After reading this chapter, you should be able to:

• Summarize the three theories with assumptions about the international system that inform U.S. foreign policy decision making.
   
• Describe the three spheres of political activity and their importance in foreign policy making.
   
• Identify the ways in which U.S. civil society participates in foreign policy making.
   
• Explain the role of bureaucratic politics in shaping U.S. foreign policy.
   
• Discuss the influence of political psychology on the making of U.S. foreign policy.