Coming of age, seeking legitimacy: The historical trajectory of African management research

Amankwah-Amoah, Joseph (2014): Coming of age, seeking legitimacy: The historical trajectory of African management research. Forthcoming in: Critical Perspectives on International Business

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the historical trajectory of African management research and managerial thinking. Design/methodology/approach – This paper draws from a review and synthesis of the literature from 1960–2012. Findings – The analysis led to the identification of three distinct phases which reflect the difficult and uncertain beginning to a promising future. Our historical pathway model also allows us to account for the evolution of management philosophies and thoughts, and current state of knowledge. Originality/value – Although there is a burgeoning stream of African management research, lack of comprehensive review and synthesis have obscured the enormous strides made. We advance a “novel” approach towards theory application and theory creation building on the “convergence hypothesis” and “divergence hypothesis”. Our analysis yielded a number of promising avenues for future research.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: African management research; Africa; business
• Subjects: L - Industrial Organization > L0 - General; L - Industrial Organization > L1 - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance; M - Business Administration and Business Economics ; Marketing ; Accounting ; Personnel Economics > M0 - General; M - Business Administration and Business Economics ; Marketing ; Accounting ; Personnel Economics > M1 - Business Administration; M - Business Administration and Business Economics ; Marketing ; Accounting ; Personnel Economics > M2 - Business Economics; M - Business Administration and Business Economics ; Marketing ; Accounting ; Personnel Economics > M3 - Marketing and Advertising

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