Al-Kharaj: Journal of Islamic Economic and Business
Vol. 8 No. 3 (2026): Vol. 8 No. 2 (2026): All articles in this issue include authors from 3 countrie

PAI Teachers and the Phenomenon of Spiritual Quiet Quitting: A Study on the Decline of Students' Worship Motivation Amid Academic Curriculum Density

Sesilia Marsya Nabila Zahara (Universitas Muhammadiyah Bengkulu)
Rice Putri Dia Utami (Universitas Muhammadiyah Bengkulu)
Muhammad Yasin Abdul Aziz Rantisi Nasution (Universitas Muhammadiyah Bengkulu)
Lety Febriana (Universitas Muhammadiyah Bengkulu)



Article Info

Publish Date
29 Jul 2026

Abstract

The transformation of academic curricula demanding intensive cross-disciplinary competencies has produced a density of learning agendas with implications for students' psychological and spiritual dimensions. This phenomenon gives rise to a condition conceptualized as "spiritual quiet quitting", a term borrowed from workplace literature describing students who continue to perform worship formally while losing inner engagement, devotion, and meaning. This study aims to conceptually examine the relationship between academic curriculum density and the decline of students' worship motivation, to identify the characteristics of spiritual quiet quitting, and to analyze the role and strategies of Islamic Religious Education (PAI) teachers in responding to it. The study employs a qualitative descriptive-analytical library research approach, drawing data from nationally and internationally indexed journal articles published between 2019 and 2026, analyzed through data reduction, display, and conclusion drawing following the Miles and Huberman model. The findings indicate that, viewed through the job demands-resources framework, curriculum density can function as a demand that depletes students' psychological resources when not balanced by supporting resources such as social support and adequate spiritual meaning-making. PAI teachers hold a crucial role through authentic exemplary conduct, affective-personal approaches grounded in fulfilling the basic psychological needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness, and reorienting the worship narrative from administrative obligation toward meaningful practice, as a preventive step against the spread of spiritual quiet quitting in school settings. Keywords: PAI teacher; spiritual quiet quitting; worship motivation; curriculum density; academic burnout; self-determination theory

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Journal Info

Abbrev

alkharaj

Publisher

Subject

Economics, Econometrics & Finance

Description

Al-Kharaj, Journal of Islamic Economic and Business is peer-reviewed journal published by program studi ekonomi syariah , Institut Agama Islam Negeri (IAIN) Palopo. Al-Kharaj focus on the research of Islamic Economic and Business. The aims of this journal is to explore and develop economic related ...