Philosophical and Epistemological Interrogation of Indigenous Knowledge Systems in Nigerian Guidance and Counselling Practice

The theoretical foundations of guidance and counselling practice in Nigeria are predominantly informed by Western philosophical and epistemological traditions that may inadequately represent the ontological assumptions embedded in indigenous Nigerian knowledge systems. This study conducted a philosophical and epistemological interrogation of indigenous knowledge systems and their implications for guidance and counselling practice in Nigeria. A philosophical inquiry design drawing on critical hermeneutics, ethnophilosophy, and African decolonial scholarship was employed. Documentary analysis of philosophical texts from Yoruba, Igbo, and Hausa-Fulani cultural traditions was conducted, alongside narrative interviews with 30 elders, community counsellors, and knowledge custodians from the South West, South East, and North West zones. Philosophical thematic analysis and epistemological mapping were applied. Findings identified four indigenous epistemological pillars relevant to counselling: communal personhood, relational restoration rather than individual cure, elder-guided wisdom transmission, and spiritually grounded problem resolution. These principles contrast sharply with Western counselling's emphasis on autonomy, individualism, rational cognition, and secular process. The study argues that current Nigerian counselling theory suffers from epistemological colonialism and proposes an Afro-indigenous counselling epistemology framework as a corrective contribution. This represents an original philosophical contribution to the decolonisation of counselling knowledge in Africa. Keywords: indigenous knowledge systems, epistemology, decolonisation, African counselling, philosophical inquiry.