Impediments to The Rational Choice Theory

The rational choice theory is marked through a series of steps. One of the most famous proponents of this theory is President John F. Kennedy during the Cuban Missile Crisis. It essentially helps (in theory) the policy makers to identify possible solutions to a problem.

                In the first step of the theory, the policy maker has to first identify his or her problem then attempt to define the problem to fully grasp what they are dealing with. Then the policy maker must attempt to identify the goals he or she wants to achieve and select a goal. However, before the selection of a goal, the policy maker must list the goals from the most preferred outcome to the least preferred and identify the costs associated with each outcome.

                In the third step, after selecting a goal, the policy maker must attempt to find alternatives to that goal. Meaning, the policy maker tries to see if something else can achieve that goal with less sacrifices or cost. If no alternatives are found, then the policy maker proceeds to choose the goal they want to implement. In this choice, the policy maker must try to choose the goal that has the most desired benefits with the least costs (or least negatives).

                There are major impediments to the rational choice theory that prevents it from being an effective policy making tool. A policy maker is never fully aware of all circumstances involved in a problem and can even be faced with major intelligence gaps that may lead to wrong cost-benefit analysis or implementation problems of a goal. There is also a psychological factor present in the decision process that does not let the policy maker factor in new intelligence data or new information regarding the problem during the cost benefit analysis.

                The fact that this rational choice theory is slow and time consuming is also a impediment as policy makers sometimes does not have the luxury of time to explore all options available to them. Thus policy makers “jump the gun” and choose the first policy option that is made available to them – sometimes with drastic undesirable consequences. On a more personal note, Presidents (major policy making actor in US foreign policy) sometimes tend to trust and take the advice of family, personal friends, lobbyists and acquaintances over the advice of the intelligence community or bureaucrats which can lead to disastrous outcomes.

                All of these factors sometimes lead to certain problems in policy making decisions and become an impediment to effective implementation of the rational choice theory and effective decision making processes. With careful planning and consideration of all intelligence information and policy advisers, a policy maker can make the best possible policy decision with the least consequential or negative outcomes.