What Is Negotiation?

1. What Is Negotiation? • Basic generic human activity with widespread applications • Negotiation skill is essential to accomplish objectives through or with others • Bargaining and negotiation terms are generally synonomous (note exception) • Terms: Party, opponent, partner, “other”?

2. Joe and Sue Carter Vignette:“A Day in the Life” • Vacation plans (Joe and Sue) • Joe’s engineer unit and purchasing dept. • Sue’s job at the traditional bank • Sue’s conservation board (mall development) • Joe’s purchase of a new car • Point: Negotiation is pervasive and varied

3. Negotiation Characteristics • Two or more parties • Conflict of interest (perceived, at least) • Perceived ability to influence other • Search for agreement preferred to conflict or capitulation (giving in), for moment anyway • Expectations of give and take (maybe compromise) • Intangibles and tangibles at issue • Above generally hold, but not always

4. Interdependence Means ... • Parties need each other • This makes for complexity • Conflict (goal divergence) and common interests exist simultaneously • Structure (“payoff matrix”) varies from win-lose (zero/fixed sum) to win-win (positive/variable sum); most often a mix • Fisher et al.’s “BATNA” • BestAlternative To Negotiated Agreement

5. Mutual Adjustment -- Not Just Information Exchange • Complexity of interdependence • Anticipated reactions, direct and indirect effects • Negotiators should expect a moving target • Problem solving: Specify elements, examine components, search for solution • Some dilemmas • Honesty: how much truth to share? • Trust: how much to believe? • Are you treated fairly? Outcomes and Process • Satisfaction depends equally(?) on both

6. Interdependence and Perceptions • Knowing the nature of interdependence • Critical negotiating skill. We often turn win-win situations into lose-lose outcomes. • “Consider the orange” (M.P. Follett) • Prisoner’s dilemma with two types of prisoners -- both assumptions reinforced • Mythical fixed pie bias (2:1 ratio) • Alert! Various systematic biases

7. Conflict • Ensured by interdependence with at least partly divergent goals • Definitions: Battle, disagreement, or perceived divergence of interest • Levels: intra/inter - personal/group • Dysfunctional aspects (destructive) • Functional aspects (constructive)

8. Dysfunctions of Conflict • Competitive processes • Misperception and bias, incl. stereotyping • Emotionality and irrationality • Reduced quality and quantity of communications • Blurring of issues, new issues get “sucked into the vortex” • Rigid commitments, overly simplistic views • Magnified differences and minimized similarities • Escalation of the conflict

9. Functions of Conflict • Create awareness of underlying problems • Pressure for resolution and change • Stronger relations and higher morale through the conflict resolution process • Promotes awareness of self and others • Personal and psychological development • Stimulation

10. Conflict Is Most Difficult When... • Principles are at stake • The stakes are high • Fixed-sum (zero-sum) situation • Single transaction, not ongoing relationship • Perceived progress is unbalanced; one wants revenge and the other wants to retain control

11. Conflict Management:Dual Concerns Model (Compromising)

12. Conflict Management:Dual Concerns Model Issues • Role for compromise (“somewhere in between”) • Research issues • Personal styles and strategy preferences • How strategies affect conflict levels • Conditions where particular strategies are effective

13. Conflict: Approaches by Other Parties • Third-party Involvement: A respected neutral, common superior, or professional (e.g., professional mediator, arbitrator) • Conflict management systems • Examples: Courts, union-management grievance procedures, ombudsman, judicial commission, open-door policies, etc. • Note that these systems have their own rules, and constraintson the parties operating them