Moral Flexibility in the Conduct of PKS and PKB Muslim Politicians in West Java (2023–2025)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15575/hanifiya.v9i1.54590Keywords:
democracy, ethics, moral disengagement, moral flexibility, political psychology, religious politicsAbstract
This study aims to examine the mechanisms of moral disengagement and moral flexibility in the political behavior of religious actors in post-reform Indonesia. Moral disengagement is defined as a socio-cognitive process that enables individuals to commit unethical actions without experiencing internal moral conflict, while moral flexibility refers to the contextual and situational application of moral values. Employing a qualitative method with a critical discourse analysis approach, this research analyzes political texts, speeches, ideological documents, and religious narratives that reflect power practices. The research scope includes religion-based political actors and Indonesia’s democratic public sphere. The findings indicate that moral disengagement is institutionalized through euphemistic language, moral justification, and diffusion of responsibility, whereas moral flexibility operates as an adaptive mechanism that alleviates tension between normative values and political interests. The main challenges involve the lack of empirical psychological data and the complexity of discourse interpretation. This study recommends strengthening critical ethical literacy and promoting political leadership models grounded in moral accountability. This research provides a conceptual integration of moral disengagement and moral flexibility within the context of religious politics in Indonesia, contributing to the expansion of moral psychology into the sociology of power.
References
Akbar, M. C., Ma’asan, Y., & Mayrudin. (2019). Pergulatan Politik Identitas Partai-Partai Politik Islam [Identity Politics of Islamic Political Parties]. Jurnal Madani, 11(2).
Ardiwinata, S., Achmad, F., Rifkidyanto, B., & Alvi, M. (2024). Etika dan Nilai Hukum menurut Pyrrho. Filsafat Terapan, 1(2), 1–18.
Atari, M., & Zewail, A. (2025). Morality across time and space. European Review of Social Psychology, 1–36. https://doi.org/10.1080/10463283.2025.2500839
Balaskas, S., Konstantakopoulou, M., Yfantidou, I., & Komis, K. (2025). Algorithmic Burnout and Digital Well-Being: Modelling Young Adults’ Resistance to Personalized Digital Persuasion. Societies, 15(8), 232. https://doi.org/10.3390/soc15080232
Bandura, A. (2017a). Mechanisms of moral disengagement. In Insurgent Terrorism (pp. 85–115). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351155564-4
Bandura, A. (2017b). Moral Disengagement in the Perpetration of Inhumanities. In Recent Developments in Criminological Theory (pp. 135–152). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315089089-12
Bartels, D. M., Bauman, C. W., Cushman, F. A., Pizarro, D. A., & McGraw, A. P. (2015). Moral Judgment and Decision Making. In The Wiley Blackwell Handbook of Judgment and Decision Making (pp. 478–515). Wiley. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781118468333.ch17
Belhaj Slimene, S., Borgi, H., & Ben Othman, H. (2024). Does E-government curb corruption? The moderating role of national culture: a machine learning approach. Transforming Government: People, Process and Policy, 18(4), 699–721. https://doi.org/10.1108/TG-03-2024-0061
Bembenutty, H. (2023). Influential role of self-regulated learning in preventing moral disengagement. Theory Into Practice, 62(3), 318–329. https://doi.org/10.1080/00405841.2023.2226550
