madman theory

noun

An element of U.S. President Richard Nixon's foreign policy, by which Nixon was portrayed as irrational and volatile toward leaders of hostile Communist nations, with the aim of making them fearful of provoking the United States.

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Meanings

noun
  1. UShistoricalgovernmentAn element of U.S. President Richard Nixon's foreign policy, by which Nixon was portrayed as irrational and volatile toward leaders of hostile Communist nations, with the aim of making them fearful of provoking the United States.

    The template is [Richard] Nixon’s “madman theory” of diplomatic engagement – shorthand for prompting your adversaries to doubt your sanity and mental instability to the point where they are intimidated into otherwise unlikely concessions.

    2026 April 8, Robert Tait, “Trump may be using Nixon’s ‘madman theory’ – and similar infamy may await”, in The Guardian, →ISSN, archived from the original on 08 Apr 2026
Cite this entry
APA

madman theory. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/madman%20theory

MLA

“madman theory.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/madman%20theory. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “madman theory,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/madman%20theory.

Source: madman theory on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.