Emergent Negotiations: Stability and Shifts in Negotiation Dynamics

Abstract

Negotiation is a dynamic process in which negotiators change their strategies in response to each other. We believe mutual adaptation is best conceptualized as an emergent process and is a critical determinant of negotiators’ abilities to identify mutually beneficial solutions. We argue that three factors drive the process of negotiation and influence the quality of agreements: alignment of negotiators’ strategies across individuals (strategy sequences), alignment of negotiators’ strategies with the negotiation‐wide dynamic (phases), and congruence of negotiators’ goals.

Talking heads : interviewing suspects from a cultural perspective

“…Consequently, it is crucial to identify interview skills that appeal to suspects in order to establish and maintain cooperation (Bull & Soukara, in press). Previous research on social interactions has identified strategic sequences as an effective means of influencing a person's cooperation (e.g., Brodt & Tuchinsky, 2000;Olekalns & Smith, 2000Olekalns & Weingart, 2008;Pietroni et al, 2008). However, how influential these behaviours are is dependent on the context in which they are presented (Hilty & Carnevale, 1993).…”

“…This requires a great deal of flexibility on the part of the police officer (Bull & Soukara, in press) and illustrates that a combination of skills seems to be required for the effective interviewing of suspects (Vrij et al, 2006). Although research in related areas has already discovered the powerful potential of combined behaviours in social interaction (Carnevale & Pruitt, 1992;Hilty & Carnevale, 1993;Olekalns & Smith, 2000Olekalns & Weingart, 2008;Pruitt, 1981;Rafaeli & Sutton, 1991;Rubin & Brown, 1975), the literature on strategic sequences in police interviews is virtually nonexistent.…”

“…These behaviours are likely to co-exist in police interviews (Bull & Soukara, in press), but their joint impact has, as far as we know, never been examined. Moreover, there is growing research evidence that social interactions are most effective when (two) behaviours are combined rather than used separately (Carnevale & Pruitt, 1992;Hilty & Carnevale, 1993;Olekalns & Smith, 2000Olekalns & Weingart, 2008;Pruitt, 1981;Rafaeli & Sutton, 1991;Rubin & Brown, 1975;Van de Vliert, Nauta, Giebels, & Janssen, 1999). Therefore, we examine the impact of being kind and rational arguments when combined into strategic sequences.…”

“…Despite this recognition, research until now has focused on the use and effectiveness of single interview skills (Beune, Giebels, & Sanders, in press; Bull & Soukara, in press), rather than some sort of combination. This seems a missed opportunity since there is growing evidence that social interactions are most effective when (two) behaviours are combined rather than using one behaviour exclusively (Carnevale & Pruitt, 1992;Hilty & Carnevale, 1993;Olekalns & Smith, 2000Olekalns & Weingart, 2008;Pruitt, 1981;Rafaeli & Sutton, 1991;Rubin & Brown, 1975). For instance, the combined communication of two distinct emotions (happiness and anger) by negotiators has been found to increase integrative, cooperative behaviour of their opponent (Pietroni, Van Kleef, De Dreu, & Pagliaro, 2008).…”

“…Moreover, police officers might want to strategically adjust their behaviour over time based on the information content obtained from suspects (cf. Milne & Bull, 1999;Olekalns & Weingart, 2008). This requires a great deal of flexibility on the part of the police officer (Bull & Soukara, in press) and illustrates that a combination of skills seems to be required for the effective interviewing of suspects (Vrij et al, 2006).…”