Decision-Making in American Foreign Policy: Translating Theory into Practice

This foreign policy analysis textbook is written especially for students studying to become national security professionals. It translates academic knowledge about the complex influences on American foreign policymaking into an intuitive, cohesive, and practical set of analytic tools. The focus here is not theory for the sake of theory, but rather to translate theory into practice. Classic paradigms are adapted to fit the changing realities of the contemporary national security environment. For example, the growing centrality of the White House is seen in the 'palace politics' of the president's inner circle, and the growth of the national security apparatus introduces new dimensions to organizational processes and subordinate levels of bureaucratic politics. Real-world case studies are used throughout to allow students to apply theory. These comprise recent events that draw impartially across partisan lines and encompass a variety of diplomatic, military, and economic and trade issues.

Nikolas K. Gvosdev is a Professor of National Security Affairs and holds the Jerome E. Levy Chair in Economic Geography and National Security at the United States Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island. He is the former Editor of The National Interest policy journal and previously was a senior fellow at the Nixon Center (now the Center for the National Interest). He holds non-residential fellowships with the Foreign Policy Research Institute and the Carnegie Council on Ethics and International Affairs. He is the author of numerous scholarly and policy books, articles, and chapters including recent books on US and Russian foreign policy. He holds a D.Phil. from the University of Oxford where he was a Rhodes Scholar.

Jessica D. Blankshain is an Assistant Professor of National Security Affairs at the United States Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island, where she teaches courses on foreign policy analysis, decision making, and civil–military relations. She holds a Ph.D. in Political Economy and Government from Harvard University.

David A. Cooper is the James V. Forrestal Professor of National Security Affairs at the United States Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island, and is the former Chair of the Department of National Security Affairs. He previously served for nearly two decades as a career US Defense Department official including as a member of the Senior Executive Service. He has held a number of important foreign and national security policy positions including in the Office of the Secretary of Defense and at US Africa Command. He is the author of a comparative foreign policy book and various scholarly and policy articles and chapters on international relations and US foreign policy. He holds a Ph.D. in Political Science and International Relations from The Australian National University.