CHAPTER 1
The Nature of Negotiation
Learning objectives (LO)
• Understand the nature of negotiation (as a tool of
managing conflict, a basic human activity)
• Appreciate characteristics of a negotiation situation
• Know elements fundamental to the negotiation:
process: managing interdependence, engaging in
mutual adjustment, creating or claiming value, and
managing conflict. Each of these elements is
foundational to understanding how negotiation
works.
AND
• Ponder on the nature and complexity business
negotiation (BizNeg) and In’tl BizNeg.
• Improve (Business) English learning
The Titles (headings)
1. A Few Words about our Style & Approach to
Negotiation.
2. Joe and Sue Carter.
3. Characteristics of a Negotiation Situation.
4. Interdependence.
5. Mutual Adjustment.
6. Value Claiming and Value Creation.
7. Conflict.
8. Effective Conflict Management.
9. Overview of the whole book &Chapter Summary.
A Few Words about our Style & Approach to
Negotiation
• Be careful about how bargaining and negotiation
are used here (p.4).
• Negotiation is a very complex social process; many
of the most important factors that shape a
negotiation result do not occur during the
negotiation; they occur before the parties start to
negotiate, or shape the context around the
negotiation (p.4).
• Our insights into negotiation drawn from three
sources (experience, media, the wealth of social
science research) (p.4). Then, what are the
implications for you as a learner of negotiation?
2. Joe and Sue Carter (pp.5-7)
• A story about a husband and wife.
• In a not-so-atypical day, they faced the challenges
of many negotiations, major and minor.
• The Carter story (anecdote) used to highlight
something important (definition, characteristics of
a negotiation, and so on).
• Definition of negotiation: Any generalizations?
SOME PRACTICAL DEFINITIONS: 1/2
1. Whenever we attempt to influence another
person through an exchange of ideas, or
something of material value, we are negotiating.
Negotiation is the process we use to satisfy our
needs when someone else controls what we want.
Every wish we would like to fulfill, every need
we feel compelled to satisfy, are potential
situations for negotiation.
SOME PRACTICAL DEFINITIONS: 2/2
2. Negotiation between companies, groups or
individuals normally occurs because one has
something the other wants and is willing to
bargain to get it.
3. Characteristics of a Negotiation Situation (pp. 5-9)
(1) There are two or more parties.
(2) There is a conflict of needs and desires between two
or more parties.
(3) The parties negotiate by choice. (see Box 1.1 for
examples of when not to negotiate, p.8)
(4) When we negotiate we expect a “give and take ”
process. (see Box 1.2, p. 9)
(5) The parties prefer to negotiate and search for
agreement.
(6) Successful negotiation involves the management of
tangibles & also the resolution of intangibles (see Box
1.3 about the dangerous role of ego in negotiation, p. 9).
• Four Key elements of the negotiation
process
4. Interdependence (pp.9-13)
• When the parties depend on each other to achieve their
own preferred outcome they are interdependent (p.10).
• Most relationships between parties may be characterized
in one of three ways: independent, dependent, or
interdependent.
• Note that having interdependent goals do not mean that
everyone wants or needs exactly the same thing. (See
Box 1.4 for a perspective on interdependence and the
importance of intangibles from a famous agent, p. 10)
4. Interdependence (pp.9-13)
 Types of interdependence affect outcomes (p. 12).
Translate into Chinese: To the degree that one person
achieves his or her goal, the other’s goals are not
necessarily blocked, and may in fact be significantly
enhanced.
 Alternatives shape interdependence. (p. 12)
“whether you should or should not agree on something
in a negotiation depends entirely upon the
attractiveness to you of the best available alternative”
(Fisher et al. 1991: 105)
See Box 1.5 for a lesson on how one party manipulates
the perception of his possible BATNA to get the other
to agree. (p. 13)
5. Mutual Adjustment (pp. 13-16)
When parties are interdependent, they have to find a
way to resolve their differences.(p.13)
But how? Through influence (power, leverage)
It is important to recognize that negotiation is a
process that transforms over time, and mutual
adjustment is one of the key causes of the changes that
occur during a negotiation. (p.13)
(Watch the film “The Negotiators”)
5. Mutual Adjustment (pp. 13-16)
• Mutual adjustment and concession making.
