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This paper aims to explore ethics in Islamic economics by establishing the micro-foundations of Islamic economics. This is done by conceptualizing the behavioural assumptions of the individual in an Islamic framework. It also argues that ethical positions that attached endogenously in individual behaviour would have implications in the macro-socio realm influencing society, institution and organization in an Islamic economic system.

The study is qualitative-based research. It explores the literature on ethics in Islamic economics to understand and analyse the concept of individual behaviour in the Islamic perspective that will be the micro-foundations of Islamic economic analysis.

It is found that the ethical commitment of individuals (as envisaged in the micro-foundations of Islamic economics) would bring socio-macro implications in the practical realm. The micro-foundations of Islamic economics would function as the basis of the economic explanation of the aggregate relationship of individual, state and society. It also serves as the basis in explaining socio-macro dynamics influencing individuals, society, as well as organizations and institutions.

The paper limits its analysis of developing the concept of ethical endogeneity in Islamic man behaviour to be the micro-foundations of Islamic economics and its macro-implications.

This study attempts to show that ethics should not only be inseparable in an economic framework but also an endogenous dimension in individual behaviour. The micro-foundations of Islamic economics are developed based on Islamic values on the characteristics and behaviour of an individual that would not only describe the true nature of man but also support his well-being.

The authors measure the impact of culture on Sharia; Social and Financial Disclosure (SSFD) of Islamic Banks (IBs) around the world.

Content analysis is used to measure levels of disclosure for a sample of 136 IBs of 25 countries for years 2013 and 2014. Different cultural measures are used. These include secrecy/transparency as suggested by Gray (1988) and Hofstede (1980, 1983, 2001, 2010)’s culture dimensions which include: Power Distance; Individualism; Masculinity; Uncertainty Avoidance; Long-Term Ordination and Indulgence. Ordinary least square (OLS) regression is used to test the research hypotheses.

After controlling bank-specific, corporate governance and country characteristics, the authors found that Hofstede’s culture dimensions have a significant impact on SSFD. They also found that Gray's transparency dimension positively influence levels of sharia, social and aggregated disclosure. Therefore, they conclude that culture influences levels of disclosure in IBs.

This study has policy implications for managers and regulators of Islamic banking industry.

This study is the first to use both Gray and Hofstede models in the context of IBs around the world. It also the first to explore the impact of culture on three different disclosure levels for IBs.

This paper aims to conceptualize the nexus between the participatory finance and the higher ethical objectives within the Islamic moral economy, also termed as Maqasid al Shari’ah.

Insights from the extant Islamic economics and finance literature are integrated through an interpretative systematic review using the principles from critical interpretative synthesis (CIS).

A coherent framework is synthesized comprising the typology of the Maqasid al Shari’ah, the axioms of participatory finance and their nexus which is formulated by theorizing the common thread of meaning through the axioms of participatory finance and Maqasid al Shari’ah at the interpretative level. This framework postulates that the participatory finance fits well in the ethos and the value system of Islam. Moreover, “social well-being” invariably provides the nexus between the Maqasid al Shari’ah and participatory finance.

This study contributes to the Islamic economics and finance literature by integrating the dissenting views from the divergent literature related to the basic philosophy of Shari’ah and participatory finance and provides grounds for policy implications, particularly, for designing the financial products. Moreover, it demonstrates an application of interpretative systematic review in Islamic banking and finance research.

This paper aims to explore the notion of communication in accounting and in doing so elucidates the wider connotation of accounting frontiers offered in the Islamic philosophy, reflecting upon the Islamic doctrines that are indicative towards and offer a variety of implications for communication and accounting.

Drawing from the Islamic sources – Quran and other key texts – and other relevant preceding literature, the paper deliberates key Islam principles of significance and outline what they suggest for communication in accounting.

Islam has a profoundly embedded concern of the communicative aspect from a holistic viewpoint that is clear within its accounting implications as well. This paper illustrates the social aspects of Islamic accounting through its stance on communication, thereby opening up the more enabling potentials of Islamic accounting informed by wider and more facilitating dimensions of Islam’s teachings: Islam’s holistic approach to life; its attentiveness on society and its various groups; and its emphasis on behavioural conduct and emotional aspects. Consideration on these principles throws into questions the Western ways, develops and hones the existing stand of hegemonic positions and submits new ways forward.

Aspiring organisations and larger entities such as nations who encourage the development of Islamic economy can benefit from the added accountability of entities to encompass the social and ethical responsibilities.

