GOVT 59 Foreign Policy and Decision Making
This course examines conceptual, political, psychological, and organizational challenges in foreign policy decision making. Throughout class discussions and course assignments, we will evaluate how well practitioners grapple with these challenges. Case studies include escalation in Vietnam, assessments of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction programs, and the raid on Osama bin Laden's compound. As we analyze and critique foreign policy, we seek to develop broader intuitions for making better decisions in everyday contexts.
The course spans three units. Unit 1 surveys conceptual lenses in the study of decision making from the standpoints of cost-benefit analysis, organizational behavior, domestic politics, culture, and psychology. Unit 2 surveys tools for foreign policy analysis, including intelligence, threat perception, and political forecasting. Unit 3 examines how that analysis is used and misused when making and executing policy decisions.
Instructor
Friedman