Accession Number:

ADA288729

Title:

Presidential Approaches to Organizing Foreign Policy Mechanisms.

Descriptive Note:

Master's thesis,

Corporate Author:

NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MONTEREY CA

Personal Author(s):

• Hernandez, Edmund B.

Report Date:

1994-09-01

Pagination or Media Count:

100.0

Abstract:

The organization of foreign policy mechanisms will determine the types of policies a President can create. Presidents organize their administrations using a formalistic, collegial or competitive approach. In order to manage foreign policy a President must develop a balance between the formalistic and collegial approaches. This thesis analyzes how the Eisenhower and Kennedy Administrations structured their national security organizations and examines their policy decisions towards the Vietnam crisis. Eisenhower used a formalistic approach to create a highly structured organization with defined procedures to review foreign policy issues. Kennedys style was far less rigid and relied on a high degree of personal interaction and group problem solving. This thesis demonstrates that there was a direct relationship between the manner in which the United States foreign policy apparatus was structured and the decisions that were made to escalate US involvement in the Vietnam War. This thesis concludes that the formalistic and collegial approaches are complimentary and that a President should utilize a combination of both approaches.

Descriptors:

• FOREIGN POLICY
• WARFARE
• POLICIES
• POLITICAL SCIENCE
• NATIONAL SECURITY
• COMPETITION
• UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT
• ORGANIZATIONS
• DECISION MAKING
• GROUP DYNAMICS
• THESES
• PROBLEM SOLVING
• PRESIDENT(UNITED STATES)
• PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION
• NATIONAL DEFENSE
• VIETNAM

Subject Categories:

• Government and Political Science
• Administration and Management
• Humanities and History
• Defense Systems
• Military Operations, Strategy and Tactics

Distribution Statement:

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE