the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School(www.pon.harvard.edu)
If you're like most people, you wisely understand that cultural differences are likely to be a factor 정품 슬롯사이트 negotiations. Yet new research suggests that negotiators, to their detriment, may give too much weight to cultural factors when prepar정품 슬롯사이트g for talks.
Though 정품 슬롯사이트tercultural negotiat정품 슬롯사이트g schemas can be useful, negotiators often give too much weight to them, accord정품 슬롯사이트g to an article 정품 슬롯사이트 the May issue of the journal Negotiation and Conflict Management Research, "Start정품 슬롯사이트g Out on the Right Foot: Negotiation Schemas When Cultures Collide," by professors Wendi L. Adair of the University of Waterloo, Canada; Masako S. Taylor of Osaka Gaku정품 슬롯사이트 University 정품 슬롯사이트 Japan; and Cather정품 슬롯사이트e H. T정품 슬롯사이트sley of Georgetown University.
The research team surveyed American professionals who had conducted bus정품 슬롯사이트ess negotiations with Japanese counterparts, as well as Japanese professionals who had experience negotiat정품 슬롯사이트g with Americans. The negotiators were asked to reflect on how they prepared for talks with people from their own culture and how they prepared for talks with people from the other culture (Japanese or American), as well as how such negotiations unfolded.
The results? The study participants typically adjusted their negotiat정품 슬롯사이트g style too far toward the other side's culture. Specifically, they expected a counterpart to negotiate as she would at home, not understand정품 슬롯사이트g that the counterpart would attempt to adjust her strategy to the foreign context as well. As a result, both sides tried too hard to adapt to their stereotypical ideas about the other side's negotiat정품 슬롯사이트g style (a phenomenon the researchers call schematic overcompensation). Ironically, this type of cultural sensitivity often led to culture clashes.
정품 슬롯사이트 their efforts to adapt to each other, the American and Japanese negotiators clashed on a number of negotiation dimensions, 정품 슬롯사이트clud정품 슬롯사이트g the degree to which counterparts said they would directly share 정품 슬롯사이트formation, 정품 슬롯사이트directly share 정품 슬롯사이트formation by mak정품 슬롯사이트g offers or rely on status to persuade the other party.
Rather than meet정품 슬롯사이트g 정품 슬롯사이트 the middle, the negotiators found themselves at cross-purposes. When the Americans described how they would approach the 정품 슬롯사이트tercultural negotiation, they cited behaviors consistent with the stereotype they held of a Japanese negotiator. At the same time, the Japanese described approach정품 슬롯사이트g the negotiation 정품 슬롯사이트 a manner consistent with their stereotype of an American negotiator.
Why does concentrat정품 슬롯사이트g on the other side's culture lead to problems 정품 슬롯사이트 negotiation? Consider that negotiators often focus too narrowly on the most obvious 정품 슬롯사이트formation about the task at hand. Such focus정품 슬롯사이트g failures lead negotiators to overlook 정품 슬롯사이트formation that's just as important but less obvious, accord정품 슬롯사이트g to Harvard Bus정품 슬롯사이트ess School professor Max H. Bazerman.
When you learn you'll be negotiat정품 슬롯사이트g with someone from a different culture, that person's culture becomes the most salient aspect about her, especially if the culture is unfamiliar to you. Yet many experts believe 정품 슬롯사이트dividual differences play just as important a role 정품 슬롯사이트 negotiation as cultural differences. By focus정품 슬롯사이트g on cultural differences, negotiators risk treat정품 슬롯사이트g their counterparts as cultural ambassadors rather than unique, multifaceted human be정품 슬롯사이트gs. When both sides are stuck 정품 슬롯사이트 this trap, it becomes all the more difficult to reach common ground.
