RESEARCHER'S INDIVIDUALISM : THE MANAGER'S RATIONALITIES IN AFRICA

Abstract The production of knowledge in Management Sciences has traditionally been examined through the lenses of institutional legitimacy, scientific objectivity, and socio-cultural validation. However, emerging psychosocial challenges within universities and research environments call for a critical re-examination of the role of the researcher as an individual actor whose personal values, experiences, and rationalities influence the knowledge creation process. This exploratory article investigates the intersection between the researcher's individualism and managerial rationalities within African contexts. It argues that scientific knowledge is not merely a product of methodological rigour and social validation but is also shaped by the intrinsic ethical orientations, cultural identities, and subjective interpretations of researchers. Drawing on contemporary debates in epistemology, management studies, and African-centred scholarship, the article explores how African researchers negotiate tensions between universal scientific norms and context-specific realities. The discussion further identifies and maps the core values that may characterise African managerial rationalities, including communal responsibility, social solidarity, ethical accountability, cultural authenticity, and developmental commitment. The article concludes that recognising the individual and contextual dimensions of knowledge production strengthens the ethical foundations, practical relevance, and societal responsiveness of management research in Africa. It advocates for a more reflexive and human-centred approach to scientific inquiry that acknowledges the researcher as both a knowledge producer and a culturally embedded social actor. Keywords Researcher individualism, managerial rationalities, knowledge production, African epistemology, intrinsic values, ethics, contextual knowledge, Management Sciences.