| Description |
447 pages ; 22 cm |
| Series |
Pimlico ; 116 |
| Contents |
Generalship -- The Crimean War -- The Boer War -- Indian Interlude -- The First World War -- Cambrai -- The Siege of Kut -- Between the Wars -- The Second World War -- Singapore -- Arnhem -- Is There a Case to Answer? -- The Intellectual Ability of Senior Military Commanders -- Military Organizations -- 'Bullshit' -- Socialization and the Anal Character -- Character and Honour -- Anti-Effeminacy -- Leaders of Men -- Military Achievement -- Authoritarianism -- Mothers of Incompetence -- Education and the Cult of Muscular Christianity -- Individual Differences -- Extremes of Authoritarianism -- The Worst and the Best -- Exceptions to the Rule? -- Retreat |
| Summary |
The Crimea, the Boer War, the Somme, Tobruk, Pearl Harbor, the Bay of Pigs: these are just some of the milestones in a century of military incompetence, of costly mishaps and tragic blunders. Are these simple accidents-as the "bloody fool" theory has it-or are they inevitable? The psychologist Norman F. Dixon argues that there is a pattern to inept generalship, and locates this pattern within the very act of creating armies in the first place, which in his view produces a levelling down of human capability that encourages the mediocre and limits the gifted. In this light, successful generals achieve what they do despite the stultifying features of the organization to which they belong. A classic study of military leadership, On the Psychology of Military Incompetence is at once an original exploration of the battles that have defined the last two centuries of human civilization and an essential guide for the next generation of military leaders |
| Analysis |
Military forces Officers |
|
Military forces Officers |
| Notes |
Originally published: London : Jonathan Cape ; New York : Basic Books, 1976 |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 424-439) and index |
| Notes |
Originally published: London : Cape, 1976 |
| Subject |
Command of troops.
|
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Corporate culture.
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Leadership.
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Militarism.
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Military history.
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Generals.
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Psychology, Military.
|
| Author |
Bidwell, Shelford, writer of foreword
|
| ISBN |
9780712658898 (paperback) |
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