I have one question.
Why do academic books tend to cost so much ? This one seems reduced but it still operates in a similar price range.
Academic publishers often have a culture of pricing, and it seems, marketing books in a manner that is likely to ensure that only dedicated people, who need those books for certification or some other dedicated pursuit, are going to see them much less read them.
Is that the framework needed for a book about a marginalized discourse, a discourse that needs to be be spread to as many people as possible?
Does this style not represent an attitude to the dissemination of knowledge in the context of the Western academy that contributes to much of academic thinking not being part of the general broad based culture but is centered in a top heavy elite?
There might be reasons of cost of production in terms of the research involved and the process of printing the book that necessitate the price. After all, I consider myself privileged to own Aleister s Crowleys Magic: Book 4, a veritable cultural encyclopedia, which I bought for £70 and would consider myself lucky to get his autobiography in hardback at as higher price. At the same time, however, the Crowley oeuvre is a large library that comes in many forms so nothing is lost by pricing his magnum opus that way. Nevertheless, Penguin has brought out a cheaper paperback edition of his autobiography which I got and regretted because it does not have the sumptuous power of the form of the hardback, along with an uninspiring cover photo that means I prefer not to use the book.
Is it possible for Bangura to sum up the thesis of this book, describing what exactly makes a particular research methodology African centred? I will certainly buy and read the book. Its imperative. It could be useful for marketing, however, if authors of such expectedly sophisticated works were to present to a general audience the gist of their argument.
Reading some of the essays of the philosopher Jeff Malpas on his website and those of the philosopher and Ifa practitioner Awo Falokun Fatunmbi on various sources online means I have resolved to get and read all his works. Whetting the potential customer's appetite can be very rewarding and may stimulate non-academic readers and others who might otherwise have no interest in such works to take note.
Another work by Bangura along related lines is his book on African mathematics.
thanks
On 3 June 2011 22:48, Abdul Karim Bangura <theai@earthlink.net> wrote:
This book, I hope, will encourage more work in this area of inquiry!--
Paperback, 322 pages;
ISBN: 978-1-60927-086-5;
©2011
List Price: $71.95
Our Price: $56.95African-Centered Research Methodologies
From Ancient Times to the PresentBy Abdul Karim BanguraAfter almost three centuries of employing Western research methodologies, many African communities, both on the continent and throughout the world, remain marginalized in contemporary discourse. It is obvious that these Western methodologies have done relatively little good for Africans. To rectify this oversight and bring these African communities to the fore, a shift in perspective is needed, and this book posits the adoption of alternative, African-centered research methodologies as a solution. Employing such methodologies would enable African communities to define their unique identities from their unique perspectives and would help offer a long-overdue challenge to entrenched European paradigms of Africans as the "other."
To enable readers to apply a methodology systematically in investigating a phenomenon of interest to him/her, chapters in African-Centered Research Methodologies include:
- An introduction to the method discussed
- A definition of the method
- The sub-areas of the method
- A brief history and brief backgrounds of the pioneers of the method
- Major research questions investigated by the method
- Major concepts and/or theories of the method
- Major research topics covered by the method
- Types of methodological approaches employed
- Major academic journals and publications that publish works utilizing the method
- A sample of outstanding scholarly works that have employed the method
- A conclusion
Biography:Abdul Karim Bangura is Professor of Research Methodology and Political Science at Howard University and Researcher-in-Residence of Abrahamic Connections and Islamic Peace Studies at the Center for Global Peace in the School of International Service at American University. He holds a PhD in Political Science, a PhD in Development Economics, a PhD in Linguistics, a PhD in Computer Science, and a PhD in Mathematics. He is the author and editor/contributor of 63 books and more than 500 scholarly articles. He was president and United Nations Ambassador of the Association of Third World Studies, and Dr. Bangura is a member of many other scholarly and civic organizations. The winner of many teaching and other scholarly and community service awards, he is fluent in about a dozen African and six European languages, and is studying to strengthen his proficiency in Arabic, Hebrew, and hieroglyphics.
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