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Description
If the development of armaments by the superpowers is to be managed, then it is necessary to understand the forces which drive it. As Professor Graham Allison of Harvard points out early in the pro...gramme, there are two rival theories of what drives the arms race - 1) that it is driven mainly by external competition between the superpowers and 2) that it is driven mainly by internal pressures within organisations in the respective countries. This TV programme is a contribution to that debate. In particular the programme identifies 4 areas where pressure might arise: commercial, political, technological and military. Some analysts in the programme argue that these pressures determine procurement decisions which are not rationally or militarily justified, whilst other contributors point to the behaviour of complex organisations as a way of understanding the procurement process.
If the development of armaments by the superpowers is to be managed, then it is necessary to understand the forces which drive it. As Professor Graham Allison of Harvard points out early in the pro...gramme, there are two rival theories of what drives the arms race - 1) that it is driven mainly by external competition between the superpowers and 2) that it is driven mainly by internal pressures within organisations in the respective countries. This TV programme is a contribution to that debate. In particular the programme identifies 4 areas where pressure might arise: commercial, political, technological and military. Some analysts in the programme argue that these pressures determine procurement decisions which are not rationally or militarily justified, whilst other contributors point to the behaviour of complex organisations as a way of understanding the procurement process.
| Module code and title: | U235, "Nuclear weapons: inquiry, analysis and debate" |
|---|---|
| Item code: | U235; 03 |
| First transmission date: | 05-05-1986 |
| Published: | 1986 |
| Rights Statement: | |
| Restrictions on use: | |
| Duration: | 00:24:45 |
| + Show more... | |
| Producer: | Roger Penfound |
| Contributors: | Graham Allison; Kosta Tipis; Fred Ikle; Dan Quayle; George Rathjens; Roy Woodruff; Jim Thompson; Kenneth Brotnov; Oleg Bykhov |
| Publisher: | BBC Open University |
| Keyword(s): | Nuclear war; Weapons procurement |
| Master spool number: | HOU5403 |
| Production number: | FOUP258Y |
| Videofinder number: | 1336 |
| Available to public: | no |
