International and Cross-Cultural Negotiation

Lewicki, Barry & Saunders (2007)

Factors that make International Negotiation Different

• Environmental context– Political and legal pluralism– International economics– Foreign governments and bureaucracies– Instability– Ideology– Culture– External Stakeholders

Factors that make International Negotiation Different

• Immediate Context– Relative bargaining power (not just investment)– Levels of conflict– Relationships between negotiators– Desired Outcomes– Immediate Stakeholders

Culture and Negotiation

• Cultural attribution error: tendency to overlook situational factors in favor of cultural explanations.

• Culture as shared values.

Dimensions of Cultures

• Hofstede studied 50 cultures and found four main dimensions to explain differences:– Individualism/collectivism– Power distance– Career success/Quality of life– Uncertainty avoidance

Culture as Dialectic

• Cultures contain dimensions or tensions called dialectics– Like relational dialectics

(autonomy/connectedness)– Suggests we treat cultures as complex rather

than monolithic

Ten Ways the Culture Can Influence Negotiation

• Definition of negotiation– Contract vs. relationship

• Negotiation opportunity– Distributive vs. Integrative

• Selection of negotiators– Experts vs. Trusted Associates

• Protocol– Informal vs. Formal

Ten Ways the Culture Can Influence Negotiation

• Communication– Direct vs. indirect

• Time Sensitivity– High vs. low

• Risk Propensity– High vs. low

• Groups vs. Individuals– Collectivism vs. individualism

Ten Ways the Culture Can Influence Negotiation

• Nature of agreements– Specific vs. general

• Emotionalism– High vs. low

Culturally Responsive Negotiation Strategies

• Negotiators should not make large modifications to their negotiation approach:– Often causes more problems than it solves. Research

suggests that moderate adaptation might be best.

• Rubin & Sander (1991) suggest that during preparation negotiators should assess:– Their own biases, strengths and weaknesses

– The other negotiator as an individual

– The other negotiators cultural context.