Bostyn, D. H., Roets, A., & Conway, P. (2022). Sensitivity to Moral Principles Predicts Both Deontological and Utilitarian Response Tendencies in Sacrificial Dilemmas. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 13(2), 436–445. https://doi.org/10.1177/19485506211027031
Botha, H., & Freeman, R. E. (2023). Existentialist Perspectives on the Problem and Prevention of Moral Disengagement. Journal of Business Ethics, 185(3), 499–511. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-022-05130-0
Brandajs, F. (2025). Advancing theories on the scalar complexities of Green Sacrifice Zones. Energy Research & Social Science, 127, 104180. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.erss.2025.104180
Campbell, C., Haikney, E., & Waddington, L. (2024). Collusion: The New Norm? (pp. 139–155). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-65731-3_8
Cao, T. (Todd). (2025). Self-discrepancy and gambling retention: A conceptual model of motivational and moral pathways. Strategic Business Research, 1(1), 100001. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbr.2025.100001
Clarke, N., Higgs, M., & Garavan, T. (2025). Legitimating Organizational Secrecy. Journal of Business Ethics, 197(1), 19–38. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-024-05763-3
Concha-Salgado, A., Ramírez, A., Pérez, B., Pérez-Luco, R., & García-Cueto, E. (2022). Moral Disengagement as a Self-Regulatory Cognitive Process of Transgressions: Psychometric Evidence of the Bandura Scale in Chilean Adolescents. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(19), 12249. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191912249
Cushman, F., Sheketoff, R., Wharton, S., & Carey, S. (2013). The development of intent-based moral judgment. Cognition, 127(1), 6–21. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cognition.2012.11.008
Dhakhiri, H., & Djafar, M. (2015). Struktur Politik Partai Kebangkitan Bangsa [The Political Structure of PKB]. Jurnal Kajian Politik Dan Masalah Pembangunan, 11(1), 1602–1609.
Elmahjub, E. (2022). Normative account of Islamic bioethics in end-of-life care. Global Bioethics, 33(1), 133–154. https://doi.org/10.1080/11287462.2022.2118977
Falla, D., Ortega-Ruiz, R., & Romera, E. M. (2023). Minimizing responsibility in the aggressive dynamics of bullying and its impact on other strategies of moral disengagement: a longitudinal study. Current Psychology, 42(36), 32512–32523. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-04229-x
García-Marzá, D., & Calvo, P. (2024). Algorithmic Democracy (Vol. 29). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-53015-9
Gema, Y. K. P., Widya, S. S., & Caroline, P. (2022). Strategi Politik Partai Kebangkitan Bangsa Jawa Barat Dalam Menyasar Pemilih Muda Pada Pemilihan Legislatif Daerah 2019 Di Jawa Barat. Jane, 13(2), 312–318.
Gillingham, C., Morley, J., & Floridi, L. (2025). The Effects of AI on Street-Level Bureaucracy: A Scoping Review. Digital Society, 4(1), 22. https://doi.org/10.1007/s44206-025-00178-7
Haffajee, N. (2025). Exploring the impact of post-high school experiences on the social identities of newly graduated girls. University of Cape Town.
Hawing, H., & Hartaman, N. (2021). Politik Uang Dalam Demokrasi Di Indonesia ( Studi Kasus Pemilukada Kabupaten Enrekang Tahun 2018 ). Journal of Social Politics and Governance, 3(1), Hal 29.
Hidayat, A. (2021). Etika Semu Dakwah Digital dan Tantangan Moralitas Keislaman. Jurnal Komunikasi Islam, 13(2), 50–67.
