The Psychology behind American Leaders during the Berlin Blockade

Book Essay on: Ali Shlaim, The United States and the Berlin Blockade, 1947-1949: A Study in Crisis Decision Making
(Berkeley: University of Califpronia press, 1983), 463 pages. UCSB: DD81.S46 1983

by Brian Thomson
December 5, 2008

for Prof. Marcuse's lecture course
Germany, 1945-present
UC Santa Barbara, Fall 2008

About Brian Thomson

I am a third year student at UCSB and although I came in as a history major I switched to a psychology major while keeping history a minor. In history I have a great interest for studying America’s military past, with emphasis on World War II and the Cold War. I chose to write about Shlaim’s book because it dealt with one of the most crucial moments of the Cold Car and involved the psychology behind the decisions which seemed interesting extremely interesting to me.

Abstract (back to top)

Ali Shlaim’s book, The United States and the Berlin Blockade, 1947-1949: A Study in Crisis Decision Making goes into great depth on why President Truman, Secretary of State Marshall, and Military Governor Clay, the three main American decision makers, made the crucial decisions they did during the Berlin Blockade. Shlaim attempts to go into the psychology of these great American leaders by analyzing hundreds of memoirs, letters, and interviews from these leaders and their closest advisors during this crisis. Shlaim attempts to disprove the idea that during a time of crisis, leaders make impaired decisions because they are under great stress. Shlaim instead argues that in a time of crisis, decision-makers are not dealing with stress, but make better, more accurate decisions because they must deal with new time constraints, military hostility, and a change in the external environment. These new pressures on the decision-makers force them to quickly make an effective response in a time of crisis, rather than slowly working through processes and hearing useless information during a time of peace. I agree with Shlaim’s argument that the hard psychology of a decision-maker in a time of crisis does not allow stress to affect their decisions, but instead allows them to focus on a single situation and make an effective decision.

Essay (back to top)

Bibliography and Links (back to top)(links last checked 12/x/08)

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