Foreign Policy Decision-Making (Revisited) ~

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1 Foreign Policy Decision-Making (Revisited) ~

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3 Foreign Poliey Deeision-Making ~ (Revisited) Richard C Snyder H. W. Bruck Burton Sapin With New Chapters by Valerie M Hudson Derek H Chollet and farnes M. Goldgeier

4 * FOREIGN POLlCY OECISION-MAKING (REVlSITEO) Copyright The Estate of Richard C. Snyder, Valerie M. Hudson, Derek H. Chollet and James M. Goldgeier, All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever withour written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. First published 2002 by PALGRAVE MACMILLANTM 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y and Houndmills, Basingsroke, Hampshire, England RG21 6XS. Companies and representatives throughout the world. PALGRAVE MACMILLAN IS THE GLOBAL ACADEMIC IMPRINT OF THE PALGRAVE MACMILLAI' division of St. Martin's Press, LLC and of Palgrave Macmillan Ltd. Macmillan is a registered trademark in the Uni ted States, United Kingdom and other countries. Palgrave is a registered trademark in the European Union and other countries. ISBN DOI / ISBN (ebook) Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Snyder, Richard Carlton, Foreign policy decision-making (revisited) / Richard C. Snyder, H. W Btuck, Burton Sapin. p. cm. Originally published: Foreign policy decision-making. [New York] : Free Press of Glencoe, [1962]. With new chapters by Valerie M. Hudson, Derek H. Chollet and James M. Goldgeier. Includes bibliographical references. ISBN (pbk.) I. International relations-decision making. 2. International relations-methodology. I. Btuck, H. W. (Henry W.) II. Sapin, Burton M. III. Tide. JZ1253.S J'01-dc A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Design by Leua Libre, Inc. Transferred to digital printing 2005 First edition: December

5 Contents Foreword Burton M Sapin Vll 1. Foreign Poliey Deeision-Making: A Touchstone for International Relations Theory in the Twenty-First Century Valerie M. Hudson 2. Decision-Making as an Approach to the Study of International Polities Richard C. Snyder, H W Bruck, and Burton Sapin 3. The Scholarship of Deeision-Making: 00 We Know How We Decide? Derek H. Chollet and farnes M. Goldgeier Index 181

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7 Foreword Burton M. Sapin Professor Richard C. Snyder ( ) was one of the leading figures in the post-world War II revolution in American political science. This revolution altered in significant ways the conceptual-theoretical underpinnings, empirical scope and foci, and methodology and research tools of the field. There can be no doubt that they changed fundamentally what and how political and governmental phenomena were studied. By no means everyone welcomed the new approaches, with criticism that scientific claims and aspirations were excessive that sound familiar today. That Snyder was at the forefront of seeking to integrate insights from other disciplines was perhaps not surprising. He was a strong and forceful academic and intellectualleader and at the same time notably open to hearing and encouraging the views and efforts of others. Intellectually curious, one colleague recalls that he would trawl the stacks of a library seeking out the literature in other disciplines. As early as 1950 he taught an exciting graduate seminar on U. S. foreign policy-making, bringing to bear perspectives and data from the other social and behavioral sciences, including psychology, psychiatry, sociology, and anthropology. A similar pluralism informed an early course on political behavior Snyder created with his colleague H. Hubert Wilson. Snyder, like so me of his fellow "behaviorists" in the late 1940s and early 1950s, found essentially unsatisf}ring the leading approaches to the study of international political phenomena, including the emphasis on national power and national interests that became dominant immediately after World War 11. In his view, they were not very helpful in explaining the whys of governmental behavior. He proposed instead that we define state action as the

8 viii Burton M. Sapin behavior of its official decision-makers, thus providing a clear empirical focus for studying the behavior of nation-states, as weil as other political entities. Once he broke out of the traditional political science mold of institutional description and legal analysis, and even the power approach, he saw all of the social sciences as relevant to his interests and concerns. Since political science lagged behind the other social sciences theoretically, conceptually, and methodologically, Dick Snyder had no problem in borrowing from them. He was quite willing to take the time and make the necessary efforts to understand them and to bring their theories, concepts, and data to bear on political phenomena. His approach was and remained genuinely and deeply interdisciplinary. The origins of Foreign Policy Decision-Making lies in Snyder's early attempts to broaden the study of international relations and reflects concerns apparent earlier. Much of the material was initially published in 1954 as a small monograph, almost a pamphlet, entided Decision-Making as an Approach to the Study of International Politics by the Organizational Behavior Section at Princeton. At a time when communication was slower, absent e mail and the Web, but the networks closer, the monograph generated a stir befitting acha11enge to the received approaches. This monograph was republished in 1962, with some additional essays, by The Free Press as Foreign Policy Decision-Making. It is an indication of Snyder's openness that included in this volume were chapters critical of the arguments we put forward. I should note that while Henry Bruck and I did quite a bit of the organizational work, this monograph was essentially Dick Snyder's work. Nevertheless, he put all three of ouf names on the publication. This is just one indication of how supportive he could be of his students and colleagues, and he treated the former as though they were the latter. Dick Snyder essentially treated everyone as equals in the search for truth and understanding. This was not aposture or apose. It was the way he approached the world, with a basic humiliry and a genuine openness to the ideas and perspectives of others, even while holding very strong views of his own. He maintained a deep-seated personal and intellectual egalitarianism, undergirded by a compassionate and respectful approach to almost all of those with whom he came in contact, believing there should be no barriers of any kind, personal or intellectual, hierarchical or generational, to the search for a deeper understanding of the socio-political world around uso This did not mean that all views have equal validity or significance but simply that everyone should be approached with respect and others should displaya willingness to pay attention to the ideas, values, and perspectives they may articulate. There are differences of viewpoint, some views might be

9 Foreword IX more insightful or doser to empirical reality than others, and it is legitimate to attempt to identif)r the analytical shortcomings and factual errors of others. Snyder's approach was to encourage others, particularly if they stood lower in some hierarchical structure, to "do their thing," think their own thoughts, and engage in productive and creative interaction with you and with one another. Clearly, this is a stance that would add considerable darity and balance, and improved decisions as well, to the broad realm of public policy analysis, discussion, and decision-making. Skeptics will point out that all of this openness to the views and ideas of others may me an that decisions never get made, or may give the impression that all opinions are entitled to equal weight and respect. Anything is possible, but neither of these shortcomings is part of the Snyder heritage. Dick Snyder had strong and well-defined views on a broad range of academic, institutional, social-scientific, and political science issues, and on matters of personal behavior and ethics as well, and he pursued and attempted to implement them vigorously and persistently. All while maintaining respect for others. As scholar, mentor, and administrator, Snyder's approach influenced a substantial number of students and other colleagues (and anyone else open to this kind of personal and intellectual support) in a number of academic fields and disciplines-in stimulating, encouraging, and liberating their talents, values, and ideas. It is comforting to realize that many of these beneficiaries of the Snyder approach have in turn brought it to bear on others, and that the republication of Foreign Policy Decision-Making is here complemented by two new chapters examining its impact, implications, and potential for future research. Snyder's approach, both personal and intellectual, stands as a model. 1 It is a legacy that should be encouraged and sustained. NOTE 1. For a tribute to Richard Snyder, see Glenn D. Paige and James A. Robinson in PS Oune 1998), available at