Nature and exchange of information in intercultural business negotiations

The influence of culture on international business negotiations is recognized by most of the specialists and researchers in the field. A more important question is to what extent and what are the consequences in agreement making. Personal values, beliefs, attitudes, behaviours and decisions too are largely influenced and determined by our own culture, but the level of its influence on the negotiation process is difficult to estimate. Negotiation is a specific form of communication in which the parties enter into deliberately, each with supposedly clear aims and goals as well as a mutual dependency on a decision that will be taken at the end of the confrontation. Communication will have a strong influence over the development of conflict, in particular the nature of the information used and the expectations in terms of feedback. Indeed, the information transmitted during the process includes unconscious signals and the underlying affects carried on will considerably influence it, particularly regarding the level and nature of the exchange. When confronted with difficulties, negotiators have a tendency to use pressure-tactics such as threats which will increase the level of conflict and reduce the chances of reaching an agreement. In an intercultural context the expectations of each party regarding information ( in particular the interpretation of what is a useful or relevant) may lead to multiple misunderstandings and so increase the level of conflict between the parties. Drawing on concepts from several disciplines, our intention in this paper is to clarify the aspects and elements of the causal relationship between the nature and exchange of information and conflict in intercultural negotiations in order to uncover new hypotheses for experimental research.

Negotiation ,

Culture ,

Information ,

Conflict ,

Threats ,

Competition ,

Cooperation ,