Indicators on social media islamic information credibility through an expert agreement

Abstract

Social media is an important tool in information sharing that can disseminate information instantly as opposed to the traditional mainstream media. Islamic scholars have also used social media for dakwah to engage youths due to their digital literacy. However, misinformation and disinformation intentionally created and spread to ignite dispute and to support sentiment. Inaccurate Islamic information is damaging to Muslim youths’ faith due to being immature in evaluating the source of religious information. Empirical studies related to the credibility of Islamic indicators are still limited. The objective of the study is to identify and validate the dimensions and credibility indicators of Islamic information in social media. The study uses focus group discussion method as part of the verification process in the Fuzzy Delphi (FDM) method. The focus group data was then followed by a questionnaire on 15 expert is used to assess and validate the definition of credibility indicators. The results indicate that experts agree on authoritative elements and sources of writing based on the Quran and the authentic hadith as a major reference in evaluating the contents of Islamic information. While some users would systematically process the information, taking into account the type of information posted and the social influence when assessing the credibility of information online. The findings produce a group of valid indicators that can help social media users especially Muslim youth to determine the validity and source of Islamic information online. This study also suggests various mechanisms to conduct online information searching and evaluate of the information credibility within the Islamic domain.