences, emotions, beliefs, and actions that refer to an existing (or self-made) religion" (Stolz, 2009, p. 347).The definition of religiosity from consumers' perspective, is "the degree of being religious" (Cyril De Run et al., 2010).Religion is a part of a culture, and significantly influences the peoples' systems of values and habits.In the meantime, it also influences their lifestyle such as dictates their buying decision and consumption behaviour (Dekhil et al., 2017).Furthermore, they found that highly religious people are more likely to be more involved in boycotting a brand, and this result is consistent with the findings of Al-Hyari et al (2012).
Furthermore, Giorgi and Marais (1990) found that religion and the degree of religiosity of individuals have a positive effect on their moral behaviors and in line with Farah (2014) showed that religiosity significantly motivates boycotts, and it also affects the way consumers perceive the brand image, which ultimately affects the way consumers judge these products.Abou-Youssef et al., (2015)  religion has a positive effect on people's lives (Abou-Youssef et al., 2015) and several studies have also shown that religion affects consumer attitudes and behaviour (Armstrong, 2001;Arnould et al., 2004;Burkett, 1980;Cochran & Cohen, 1983;Delener, 1994;Hawks & Bahr, 1992;Matitila et al., 2001;Pettinger et al., 2004).
Religion is a difficult construct to measure because there are several definitions of religiosity (religion and religiosity are used interchangeably).Caird (1987) proposed three different measures of religiosity: cognitive (focusing on religious attitudes or beliefs), behavioural, and experiential (questions about mystical experiences).Mookherjee (1993) defines religiosity in terms of general participation (based on church membership and frequency of church attendance) and religious behaviour or personal devotion (based on the frequency of prayer, bible reading, and a cumulative score of devotional intensity).Furthermore, it is argued that religion, as an important value in an individual's cognitive structure, can influence individual behaviour.According to him, pro-religious individuals are likely to be more dogmatic and more conservative than non-religious subjects.Therefore, it is expected that more virtuous people (or pious people) are more inclined to adjust their behaviour to suit their religious beliefs and practices.Next, it is recommended that those who adhere to religion have attitudes and behaviors that can make decisions that are in line with their moral conscience.In examining religiosity in the context of Malay Muslim society, the measure of religiosity adapted from Wilde and Joseph and Khashan and Kreidie which is specific to Muslims is considered appropriate.

Consumer Attitudes
One of the essential aspects of attitudes is that they have been learned (Abou-Yousseff et al., (2015).In the marketing context, the attitudes which have been developed link to purchasing behaviours, experience, and product testing.Attitudes have a motivational factor, as they may lead consumers to certain actions or may jeopardize certain behaviours (Fazio, 1986;Schiffman and Kanuk, 2000).In addition, consistent with VAB model, attitude is projected to mediate the relationship between religiosity value and boycott participation.
Therefore, person's attitude towards boycott participation represents an evaluation of the behavior and its outcome.Individual attitude consigns personal expectations towards performing a particular behavior that refers to perceived personal desires to perform that behavior.It depends on the expectations and beliefs about the personal impacts of outcomes resulting from the behavior.Jama et al. (2017) argues that an individual's attitude toward this behavior tends to be an assessment of that behavior and its outcome (Jama et al., 2017).
Attitude and morality are two important concepts in Islam.Attitude refers to a person's attitude towards something, while morality refers to a person's character or morals.In Islam, both attitude and morals are important core that every Muslim must possess.Morality in Islam is a quality or character that is in accordance with the teachings of the Islamic religion and a Muslim must have commendable morals.Good morals are the fruit of a person's faith and privilege in performing worship.Meanwhile, attitude in Islam refers to a person's feelings or opinions about something.A Muslim must have an optimistic attitude in facing all situations and must avoid pessimism and negativity.language which means the translation of the word ethics.The root from which it gets its meaning means -to create, form, give shape, form, or produce (Zurayk, 1968).While the term Akhlaq is the plural of khuluq, referring to a collection of different character traits, moral science (ilm al-Akhlaq) is translated as ethics, moral science, or moral philosophy.Morality from an Islamic point of view is different from a Western perspective.
In other words, Al-Quran together with Sunnah automatically becomes the source of morality in Islam.Therefore, all manner of behaviour and character traits are derived from the practice of the prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) who himself is the best model of behaviour for all believers.

