WESTERN AND ISLAMIC VALUES AND ETHICS: ARE THEY DIFFERENT?

Abstract

Values are fundamental paradigms that shape attitudes and guide behaviour of human. Values shape morals, where morals help in shaping ethics. The first objective of this paper is to reviews values and ethics based on western and Islamic perspectives. The second objective specifically compares western and Islamic values. For comparison purposes, western values are represented by Schwartz values, while Islamic values are based on a study from Ghoniyah and Hartono (2014) and Ebrahimi and Yusoff (2017). Quran and Sunnah were referred to in highlighting the difference between the western and Islamic values. The analysis is done based on four dimensions, namely self-enhancement, openness to change, self-transcendence and conservation. The study finds that there are a lot of similarities between western and Islamic values. Both values have the same intention of nurturing better mankind.  However, there are two western values, namely “Power” and “Hedonism” that has no direct link with Islamic values. This is because, in Islam, Muslims believe that only Allah SWT has the ultimate will and power over life and death. Besides that, Islam encourages the attitude of promoting mashlahah rather than focusing on worldly pleasures. This paper adds to the literature and provides a comparison of values that would be beneficial to organizations and academic institutions in instilling values in their own setting