{{B}}HOW NEGOTIATION-SPECIFIC EXPECTATIONS SHAPE THE
PROCESS{{/B}}
Different cultures will influence expectations as to
what the specific process and outcome will look like. The expectations revolve
around four key areas: Underlying View of the Process. People may view the
negotiation process as cooperative (win- win) or competitive (win-lose). Some
people will seek{{U}} {{U}} 1 {{/U}} {{/U}}advantage; others
won't Making assumptions about which view the other side will take can be
misleading and even dangerous. Approach to Building Agreement. US negotiators
often seek agreement on specifics first, building up toward an{{U}}
{{U}} 2 {{/U}} {{/U}}deal. Their Chinese counterparts often focus
first on what seems to many Americans to be a very general historical and
national frame for discussion. Then, as many French negotiators do, they seek
agreement on general principles, later working through the details. This
tendency also{{U}} {{U}} 3 {{/U}} {{/U}}itself in thought
processes: Many Chinese tend to reason about the whole while Westerners
often{{U}} {{U}} 4 {{/U}} {{/U}}by breaking the whole into parts
and reasoning incrementally. Form of Agreement. In many parts of East Asia,
negotiators are{{U}} {{U}} 5 {{/U}} {{/U}}with a fairly broad
agreement that focuses on general principles rather than detailed roles. By
contrast, North American and European executives often{{U}} {{U}}
6 {{/U}} {{/U}}on a detailed contract in which as many contingencies as
possible are foreseen. Implementation of Agreement. Is{{U}} {{U}}
7 {{/U}} {{/U}}to an agreement expected or contingent? US negotiators
generally expect to{{U}} {{U}} 8 {{/U}} {{/U}}with the letter of
the contract; treating renegotiation as a very unusual even aberrant event. In
many other cultures, an agreement is merely a starting point in what is expected
to be an evolving relationship; renegotiation may occur as warranted{{U}}
{{U}} 9 {{/U}} {{/U}}that all contingencies cannot possibly be
foreseen. The precise terms am expected to{{U}} {{U}} 10
{{/U}} {{/U}}as the process does.