| The purpose of this dissertation is to broaden the categories of image studies, which primarily focus on the opponent or the enemy and nation-states that are dependent on the Western countries, to include three additional classifications that examine Cyrus Vance's worldview or perceptions of international politics during his tenure as Secretary of State in the Carter Administration and as United Nations Envoy to the former Yugoslavia. Vance's worldview is explored through the use of the motivated tactician perspective that views the political leader relying on an interplay between category-based processes in which perceptions are strongly influenced by the individual's prior knowledge and data-driven processes whereby perceivers are more sensitive to information in their environment, with each attribute assessed individually. It is the thesis of this paper that his worldview involves three broad overlapping images of the world: complex-interdependent, optimistic-detente and empathic. The attributes that comprise Vance's complex-interdependent image include his perceptions of an uncertain, but increasingly interdependent world in which the Soviet Union was only one of many problems confronting the United States. In terms of his optimistic-detente image, he strove to construct a more cooperative relationship with the Soviet Union while simultaneously addressing and elevating the importance of other issues such as arms control and the peaceful resolution of conflict onto the foreign policy agenda. In addition, through his empathic image he recognized the growing nationalism arising among nations within the developing world. Vance's strategy emphasized the use of diplomacy and international law along with addressing the root causes of conflict: the social, political and economic problems plaguing developing nations, as evidenced in Nicaragua and Bosnia-Herzegovina. This study not only addresses Cyrus Vance's worldview but also the sources of his perceptions of international politics such as significant life experiences, the most important of which was his government service during the Vietnam War, a political trauma in Vance's adult life, considerably altering his images of the world. Consequently, this analysis found the motivated tactician perspective beneficial in assessing a foreign policy decisionmaker's worldview and suggests three new ideal type image categories that can apply to individuals who share a similar thinking with Cyrus Vance. |
