Graham Allison facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Graham Allison
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Allison in 2017
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| Director of the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs | |
| In office June 1, 1995 – July 1, 2017 |
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| Succeeded by | Ash Carter |
| Assistant Secretary of Defense for Policy and Plans | |
| In office August 6, 1993 – March 15, 1994 |
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| President | Bill Clinton |
| Dean of the John F. Kennedy School of Government | |
| In office June 1, 1977 – May 30, 1989 |
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| Preceded by | Don K. Price |
| Succeeded by | Robert D. Putnam |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Graham Tillett Allison Jr.
March 23, 1940 Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Children |
See list
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| Education | Harvard University (BA, PhD) Hertford College, Oxford (BA, MA) |
Graham Allison, born on March 23, 1940, is an American political scientist. He is a professor at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government. He is famous for studying how important decisions are made, especially during big problems or crises.
His book, Remaking Foreign Policy, written with Peter L. Szanton, came out in 1976. It helped shape how the U.S. government, led by President Jimmy Carter, dealt with other countries. Since the 1970s, Mr. Allison has also been a top expert on U.S. national security and defense. He is very interested in nuclear weapons and preventing terrorism.
Contents
Graham Allison's Early Life and Studies
Graham Allison grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina. He finished Myers Park High School in 1958. He went to Davidson College for two years. Then he moved to Harvard University, where he earned his first degree in 1962.
He then studied at Oxford University in England as a Marshall Scholar. He earned two more degrees there in 1964. After that, he returned to Harvard. In 1968, he earned his Ph.D. in political science. The famous Henry Kissinger was one of his teachers.
Graham Allison's Career and Contributions
Graham Allison has spent his entire teaching career at Harvard University. He became a professor in 1972. This was because of his important book, Essence of Decision: Explaining the Cuban Missile Crisis (1971).
Understanding Important Decisions
In his book, Allison introduced new ways to understand how governments make big decisions. He looked at how organizations work and how politics among different groups can affect choices. This book changed how people studied decision-making in politics and other fields.
Leading the Harvard Kennedy School
From 1977 to 1989, Allison was the dean of the Harvard Kennedy School. During his time as dean, the school grew a lot. Its size increased by 400%, and its funding grew by 700%.
Work with the U.S. Government
From 1993 to 1994, he worked for the United States Department of Defense. He helped plan strategies and policies for countries that used to be part of the Soviet Union. President Bill Clinton gave Allison an award for his work. This award was for "reshaping relations with Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, and Kazakhstan to reduce the former Soviet nuclear arsenal."
From 1995 to 2017, Allison led the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. After him, Ash Carter, a former U.S. Secretary of Defense, took over.
The Thucydides Trap Theory
In 2012, Graham Allison created the term "Thucydides Trap". He used it to talk about the chance of a war between the United States and China. He later explained the Trap as a historical pattern. This pattern shows that "when one great power threatens to displace another, war is almost always the result."
In 2017, he wrote a whole book about this idea called Destined for War. The theory is based on the ancient Greek historian Thucydides. Thucydides wrote that the growth of Athens' power and Sparta's fear of it made war unavoidable. Allison suggests that events before World War I and other wars also show this pattern.
The idea of the Thucydides Trap has been discussed a lot by experts.
Other Roles and Awards
Graham Allison is still a professor at Harvard. He has also been a member of important groups like the Trilateral Commission. In 1979, he received an honorary doctorate from Uppsala University in Sweden.
In 2009, he won an award from the National Academy of Sciences. This award was for his research on preventing nuclear war. He is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
Defense Policy Work
Allison has been very involved in U.S. defense policy since the 1960s. He has advised the the Pentagon and worked as a consultant for the RAND Corporation. He has also been a member of the Defense Policy Board since 1985. For three years, he was a special advisor to Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger during Ronald Reagan's presidency.
See also
- Global policeman
- List of books about nuclear issues
- On Nuclear Terrorism
- The Four Faces of Nuclear Terrorism
- The Seventh Decade: The New Shape of Nuclear Danger
