Constructing the Operational Code of U.S. Intelligence.

Researchers analyze the foreign policy decision making of political leaders in a variety of ways. One area of this literature is image theory. It is quite possible that image theory is the single most important and potentially useful cognitive construct used to explain the political behavior of leaders, especially in the post-Cold War world. However, questions still remain regarding the impact of images on policy preferences and state behavior (Young and Schafer 1998). Moreover, methodological issues need to be addressed. This paper argues that images do indeed affect behavior. Specifically, I examine the impact of a political leader's background in the intelligence community on their image and, in turn, their foreign policy. I develop and carry out a research design that utilizes operational coding to examine the case of former United States President George H.W. Bush who headed the Central Intelligence Agency from 1976 to 1977. I conclude the paper with a discussion on the utility of the findings. I also explain how this paper will be integrated into a larger research program that will look at how an intelligence community background can influence a political leader's foreign policy decision making via image in differing political systems. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]