Speaker
Description
Onuoha, K. K.
Federal College of Education, Ofeme-Ohuhu, Umuahia, Abia State
kennethonuoha@gmail.com
Track: Research, Innovation and Knowledge Ecosystems
An examination of the philosophical and ethical dimensions of research funding and their implication for academic freedom in Nigerian universities: This article critically analyzes the philosophical questions, ethical problems of funding academic research, and their attendant implication on academic freedom in the context of Nigerian universities. With growing reliance on support from donor organizations, governments and industries to finance academic research initiatives, universities across Nigeria raise certain significant issues: how does the interest and objective of external sources of research funding constrain, modify or shape academic research undertakings? A study from an epistemological theoretical of research ethics and epistemic autonomy (the ability to know and gain knowledge free from coercive social power) and power-money relation in knowledge generation shows that the pressure by funders on university research outcome and relevance does not synchronize with core values of quest for knowledge and the independence of knowledge creation by university. If university remains at dependence to external funding sources on due course of academic activity can lead an epistemic capture such that choice for selection research and academic topics depend on how that topic can secure funding and not what is academically or scientifically relevant or valuable, thus making the marginalized fields unable to receive any support. To mitigate this, this article provides an epistemic guide towards the funding of academic research which emphasize transparency and the diversity of the nature of knowledge that ought to be created, and fairness in the distribution and dissemination of knowledge so as to safeguard academic freedom and encourage an enduring academic-public-private relationship.