The paper highlights Islamic doctrines as a basis of just and responsible accounting communication via incorporating the macro-societal elements and the behavioural communicative aspects.

The Islamic communication principles open up the inclusion of the missing behavioural aspect from accounting communication. This paper provides the necessary theoretical framework on how to include the humane side within accounting communication.

This paper aims to examine GCC companies' use of visual images to interplay modernity and globalism with tradition, Islam and local culture. The analysis aims to bring attention to the way that businesses in the GCC use visual images to engage with or influence debates in their societies concerning the tension between modernity, globalisation and traditional values in the Arab‐Islamic world.

The analysis is critical and discursive and based on a close reading of the visual images reported in the 2005 annual reports of companies listed on GCC stock markets.

The analysis suggests that GCC companies on many occasions used visual images to depict and represent the possibility of a successful profitable, modern and global business that is also sympathetic to tradition and operates within the framework of Islamic principles.

While visual images are increasingly used in companies' annual reports they have been largely ignored in accounting research. Furthermore, when this research manifests, it has been concerned with investigating Anglo‐American and Western contexts. This paper instead emphasises the significance of researching the use of visual images in a variety of contexts and locations. It critically and contextually explores the use of visual images in a largely unexplored, non‐Western and a significantly Islamic context.

The purpose of this paper is to identify some well-set instruments in Islam that can efficiently alleviate poverty, solve social problems and reduce social inequality through a new operational framework called “Islamic social business (ISB)”.

This is a conceptual research that is based on Al-Quranic principles as well as contemporary social welfare philosophies, such as, augmented stakeholder theory, social enterprise and social business. Al-Quran, Al-Hadith and existing traditional and Islamic literature are consulted for this study.

The study proposes an efficient system of Islamic wealth sourcing and management to make the process of poverty alleviation sustainable. Other social problems for disadvantaged people, such as, health-, shelter-, literacy- and environmental-related issues are also addressed in the proposed system. The study identifies the inefficiency in the current practices and makes some propositions that are in conformance with Islamic principles and implementable by Islamic institutions all over the world. The authors propose a theoretical framework and operational propositions for ISB.

In following this study, social policymakers, Islamic financial institutions, Islamic social enterprises and Islamic charity organizations will find organized guidelines to initiate “new entities” or “reshape existing entities”.

The study will be effective in solving social problems, alleviating poverty and reducing social inequality.

This is the first study that identifies all the potential Islamic sources of funding and the efficient management thereof through ISB. The study also proposes an ISB model and makes several propositions for different types of ISB.

The purpose of this study is to shed light on how accounting, which has been recognised as a contributor to the modernity problem, has been influenced by secular anthropology, which hinges on the concept of “self”. Based on Akbar S. Ahmed’s concept of Islamic Anthropology, Islamic Accounting Anthropology (IAA) is proposed as an answer to shift the accounting paradigm.

A case study in Indonesia was conducted by studying the development of the nation’s Shariah accounting from the perspective of diffusionism as an approach to anthropology. Following the constructivist tradition, IAA, which rejects the Social Darwinism notion of the superiority of the West over the East as the basis of the evolution of civilisation, is used as tool to realise Islamic norms through synchronic-diachronic study, constructing an accounting concept and invoking accounting transformation through accounting education.

This study finds that accounting has been greatly affected by secular Western culture through education and educators as agents that find their legitimation in country policies. Standard setters have also taken the same stance by siding with the capital market. By proposing IAA, it is hoped that Islam will replace the concept of “self-interest” as the faith of accounting and promote welfare for the ummah.

The problem of modernisation lies in the newfound faith of self-interest. In accounting, self-interest is ingrained in accounting theories such as Positive Accounting Theory, Entity Theory and Agency Theory, and thus accounting has become a tool to support neoliberal society. IAA will help produce accounting that is rooted in local wisdom and necessity yet very much embedded in Islamic values.

IAA suggests that accounting education must be geared towards anthropology detached from the Orientalism-secularism concept. This shift can be accomplished by integrating IAA into the accounting education curriculum.

Based on IAA, accounting practices can be designed under the guidance of the Quran and result using a synchronic-diachronic approach. By changing the ontological view through accounting education, accounting can drive societal consciousness towards the welfare of society instead of self-happiness.

Islamic accounting and anthropology are two subjects that are rarely discussed concurrently.