Empowering Framework Sunnah Values: An Ethical Framework for Research in the Age of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

The era of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has brought profound transformations to the landscape of modern research by driving productivity, innovation, and the generation of new knowledge. AI has been widely applied across various domains, including healthcare, education, information technology, and the social sciences. However, these advancements also raise serious ethical concerns, such as the risks of plagiarism, data manipulation, algorithmic bias, and privacy intrusion. In this regard, the present study aims to develop an ethical research framework grounded in the values of the Sunnah to guide researchers in addressing the challenges of scholarly inquiry in the age of AI. This study employs a qualitative approach through document analysis, drawing on two primary sources: religious texts, such as the Prophetic traditions (hadith) of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) concerning honesty, trustworthiness, itqan (diligence), ihsan (excellence), and tabayyun (verification) as well as academic writings that examine Islamic ethics and research integrity. The data were thematically analyzed to identify how the values of the Sunnah can be applied as ethical guidelines in AI-driven research. The findings indicate that the incorporation of Sunnah-based values such as transparency, verification (tabayyun), diligence (itqan), and ihsan plays a pivotal role in maintaining academic integrity, enhancing research quality, and preventing the misuse of AI technologies. This study underscores that an ethical framework informed by the Sunnah is not only relevant in regulating research practices but also vital in ensuring that AI development serves the benefit of the ummah and aligns with the principles of universal well-being.

Artificial Intelligence, Research Ethics

1. Adarkwah, M. A., Amponsah, S., van Wyk, M. M., Huang, R., Tlili, A., Shehata, B., ... & Wang, H. (2023). Awareness and Acceptance of Chatgpt as a Generative Conversational AI for Transforming Education by Ghanaian Academics: A Two-Phase Study. Journal of Applied Learning and Teaching, 6(2), 78-93. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

2. Ahmad, F., & Khadim, S. (2025). Artificial Intelligence and Humanity: Ethical Challenges in the Light of Islamic Teachings. International Journal of the Universe and Humanity in Islamic Vision and Perspective, 2(1), 45-55. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

3. Al Kubaisi, A. A. S. H. (2024). Ethics of Artificial Intelligence a Purposeful and Foundational Study in Light of the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad. Religions, 15(11), 1300. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

4. Al-Aidaros, A. H., Mohd Shamsudin, F., & Md Idris, K. (2013). Ethics And Ethical Theories From An Islamic Perspective. International journal of Islamic thought, 4, 1-13. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

5. Al-Attas, M. N. (1980). The Concept Of Education In Islam (pp. 19-33). Kuala Lumpur: Muslim Youth Movement of Malaysia. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

6. Arar, K. H., Özen, H., Polat, G., & Turan, S. (2025). Artificial Intelligence, Generative Artificial Intelligence and Research Integrity: A Hybrid Systemic Review. Smart Learning Environments, 12(1), 44. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

7. Bukhari, D. S. H. F. (2025). The Role of Islamic Ethical Principles in the Development and Deployment of Artificial Intelligence Technologies. Al Khadim Research Journal of Islamic Culture and Civilization, 6(2), 1–9. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

8. Cornelio, C., Ito, T., Cory-Wright, R., Dash, S., & Horesh, L. (2025). The Need for Verification in AI-Driven Scientific Discovery. arXiv preprint arXiv:2509.01398. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

9. Dong, Y., Hou, J., Zhang, N., & Zhang, M. (2020). Research on How Human Intelligence, Consciousness, and Cognitive Computing Affect the Development of Artificial Intelligence. Complexity, 2020(1), 1680845. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

10. Dwivedi, Y. K., Hughes, L., Ismagilova, E., Aarts, G., Coombs, C., Crick, T., ... & Williams, M. D. (2021). Artificial Intelligence (AI): Multidisciplinary Perspectives on Emerging Challenges, Oportunities, and Agenda for Research, Practice and Policy. International journal of information management, 57, 101994. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

11. Elmahjub, E. (2023). Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Islamic Ethics: Towards Pluralist Ethical Benchmarking for AI. Philosophy & Technology, 36(4), 73. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

12. Hemachandran, K., Verma, P., Pareek, P., Arora, N., Rajesh Kumar, K. V., Ahanger, T. A., ... & Ratna, R. (2022). Artificial Intelligence: A Universal Virtual Tool to Augment Tutoring in Higher Education. Computational Intelligence and Neuroscience, 2022(1), 1410448. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

13. Hussin, N. H. Penerapan Tauhidik Dalam Penyelidikan Akademik1. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

14. Jobin, A., Ienca, M., & Vayena, E. (2019). The Global Landscape of AI Ethics Guidelines. Nature machine intelligence, 1(9), 389-399. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

15. Le Dinh, T., Le, T. D., Uwizeyemungu, S., & Pelletier, C. (2025). Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence in Higher Education: A Framework for Systematic Literature Reviews. Information, 16(3), 240. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

16. Mufid, A. (2024). The Ethical Limitation of Using Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Teaching Prophetic Tradition. Jurnal Ushuluddin, 32(2), 130-151. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

17. Mustapha, A., Senik, Z., & Haron, S. C. (2025). An Overview of Artificial Intelligence (AI) Issues from the Perspective of Islamic Jurisprudence. Online Journal of Research in Islamic Studies, 12(1), 95-114. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

18. Nawi, A., Yaakob, M. F. M., Hussin, Z., Muhaiyuddin, N. D. M., Samuri, M. A. A., & Tamuri, A. H. (2021). Keperluan Garis Panduan dan Etika Islam Dalam Penyelidikan Kecerdasan Buatan. Journal of Fatwa Management and Research, 26(2), 280-297. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

19. Ogwueleka, F. N. (2025). Plagiarism Detection in the Age of Artificial Intelligence: Current Technologies and Future Directions. AI and Ethics. Academic Integrity and the Future of Quality Assurance in Higher Education, 10. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

20. Veluru, C. S. (2024). Responsible Artificial Intelligence on Large Scale Data to Prevent Misuse, Unethical Challenges and Security Breaches. Journal of Artificial Intelligence & Cloud Computing. SRC/JAICC-349. DOI: doi. org/10.47363/JAICC/2024 (3), 331, 2-6. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

21. Wang, G. (2017). DGCC: Data-Driven Granular Cognitive Computing. Granul. Comput. 2, 343–355. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41066-017-0048-3 [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

22. Zou, J., & Schiebinger, L. (2018). AI Can be Sexist and Racist: It’s Time to Make it Fair. Nature, 559(7714), 324-326. [Google Scholar] [Crossref]

• The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Revolutionizing Library Services in Nairobi: Ethical Implications and Future Trends in User Interaction
• ESPYREAL: A Mobile Based Multi-Currency Identifier for Visually Impaired Individuals Using Convolutional Neural Network
• Comparative Analysis of AI-Driven IoT-Based Smart Agriculture Platforms with Blockchain-Enabled Marketplaces
• AI-Based Dish Recommender System for Reducing Fruit Waste through Spoilage Detection and Ripeness Assessment
• SEA-TALK: An AI-Powered Voice Translator and Southeast Asian Dialects Recognition