He received his Ph.D. from Arizona State University in 1994, spent the next 17 years teaching and conducting research at LSU, and arrived here at UCF in 2011. His primary research interests include groupthink, the operational code, and psychological correlates of foreign policy behavior. Schafer has published his research in major journals such as Journal of Politics, International Studies Quarterly, and Journal of Conflict Resolution. His two most recent book projects are: Groupthink vs. High Quality Decision Making in International Relations (Columbia University Press, 2010; co-authored with Scott Crichlow), and Rethinking Foreign Policy Analysis (Routledge, 2011; co-edited with Stephen G. Walker and Akan Malici).