„‚ CONDITIONS THAT HINDER EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

The most important tactic is to view impasses as normal and legitimate means of
testing the arguments and the proposals of the opposing parties. This provides a stimulus
for exploring other possibilities; it confronts both parties with the consequence of a
permanent deadlock. In this way, an impasse becomes a constructive event that compels
both sides to look for alternatives.
6. Negotiate with your own side. One’s relationship with the people whom one
represents is also a negotiating relationship. This can be kept open by the
following means:
■ Working to prevent a strict mandate that, in effect, allows no room for
negotiation;
■ Moderating demands by providing information about what is attainable;
■ Keeping people with unrealistic expectations outside the actual negotiations
(for example, by keeping the negotiating team small or by assigning the team
members to subcommittees); and
■ Using one’s personal power to “sell” the settlements.
7. Be aware of your own behaviors. It is always a good idea to assess one’s own
style and to develop those areas or capabilities in which one is not strong. Score
yourself on the dimensions of negotiating behavior. In what ranges do you
usually operate? What do you tend to do under pressure? How do you think your
opponents would score you?
8. Remember that negotiation always involves dilemmas. All negotiators wonder
whether they have been too stubborn or too lenient, too open or too closed, too
friendly or too irritable, and so forth. Most negotiators learn to live with these
feelings. Many of them like their role because they have found ways to stay
relaxed and in contact with their own feelings and simultaneously alert and
competitive.
REFERENCES
Blake, R., & Mouton, J. (1969). Building a dynamic corporation through Grid organizational development.
Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
Horney, K. (1945). Our inner conflicts: A constructive theory of neurosis. New York: W.W. Norton.
Mastenbroek, W.F.G. (1980). Negotiating: A conceptual model. Group & Organization Studies, 5(3), 324-340.
Pruitt, D.G., & Lewis, S.A. (1977). The psychology of integrative bargaining. In D. Druckman (Ed.), Negotiations:
Social psychological perspectives. London: Sage.
Schutz, W.C. (1966). The interpersonal underworld (Original title: FIRO: A three dimensional theory of
interpersonal behavior). Palo Alto, CA: Science & Behavior Books.
Thomas, K.W., & Kilmann, R.H. (1974). Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument. Tuxedo, NY: XICOM.
Zaleznik, A., & Kets de Vries, M.F.R. (1975). Power and the corporate mind. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.
The Pfeiffer Library Volume 6, 2nd Edition. Copyright ©1998 Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer ❚❘ 339