Methodology
The study employed quantitative research, employing convenience sampling as the method of sampling.This study used convenience sampling because the target population was unknown.the survey data was obtained by using an online questionnaire in Google Forms format, which was made available for one month.The researchers used G*Power 3.1.9.2 software to calculate the required sample size.Based on a medium effect size (f 2 = 0.15) and a minimum required sample size of 107 respondents, this research included 330 Malaysian consumers, exceeding the required number.
The distributed questionnaire for this research paper consists of three sections.This study adopted and refined the items in the questionnaire from existing literature to fit the context of the study.Section A focuses on boycott involvement, including boycotting unsafe or unhealthy products and expressing anger towards companies or countries involved in inhuman activities.This section uses a seven-point Likert scale to measure respondents' agreement or disagreement with five items.Section B measures religiosity (value) and consumer attitude using a seven-point Likert scale.The study adopted three items for religiosity (value) from Bakar, Lee, and Hashim (2013), and six items for attitude from Chen and Kong (2009).Section C collects demographic information about the respondents, including gender, age, marital status, occupation, monthly income, education level, race, religion, family size, work experience, and residence.Table 1 below shows the distribution of the three sections of instruments.The study used Smart PLS software to analyse the distribution of boycott involvement, religiosity, and attitude.The results showed that the data was slightly abnormal, indicating the need for the use of the software.The analysis was performed using Least Squares (PLS) analysis using Smart PLS 3.2.9software.The analysis consisted of two stages: the measurement model, which assessed the validity and reliability of the variables, and the structural model, which examined the hypothesised relationship.Additionally, the study explored the potential issue of I SPECIAL ISSUE JULY 2024 I GJAT ISSN: 2232-0474 I E-ISSN: 2232-0482 http://jurnal.usas.edu.my/gjat/index.php/journalcommon method variance (CMV), which can occur when data is collected from a single source.To overcome the CMV, the study applied a full collinearity analysis, which assessed both vertical and lateral collinearity simultaneously.The resulting VIF values for all latent variables (attitude, religiosity, and attitude) were less than 3.3, confirming that the CMV is not a significant threat to the study.

Results and Discussion
The analysis shows that 72.1% of respondents were female, with the majority aged 20-29.The majority were Muslims, with 69.4% holding a degree.Most respondents were students, with a majority in urban areas.The majority belonged to the Malay ethnic group, with 87.1% belonging to this group.The reflective model assesses two types of validity: convergent validity and discriminant validity.Indicators of a construct determine convergent validity by sharing a high proportion of variance.Researchers used factor loadings and AVE to assess convergent validity.The reflective constructs meet the recommended value of 0.5 for indicator loadings, CR, and AVE, indicating they meet reliability and convergent validity requirements.
Subsequently, the discriminant validity of the model is assessed.Indicators should load more strongly on their constructs than on others in the model, and the average variance shared between the construct and its measure should be greater than the variance.According to Franke and Sarstedt (2018), the heterotrait-monotrait (HTMT) ratio is a stringent method to confirm the discriminant validity of a study if it makes use of Smart PLS.Franke and Sarstedt (2019) confirm the HTMT ratio if all variables in the study show values <0.85.Since all the HTMT values were lower than 0.85, it was an indication that discriminant validity was established for the study.indicating no multicollinearity concerns.This study applied a bootstrapping technique with a resampling of 5000 to analyse the hypotheses.Based on Table 2, path models indicate a positive effect of religiosity and consumer attitudes on boycott involvement, explaining 33.2% of the variances.Consumer attitudes also positively affect boycott involvement, explaining 19.2% of the variance.The R2 value of 0.332 is above the 0.26 value, indicating a substantial model.This study assessed the effect sizes (f2) using Cohen's (1988) guideline, where values of 0.02, 0.15, and 0.35 corresponded to small, medium, and large effects, respectively.The results indicate that religiosity has a medium effect on consumer attitudes, while consumer attitudes and religiosity have small effects on boycott involvement.For mediation or indirect impact analysis, the study followed Preacher and Hayes (2008) criteria for bootstrapping.Based on Table 3, the findings of this study indicate that consumer attitude plays a mediating role in the relationship between religiosity and boycott involvement (β = 0.151, p<0.01).The finding reveals that consumers are more likely to boycott when faceing unsafe or unhealthy products.Furthermore, in line with previous studies, the study found that religiosity positively influences consumers' attitudes (Dekhil et al., 2017;Al-Hyari et al., 2012) and boycotts involvement (Abou-Youssef et al., 2015;Farah, 2014).This is likely due to most respondents being With the participation of consumer boycotts in Malaysia, there will be several consequences that will occur.One of these implications is that the act of boycotting needs to be thoroughly examined since it has the potential to generate a chain effect that affects many innocent people.The Islamic religion places a strong emphasis on maslahah, which can be translated as "bringing benefits" and "avoiding harm.Meanwhile, mafsadah is not tolerated in Islam since it causes hurt and injury to human beings.This effect also involves several other participants in the economic chain, including shippers, distributors, suppliers, and providers of logistics services.Following the fiqh method, which states that "preventing harm is more important than obtaining a benefit," this principle is taken into consideration.In consideration of this, it is necessary to consider the differences between maslahah and mafsadah.Mafsadah rather than maslahah may be the result of a boycott of the franchise company if the mafsadah position is strong enough.
On the other hand, franchise companies are forced to face enormous losses, even though they are in a different position because the franchise is in Israel.The boycotters did not suffer any actual damages.Even franchise businesses have shown their support for the Palestinian people by contributing a significant sum of money to the Palestinian humanitarian fund.It is, therefore, necessary to make a fair and unambiguous judgment in the act of boycotting products in Malaysia, when they do not support Israel's onslaught on the Palestinian people.This judgment should not be based solely on populist pressure, current attitudes, or emotional outbursts.
They are in a difficult situation, especially the workers and breadwinners, and they need to be protected by providing better job support to ensure that "their kitchens continue to smoke" and that no one goes hungry.If the boycott action is carried out, their situation will be ruined.
The study also examined whether consumer attitudes mediate the effect between religiosity and boycott involvement using the VAB model.
Furthermore, the participants in the present research gave the impression that they are extremely concerned about the state of the world and society.This is evidenced by the fact that their attitude acts as a mediator between their religion and their attitude.Furthermore, this supports previous studies suggesting that religiosity positively affects consumer boycott involvement (Al-Hyari et al., 2012;Fakriza & Nurdin, 2019;and Farah, 2014).These results support Homer and Kahle's (1988) theory that religiosity (value) affects boycott involvement (behaviour).

