POLI 235: Midterm Exam (Fall 2020) Please Note: Academic Integrity and honesty: Any actual or possible signs of cheatings and academic dishonesty will be detected with an automatic “F” grade assigned, and reported to the Office of the Provost in accordance to the Ramapo College’s Academic Integrity Policy. Please respond to the following question to the best of your ability and understanding. Write out your answer (in Times New Roman, 12-font, and double-spaced). Cite properly your sources and include a reference page at the end of your midterm. Upload the midterm along with your first draft essay in one single file to Turnitin on Canvas no later than 9pm on Tuesday, November 10, 2020. Late submissions will not be accepted.
1. According to Table 4.1 in your Mingst textbook, there are four major psychological mechanisms used to process information and foreign policy decisions. Define each of these four mechanisms and explain how each affects decision-making. Be sure to properly cite your sources from the textbook, using MLA format.
a. On your Canvas page, there is a PBS Frontline Documentary: “Bush’s War.” Watch Part 1 of the documentary (if you haven’t done so already) and pay attention to at least two of the mechanisms from Table 4.1. Explain how they were illustrated in the George W. Bush administration’s decision-making process leading up to the Iraq war in 2003.
b. Additionally, find an example from current events that shows the working of any one of these psychological mechanisms. Be sure to properly cite from your current events sources (i.e., newspaper articles).
c. What is the significance of learning from these psychological mechanisms? What do they tell us about the problems or downsides of decision-making? What can be done to effectively mitigate these problems? Explain your thoughts.