When one party agrees to make a change in his or her
position, a concession has been made.
Concessions restrict the range of options, with which a
solution or agreement will be reached; when a party
makes a concession, the bargaining range is further
constrained.
5. Mutual Adjustment (pp. 13-16)
• Two dilemmas in mutual adjustment. (p.14)
First, the dilemma of honesty, concerns how
much of the truth to tell?
Second, the dilemma of trust, how much should
the negotiators believe what the other party tells
them?
See Box 1.6 The importance of aligning
perceptions (p.16)
6. Value Claiming and Value Creation-1 (pp.16-18)
• Identify two types of interdependent situations —
zero-sum and non-zero-sum.
• The structure of interdependence shapes the
strategies and tactics that negotiators employ.
• In distributive situations negotiators are motivated
to win the competition and beat the other party to
gain the largest piece of the fixed resource that they
can.
• In integrative situations the negotiators should
employ win-win strategies and tactics.
6. Value Claiming and Value Creation-2
Unfortunately, most actual negotiations are combination
of claiming and creating value processes. (p.17)
• The implications for this are significant:
(1) Negotiators must be able to recognize situations that
require more of one approach than the other.
(2) Negotiators must be versatile in their comfort and use
of both major strategic approaches.
(3) Negotiator perceptions of situations tend to be biased
toward seeing problems as more distributive/competitive
than they really are. (p.17)
6. Value Claiming and Value Creation-3
Value may be created in numerous ways, and the heart of
process lies in exploiting the differences that exist
between the negotiators.(p.18)
The key differences among negotiators include these:
(1) Differences in interests.
(2) Differences in judgments about the future.
(3) Differences in risk tolerance.
(4) Differences in time preference.
While value is often created by exploiting common
interests, differences can also serve as the basis for
creating value. The heart of negotiation is exploring both
common and different interests to create this value and
employing such interests as the foundation for a strong
and lasting agreement. (p.18)
7. Conflict (pp.19-25)
• A potential consequence of interdependent relationships
is conflict. Conflict can result from the strongly
divergent needs of the two parties or from
misperception and misunderstanding.
• Conflict can occur when two parties are working
toward the same goal and generally want the same
outcome or when both parties want very different
outcomes.
• Regardless of the cause of the conflict, negotiation can
play an important role in resolving it effectively.
7.1 Definitions (p.19)
• Conflict may be defined as a “sharp disagreement or
opposition, as of interest, ideas, etc”, and includes “the
perceived divergence of interest, or belief that the
parties’ current aspirations cannot be achieved
simultaneously”.
• Conflict results from “the interaction of interdependent
people who perceived incompatible goals and
interference from each other in achieving those goals.”
7.2 Levels of Conflict (p.19)
Four levels of conflict are commonly identified:
• Intrapersonal or intrapsychic conflict.
• Interpersonal conflict.
• Intragroup conflict.
• Intergroup conflict.
7.3 Function and Dysfunctions of Conflict
Productive aspects of conflict (see Figure 1.1 Functions
and Benefits of conflict, p.21)
Elements that contribute to conflict’s destructive image:
1. Competitive, win-lose goals.
2. Misperception and bias.
3. Emotionality.
4. Decreased communication.
5. Blurred issues.
6. Rigid commitments.
7. Magnified differences and minimized similarities.
8. Escalation of conflict.
7.4 Factors that Make Conflict Easy or Difficult to Manage
• Figure 1.2 (p.21) presents a conflict diagnostic model.
This model offers some useful dimensions for analyzing
any dispute and determine how easy or difficult it will
be to resolve.
• Conflicts with more of the characteristics in the
“difficult to resolve” column will be harder to settle,
while those that have more characteristics in the “easy
to resolve ” column will be settled quicker.
