Ethics of Civil Servants in the Digital Realm and Restoring the Trust of Generation Z

Abstract

The crisis of legitimacy in modern governance is exacerbated by the shift in unethical behavior by government officials from the real world to digital spaces such as TikTok and X. This study aims to analyze the deconstruction of ethical behavior among government officials in the digital public sphere and its implications for restoring the trust of Generation Z. Using a qualitative approach with a Narrative Literature Review method, this study screened literature published between 2020 and 2026 from indexed databases (including Publish or Perish, Google Scholar, Scopus, ScienceDirect, Garuda, and Crossref). From the initial 48 articles, 19 key references were selected for thematic analysis. The results indicate that cyberspace has transformed into an arena of participatory surveillance for Generation Z through the “fluid solidarity” movement (digital ashabiyyah). This study concludes that restoring Generation Z’s affective trust requires the reconstruction of the bureaucracy through a servant leadership model and the internalization of Pancasila as living ethics. This conceptual approach is essential for transforming digital criticism into productive social capital for state legitimacy.