Abstract
Past research has indicated that rapport helps negotiators overcome interpersonal friction and find cooperative agreements. Study 1 explored differences in the behavioral dynamics evoked by e-mail versus face-to-face negotiation. Although some behavioral content categories differed in ways pointing to strengths of e-mail, the strongest pattern was that e-mail inhibited the process of exchanging personal information through which negotiators establish rapport. The authors hypothesized that the liabilities of e-mail might be minimized by a pre-negotiation intervention of social lubrication. To test this in Study 2, half of dyads had a brief personal telephone conversation ("schmoozed") before commencing e-mail negotiations, and half did not. Schmoozers felt more rapport, their plans were more trusting (although no less ambitious), and their economic and social outcomes were better.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 89-100 |
Number of pages | 12 |
Journal | Group Dynamics |
Volume | 6 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 2002 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Social Psychology
- Applied Psychology