Navigating Digital Economy Trends: A Theory of Planned Behavior Analysis of Gen Z Muslim E-Entrepreneur Intentions

Purpose – This study examines how Gen Z adult Muslims navigate digital economy trends by analyzing the influence of Islamic religiosity on e-entrepreneur intentions, with attitudes, perceived behavioral controls, and subjective norms as mediating variables based on Planned Behavior Theory (SDP). Design – A quantitative cross-sectional survey was conducted with 387 Gen Z adult Muslim respondents recruited through purposive, convenience, and snowball sampling from selected Indonesian urban centers in Java and Sulawesi. Data were collected using a structured 5-point Likert scale questionnaire (22 items) and analyzed using PLS-SEM with SmartPLS 4.0. Findings – All seven hypotheses are supported. Islamic religiosity has a positive and significant direct effect on e-entrepreneurial intentions (t = 8.828, p < 0.001). Attitudes (t = 5.776, p < 0.001), perceived control of behavior (t = 4.803, p < 0.001), and subjective norms (t = 3.889, p < 0.01) also significantly predicted intention. Attitudes (indirect effects = 0.198), perceived control of behavior (0.163), and subjective norms (0.109) partially mediated the religiosity-intention relationship because the direct path from Islamic religiosity to intention remained significant. The model explains 48.3% of the variance in e-entrepreneurship intentions. Research Implications – These findings should be interpreted in the context of adult Muslim Gen Z respondents from specific Indonesian cities and should not be generalized to all Indonesian youth, rural populations, other religious groups, or developed country contexts. The cross-sectional design limits causal inference. Practically, universities, Islamic boarding schools, policymakers, and Islamic entrepreneurship institutions must integrate Islamic ethical values, digital skills, and community support into digital entrepreneurship programs. Originality – This study expands the SDGs by positioning Islamic religiosity as a religious-based cognitive antecedent of e-entrepreneurship intentions among Gen Z adult Muslims in Indonesia. It contributes to the theory of digital entrepreneurship in an Islamic context and offers evidence for value-based entrepreneurship education and policy design.