Digital Da'wah and the Social Construction of Marriage: A Netnographic Study of #MarriageIsScary and #MarriageIsNotScary Discourses Among Indonesian Muslim Netizens on Instagram
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15575/idajhs.v20i01.55465Keywords:
Digital da'wah; Instagram; Indonesian Muslim netizens; netnography; social construction of marriage; tabligh.Abstract
This study examines how digital da'wah spaces on Instagram shape the social construction of marriage among Indonesian Muslim netizens. Drawing on Berger and Luckmann's theory of the social construction of reality, this study analyzes how the competing hashtags #MarriageIsScary and #MarriageIsNotScary function as informal Islamic communication (tabligh) channels that negotiate new meanings of marriage in the digital public sphere. Data were collected from 10 prominent influencer accounts and 1,000 netizen comments using a netnographic approach, then analyzed through Voyant Tools over the period of October 2025 to April 2026. The findings reveal two divergent discursive positions: the #MarriageIsScary discourse frames marriage as a high-risk institution that is no longer an obligatory life milestone, while the #MarriageIsNotScary discourse reframes marriage as a deliberate and selective life choice grounded in personal readiness and spiritual maturity. Despite their opposing stances, both discourses converge on shared values of self-governance, mental health, and individual happiness — reflecting a broader shift in how young Indonesian Muslims negotiate Islamic family ideals against contemporary social pressures. This study concludes that Instagram has emerged as a significant informal da'wah platform where Islamic values related to marriage and family are publicly contested, reinterpreted, and disseminated. The findings carry practical implications for Islamic counseling (irsyad) practitioners and da'wah communicators in addressing shifting marital attitudes among the younger Muslim generation.
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