Horta, O., O’Brien, G. D., & Teran, D. (2022). The Definition of Consequentialism: A Survey. Utilitas, 34(4), 368–385. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0953820822000164
Hussain, T., Nugent, C., Moore, A., Liu, J., & Beard, A. (2021). A Risk-Based IoT Decision-Making Framework Based on Literature Review with Human Activity Recognition Case Studies. Sensors, 21(13), 4504. https://doi.org/10.3390/s21134504
Ibarra, P. R., & Kitsuse, J. I. (2024). Claims-Making Discourse and Vernacular Resources*. In Challenges and Choices (pp. 17–50). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003571841-3
Johnson, J. F., & Ronald Buckley, M. (2015). Multi-level Organizational Moral Disengagement: Directions for Future Investigation. Journal of Business Ethics, 130(2), 291–300. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-014-2220-x
Kelman, H. C. (2017). Violence without Moral Restraint: Reflections on the Dehumanization of Victims and Victimizers. In The Criminology of War (pp. 145–181). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315086859-8
Khaled, S. H., da Rocha, Á. O., & de Carvalho e Silva, G. B. (2025). Voting with Firearms in the 2018 Presidential Elections: An Exploration of the Flows of Meaning at Play in Late Modern Brazil (pp. 215–246). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-032-03195-2_7
Lang, J. (2020). The limited importance of dehumanization in collective violence. Current Opinion in Psychology, 35, 17–20. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2020.02.002
Lepore, W., & Cunningham, J. B. (2024). Making choices in addressing sustainability problems: A link to framing effects and protected values. Public Management Review, 26(8), 2169–2193. https://doi.org/10.1080/14719037.2023.2180656
Li, C., Li, Y., Gao, Y., Wei, N., Zhao, X., Wang, C., Li, Y., Xiu, X., & Cui, J. (2014). Direct comparison of two albumin-based paclitaxel-loaded nanoparticle formulations: Is the crosslinked version more advantageous? International Journal of Pharmaceutics, 468(1–2), 15–25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpharm.2014.04.010
Lind, G. (2023). The Theory of Moral-Cognitive Development. In Moral Development and the Social Environment (pp. 21–53). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003419273-3
Lișman, C. G., & Holman, A. (2022). Innocent Cheaters: A New Scale Measuring the Moral Disengagement of Marital Infidelity. Studia Psychologica, 64(2), 214–227. https://doi.org/10.31577/sp.2022.02.849
Liu, Z., Zhang, H., Wei, L., & Ge, X. (2022). Moral Chameleons: The positive association between materialism and self-interest-triggered moral flexibility. Journal of Research in Personality, 100, 104268. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2022.104268
Maiwan, M. (2018). Memahami Teori-Teori Etika: Cakrawala dan Pandangan [Understanding Ethical Theories: Horizons and Perspectives]. Mimbar Demokrasi, 17(2), 193–215.
Malik, A., & Ryan, S. (2025). What’s Wrong With Swearing? Acta Analytica. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12136-025-00652-4
Mukhtar, T. L. (2021a). Problem Etika Pejabat Negara Dan Gagasan, Peradilan Etika Yang Independen Dan Imparsial. Masalah-Masalah Hukum, 50(3), Hal 266.
Mukhtar, T. L. (2021b). Problem Etika Pejabat Negara dan Gagasan Peradilan Etika yang Independen [Ethical Problems of State Officials and Independent Ethical Court]. Masalah-Masalah Hukum, 50(3).
Nurjaman, A. (2017). Cleavage Agama di Tingkat Lokal Indonesia [Religious Cleavage at Local Level in Indonesia]. Jurnal Saspol, 3(2).
Nurjaman, A. (2021). Tantangan primordialisme dalam upaya membangun budaya politik nasional. Satwika: Kajian Ilmu Budaya Dan Perubahan Sosial, 5(2), 370–383.
Ogunfowora, B., Morgan, J. A., Khalilinejad, M., & Nguyen, V. Q. (2025). Moral Disengagement and the Triple Bottom Line: The Roles of Disengagement Tactics in Understanding Employee Reactions to People, Planet, and Profit Corporate Initiatives. Journal of Business and Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-025-10076-x
Ramdani, A., Raji, R., & Ahmad, M. K. (2024). Exploring the concept and the communication principles of negotiation among Islamic corporate organizations. Journal of Islamic Marketing, 15(4), 1115–1135. https://doi.org/10.1108/JIMA-01-2023-0027
Saladino, V., Fusco, A., Castellani, L., Calaresi, D., & Verrastro, V. (2025). Aggressive behavior among Italian justice-involved juveniles: the impact of attachment, discipline, and moral disengagement. Psychology, Crime & Law, 31(5), 625–641. https://doi.org/10.1080/1068316X.2024.2303496
Sariyanti, L., Lestari, Y. S., & Chadijah, D. I. (2024). Korupsi Politik dan Pelanggaran Hak Asasi Manusia di Indonesia [Political Corruption and Human Rights Violations in Indonesia]. Jurnal Civilie, 8(1).
Scaffidi Abbate, C., Misuraca, R., Roccella, M., Parisi, L., Vetri, L., & Miceli, S. (2022). The Role of Guilt and Empathy on Prosocial Behavior. Behavioral Sciences, 12(3), 64. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs12030064
Septiana, E., Hakim, I. M., & Kunci, K. (2021). Identitas Moral sebagai Moderator Pengaruh antara Moral Disengagement dengan Kecurangan Moral Identity as Moderator of The Effect between Moral Disengagement and Dishonest Behavior. Psikogenesis, 9(2), 116–131.
Sola, A. (2023). Kant and Deontology: Understanding Human Dignity (pp. 43–59). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-33207-4_3
Souter, J. (2022). Asylum as Reparation. Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-62448-4
Sugiyono. (2018a). Metode Penelitian Kuantitatif. Alfabeta.
Sugiyono. (2018b). Metode Penelitian Kuatitatif, Kualitatif, dan R&D (Cetakan ke). Alfabeta.
Sulaeman, S., Ridwan, M., Sulastri, I., Banawi, A., Salam, N., Darma, D., & Kasim, E. W. (2022). Muslim communities’ identity transformation through the pela gandong ritual communication in Moluccas Immanuel Church, Indonesia. Contemporary Islam, 16(2–3), 225–257. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11562-022-00489-3
Suryana, C. (2021). Politik sebagai Dakwah : Komunikasi Politik Partai Keadilan Sejahtera. Jurnal Ilmu Komunikasi, 5(April), 41–58.
Tabroni, I., Putra, D. D., Adawiah, N., & Rosmiati, R. (2022). Forming Character with Morals Prophet Muhammad Saw. East Asian Journal of Multidisciplinary Research, 1(1), 41–48.
Thornberg, R. (2023). Longitudinal link between moral disengagement and bullying among children and adolescents: A systematic review. European Journal of Developmental Psychology, 20(6), 1099–1129. https://doi.org/10.1080/17405629.2023.2191945
Tuvo, E., Ricciardelli, P., & Ciardo, F. (2022). The Effect of Anthropomorphism on Diffusion or Responsibility in HRI (pp. 488–497). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-24670-8_43
Väyrynen, R. (2022). Complex Humanitarian Emergencies: Concepts and Issues (pp. 301–343). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-13627-6_12
Vázquez, A., López-Rodríguez, L., & Brambilla, M. (2024). Acknowledging that Men are Moral and Harmed by Gender Stereotypes Increases Men’s Willingness to Engage in Collective Action on Behalf of Women. Sex Roles, 90(3), 417–443. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-024-01444-7
Wahyudi, J. (2022). Pudarnya Ideologi Partai Islam Pascareformasi : Telaah atas Perjalanan Partai Keadilan Sejahtera ( PKS ) sejak Pemilu 2009- 2019. Jurnal Pemikiran Politik Islam, 5(1), Hal 110.
Weintraub, R., & Gibson, L. (2025). The Nakba in Israeli history education: Ethical judgments in an ongoing conflict. Theory & Research in Social Education, 53(1), 90–121. https://doi.org/10.1080/00933104.2024.2396319
Yusdania. (2023). Gagasan Politik Gus Dur dan Cak Nur tentang Indonesia Pasca Reformasi [Political Ideas of Gus Dur and Cak Nur on Post-Reform Indonesia]. Jurnal Ilmu Sosial, Politik Dan Hukum, 2(2), 165–174.
Zhao, L., Lam, L. W., Zhu, J. N. Y., & Zhao, S. (2022). Doing It Purposely? Mediation of Moral Disengagement in the Relationship Between Illegitimate Tasks and Counterproductive Work Behavior. Journal of Business Ethics, 179(3), 733–747. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-021-04848-7
Published
Issue
Section
Citation Check
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Siti Nurjanah, Ajid Thohir, Dadang Darmawan
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License (CC-BY-SA)  that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