Conclusion
This study provides several theoretical and managerial contributions.This study contributes to the literature on boycott participation from a conventional perspective and Fiqh Muamalat lens with a clearer understanding of Malaysian consumer behaviour.Consumers have a greater proclivity to boycott products associated with unethical behaviours, particularly when these products are hazardous or harmful, which relates to the Islamic values of harm avoidance and ethical consumerism.Research has shown that religiosity positively affects boycott involvement, which is in line with the concepts of Muamalat, which hold that transactions involve more than just economic considerations; they also involve moral decisions.The presence of consumer attitudes as a mediator between religiosity and boycott involvement is consistent with the Muamalat principle, which emphasizes that ethical and religious factors should take priority over economic activity.Thus, this study supports previous findings on the influence of religiosity on boycott behaviour when viewed through the lens of Fiqh Muamalat, which emphasizes ethical decision-making in economic situations.Furthermore, to explore the educational implications, it should investigate how teaching Islamic fiqh and muamalat can alter individuals' thinking and behaviour in the context of economic boycotts.The study sample should include respondents from different religions to determine how religiosity affects boycott involvement.The results indicate that organizations must incorporate religiousness into their marketing approaches, specifically in markets with a Muslim majority.Consumer boycotts in Malaysia can create a chain effect on innocent parties, as Islam emphasizes 'maslahah' (bringing benefits and avoiding harm) and 'mafsadah' (preventing harm).This can affect various economic chains, including those of suppliers, distributors, logistics providers, and shippers.To avoid losses, boycotting franchise companies should be based on 'maslahah' and 'mafsadah', rather than 'maslahah'.Offering better job assistance is crucial to defend workers and breadwinners, ensuring their families continue to survive and prevent hunger.Convenience sampling, however, restricts how broadly the findings can be applied, suggesting the need for a more comprehensive qualitative study to fully examine the complex relationships between religiosity and consumer attitudes as well as boycott involvement.
Figure 1: Path Analysis for Measurement Model stated that religion shapes attitudes and religiosity is a growing are of inquiry.In addition, numerous social studies have shown that I /jurnal.usas.edu.my/gjat/index.php/journalThis journal is a member of and subscribes to the principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE)

Table 1 :
Number of scale items and sources used to measure each construct.

Table 3 :
Hypothesis for the mediating role of consumer attitudes (N=330) /jurnal.usas.edu.my/gjat/index.php/journalThis journal is a member of and subscribes to the principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) Malays and Muslims, who are typically born as Muslims.