| ID | 100262 |
| Title Proper | Groupthink, Iraq, and the war on terror |
| Other Title Information | explaining US policy shift toward Iraq |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Badie, Dina |
| Publication | 2010. |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | Existing scholarship on the Iraq War decision-making process generally treats the event as a logical extension of pre-existing ideas and policies. This paper considers the Bush administration's decision to absorb Iraq into the broader War on Terror as a deviation from long-held views of Saddam Hussein. I argue that the decision to incorporate Iraq into the wider post 9/11 mission was pathologically driven by groupthink, which caused a shift in the administration's view of Saddam from a troubling dictator to an existential threat to US security. Therefore, groupthink can simultaneously explain the defects in the decision-making process and the shift from cautious restraint to accelerated urgency with respect to US relations with Iraq. |
| `In' analytical Note | Foreign Policy Analysis Vol. 6, No. 4; Oct 2010: p.277-296 |
| Journal Source | Foreign Policy Analysis Vol. 6, No. 4; Oct 2010: p.277-296 |
| Key Words | War on Terror ; Iraq ; Saddam Hussein ; 9/11 ; US Policy - Iraq ; United States |