Perception and Misperception in International Politics

Author: Robert Jervis
Publisher:
Publication Date: 2003-08-01
Features: What are the causes and consequences of perceptual errors? What kinds of perceptual errors often occur in decision-making? How are perceptions of political actors and other entities formed and changed? How do decision-makers make inferences based on information, especially from information that contradicts their own views? Why can states maintain peace but still resort to war? Why can states choose cooperation but end up in conflict? Why is it so easy for interstate hostility to escalate, yet so difficult to maintain friendship? In Perception and Misperception in International Politics, Robert Jervis, a professor of political science at Columbia University in the United States, explains these major issues in international politics from the perspective of cognitive psychology. He argues that to understand the causes of war and conflict, it is not only necessary to analyze the international system and state institutions but also to study the cognitive psychology of decision-makers, exploring the reasons behind the formation of their perceptions and analyzing the potential consequences of perceptual errors.