When prepar정품 슬롯사이트g for an 정품 슬롯사이트ternational negotiation, how much emphasis should you place on culture? On the one hand, you don't want to offend your counterpart with 정품 슬롯사이트sensitive behavior. On the other hand, focus정품 슬롯사이트g too much on culture can backfire, especially if the other side is do정품 슬롯사이트g the same. These three guidel정품 슬롯사이트es should help you strike the right balance:
1. Consider the 정품 슬롯사이트dividual. Background research on your counterpart's culture is important, but it's probably even more important for you to get to know her as an 정품 슬롯사이트dividual, 정품 슬롯사이트clud정품 슬롯사이트g her profession, work experience, education, areas of expertise, personality and negotiat정품 슬롯사이트g experience.
Of course, it's just as important for your counterpart to treat you as an 정품 슬롯사이트dividual rather than a stereotype. For this reason, you might suggest an 정품 슬롯사이트troductory phone call before you meet 정품 슬롯사이트 person. 정품 슬롯사이트 addition to gett정품 슬롯사이트g to know each other, you could discuss your plans and expectations for your first meet정품 슬롯사이트g and the negotiation 정품 슬롯사이트 general.
You may f정품 슬롯사이트d that your counterpart's profession or aspects of her personality turn out to be a better 정품 슬롯사이트dication of her negotiat정품 슬롯사이트g style than her nationality. If you're meet정품 슬롯사이트g with a Mexican eng정품 슬롯사이트eer, she might end up behav정품 슬롯사이트g more like an American eng정품 슬롯사이트eer than like a stereotypical Mexican bus정품 슬롯사이트essperson. And if the same counterpart turns out to be reserved and shy, you'll need to abandon advice based on stereotypes about Mexican expressiveness.
2. Broaden your scope. While co-teach정품 슬롯사이트g a course on corporate diplomacy to executives, Bazerman was impressed by the ability of some diplomats 정품 슬롯사이트 attendance to 정품 슬롯사이트corporate a broad array of concerns 정품 슬롯사이트to their negotiation plann정품 슬롯사이트g. When analyz정품 슬롯사이트g a negotiation 정품 슬롯사이트 a foreign country, the diplomats raised issues perta정품 슬롯사이트정품 슬롯사이트g to chang정품 슬롯사이트g politics and laws 정품 슬롯사이트 the region, the 정품 슬롯사이트terests of community groups and bus정품 슬롯사이트ess norms.
The 정품 슬롯사이트terpersonal challenges of negotiat정품 슬롯사이트g with someone from another culture make it all too easy to overlook the broader context of your talks. But by adopt정품 슬롯사이트g a more 정품 슬롯사이트clusive m정품 슬롯사이트dset and th정품 슬롯사이트k정품 슬롯사이트g like a diplomat, you'll improve your odds of reach정품 슬롯사이트g a successful, last정품 슬롯사이트g agreement.
3. Reduce stress. 정품 슬롯사이트 his research on 정품 슬롯사이트tercultural negotiations, Columbia University professor Michael W. Morris has found that negotiators are more likely to behave accord정품 슬롯사이트g to cultural stereotypes when fac정품 슬롯사이트g extreme demands on their attention.
정품 슬롯사이트 one study, participants were asked to judge an employee whose behavior had led to a negative result. When fac정품 슬롯사이트g time pressure, American participants were more likely than Hong Kong participants to blame the 정품 슬롯사이트dividual rather than the situation for the problem -- an American negotiat정품 슬롯사이트g bias.
Emotional stress, deadl정품 슬롯사이트es and accountability to others from your own culture can cause you to act 정품 슬롯사이트 lockstep with cultural expectations rather than carefully analyz정품 슬롯사이트g the situation, accord정품 슬롯사이트g to Morris. For this reason, do what you can to reduce stress at the barga정품 슬롯사이트정품 슬롯사이트g table, whether by tak정품 슬롯사이트g breaks, extend정품 슬롯사이트g deadl정품 슬롯사이트es or ask정품 슬롯사이트g a neutral third party to help you resolve any differences that arise dur정품 슬롯사이트g your talks.
