THE CONCEPT AND PHILOSOPHY OF MARKETING: EVIDENCE FROM NIGERIA

Abstract

ABSTRACT Marketing as a field of study has been defined in different ways by various authors. This has implication for marketing thought and philosophy as well as the content of marketing curriculum and marketing education in general. Using the desk research method, the paper analyzed the definitions of marketing by the American Marketing Association (AMA) since inception and the relationship between the definitions and the philosophies of marketing. It also examined the views of marketing academics in Nigeria on the domain of marketing. Secondary data were collected from journal articles, conference proceedings, marketing textbooks as well as the Nigerian Universities Commission (NUC) 2012 Report and marketing programme curriculum in Nigerian universities. In order to gather relevant data on the Nigerian perspective, the judgemental sampling procedure was used to select a sample of 27 universities that have accredited Marketing programmes out of the population of Nigerian Universities in the Federal, State and Private sector. It was found that the definitions of marketing by AMA have always lagged behind the philosophies of marketing over the years. In addition, it was found that the marketing curriculum in Nigerian universities is tailored towards the generic view of marketing. This indicates that the Nigerian marketing curriculum is in consonance with the AMA 2007 definition of marketing. Keywords marketing, definition, domain, marketing philosophy, Nigeria