8. Effective Conflict Management (p.23-25)
Concern about other’s outcomes
• Figure 1.3
The dual concerns model (p.23)
Problem solving
(collaborating, integrating
Yielding
(accommodating,
Obliging)
(compromising)
Inaction
(avoiding)
Contending (competing, dominating
Concern about own outcomes (assertive)
8. Effective Conflict Management
• Figure 1.4 Style of handling interpersonal
conflict and situations where they are
appropriate or inappropriate (p.26)
9. Overview of the whole book (pp.25-30)
Part 1
Negotiation Fundamentals
(1-4)
Part 2
Negotiation Subprocesses
(5-9)
Part 3
Negotiation Across Cultures
(10)
Part 4
Resolving Differences
(11-13)
Part 5
Concluding Comments
(14)
Teaching Objectives (p.3)
• After reading this book, we hope you will
be thoroughly prepared to recognize
negotiation situations;
understand how negotiation works;
know how to plan, implement, and complete
successful negotiations;
and most importantly, be able to maximize
your results.
Chapter Summary (p.30)
• In this chapter, we have set the groundwork for a
thorough and detailed examination of the
negotiation process.
• We used examples to introduce the variety of
negotiations that occur daily and to discuss how we
present material in this book.
• We turned to the extended example of a day in life
of Joe and Sue and showed how negotiations
permeate daily experience. We also use this
example to help define the key parameters of a
negotiation situation.
• And we explore four key elements of the negotiation
process.
Exercises
• A self-assessment test: my reaction to disagreement
and conflict
my reaction to disagreement and conflict
a 10-point scale: strong agreement→ mild agreement
Following are several statements about personal
reactions to disagreement and conflict. Circle the
number that best describes you. The higher the
number, the more you agree with the statement. When
you finish, total the numbers you circled and write it
in the space provided.
1. It doesn’t bother me to question a price or seek a
more favorable exchange than offered.
2. I have nothing to lose in seeking a better deal if I
do it in a reasonable way.
3. Conflict is positive because it makes me examine
my ideas carefully.
4. In resolving conflict, I try to consider the needs of
the other person.
5. Conflict often produces better solutions to
problems.
6. Conflict stimulates my thinking and sharpens my
judgment.
7. Working with conflict has taught me that
compromise is not a sign of weakness.
8. Satisfactorily resolved, conflict often strengthens
relationship.
9. Conflict is a way to test one’s own point of view.
1. It doesn’t bother me to question a price or
seek a more favorable exchange than
offered.
2. I have nothing to lose in seeking a better
deal if I do it in a reasonable way.
3. Conflict is positive because it makes me
examine my ideas carefully.
4. In resolving conflict, I try to consider the
needs of the other person.
(TBCed)
5. Conflict often produces better solutions to
problems.
6. Conflict stimulates my thinking and
sharpens my judgment.
7. Working with conflict has taught me that
compromise is not a sign of weakness.
8. Satisfactorily resolved, conflict often
strengthens relationship.
9. Conflict is a way to test one’s own point of
view.
Total: ?
My reaction to disagreement and conflict
If you score 80 or above you have a realistic
attitude toward conflict, and seem willing to
work to resolve it.
If you scored between 50 and 79 you appear to be
dealing fairly well with conflict, but need to
work toward a more positive approach.
If your score was below 50, you need to first
understand why, and then work hard to learn
techniques of conflict resolution.
Ex
• Fill-ins: why negotiate
A negotiation is a way of reaching an agreement by
means of discussion and (1). Each side has
something the other wants and both sides are
trying to reach an agreement. Negotiators bargain
with each other as they make (2 ) (“We will … if
you …?”) and ask for (3) (“If we …, will you …?”).
Negotiators don’t enter a negotiation expecting to
get everything they want, they know they’ll have to
(4). If they don’t, there will be ( 5 ) and the
negotiation will break down. The purpose of every
negotiation is to reach an agreement. Usually both
sides are meeting because they have something to
(6). In a sales negotiation, the seller wants to sell
the goods or services and the buyer wants to buy
them. In a pay negotiation, the employer wants the
workers to work and the workers want to work.
Both sides want to reach an (7), but they have
different (8).
Suggested answer Fill-ins: why negotiate
1 bargaining
2 offers
3 concessions
4 compromise
5 a deadlock
6 gain
7 agreement
8 priorities