Cognitive Biases

Our vast and powerful Department of Defense is focused on the war in Afghanistan. As of President Obama's West Point Speech, it has become the main war effort. Signs began to appear though, that the National Security Agency (NSA) was falling prey to some of the common cognitive biases that we all fall prey to. Research into past conflicts revealed that in fact the executive branch's very set up incline it to succumb to these biases, unknowingly. This paper explores those cognitive biases, the results from the past and the potential areas where the NSA is vulnerable to these cognitive biases. The research consisted mainly of psychology articles and manuals, history books and papers and newspapers and articles on Afghanistan today. It showed that we do have vulnerabilities, and it recommends some potential ways ahead to make sure that our decisions in Afghanistan are based on sound reason, and not unconscious mental 'shortcuts.'

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