Page 286 - DMGT519_Conflict Management and Negotiation Skills

Conflict Management and Negotiation Skills

Notes The findings have identified that when people do not want to meet, company affairs or meetings
cannot be continued, and when there is a doubt of personal misconduct, there is a clear signal of
distrust. Thus, distrust leads to steps taken to reduce our vulnerability in an attempt to protect
our interests, such as winding up of a company. In a negotiation, certain procedural facilities and
steps should be considered and taken beforehand to disallow the conflict to escalate into a
matter that can only be resolved by arbitration or litigation. These cases lay a foundation for
managing relationships in formulating a negotiating procedure by identifying the sources of
distrust to enable a more effective negotiation.

13.14 Trust Negotiation

Trust Negotiation is an approach to gradually establishing trust between strangers online through
the iterative exchange of digital credentials. In contrast to a closed system, where the interacting
entities have a preexisting relationship (often proved by typing a username and password),
trust negotiation is an open system, and complete strangers can build trust in one another. This
is done by disclosing digital credentials.
Digital credentials are the computer analog to paper credentials, such as a driver’s license, credit
card, or student ID. Rather than proving the credential owner’s identity, digital credentials
assert that their owner possesses certain attributes. A student might receive a credential from his
or her university that certifies that they are a student at that university. The student could then
use that credential, for example, to prove they are a student in order to qualify for a student
discount at an online bookstore. Credentials are digitally signed in order to allow third parties
to verify them.

13.15 Trust versus Distrust

As a mirror image of the dilemma of honesty, negotiators also face the dilemma of trust: how
much to trust what the other party tells them. Negotiators who believe everything the other
party tells them make themselves vulnerable to being taken advantage of by the other party. On
the other hand, negotiators who do not believe anything the other party tells them will have a
very difficult time reaching an agreement. As with the dilemma of honesty, we suggest that
negotiators remember that negotiation is a process that evolves over time. First, as we noted,
trust can be built by being honest and sharing information with the other side. Moreover, there
will be individual differences in trust. Some negotiators will start off by being more trusting,
but become less trusting if information comes to light showing that the other party “earn their
trust” and will be more skeptical early in negotiations. There is no right or wrong approach to
managing this dilemma. Strong negotiators are aware of this dilemma, however, and constantly
monitor how they are managing this challenge.
Remember the intangibles: It is important that negotiators remember the intangible factors
while negotiating and remain aware of their potential effects. There are two possible ways to
discover intangibles that might be affecting the other. One way to surface the other party’s
intangibles is to ask questions. These questions should try to get the other party to reveal why
he or she is sticking so strongly to a given point. It is important to remember that strong
emotions and/or values are the root of many intangibles, so surfacing intangibles may result in
the discussion of various fears and anxieties. The question-asking process should also be gentle
and informal; if the questioning is aggressive, it may only make the other defensive, adding
another intangible to the mix and stifling effective negotiations. A second way is to take an
observer or listener with you to the negotiation. Listeners may be able to read the other’s
emotional tone or non-verbal behaviour, focus on roadblock issues, or try to take the other’s
perspective and put themselves in the other’s shoes. A caucus with this listener may then help
refocus the discussion so as to surface the intangibles and develop a new line of questions or
offers. Negotiators also need to remember that intangible factors influence their own behaviour

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