Central European Business Review 2018, 7(2):21-43 | DOI: 10.18267/j.cebr.197

Navigating Ambiguity: Distributive and Integrative Negotiation Tactics in China

Petra Y. Barthelmess1, Patricia Enzmann2, Michael Settelen3, Nicolas Schärmeli4
1 Department International Business, Zurich University of Applied Sciences, School of Management and Law, petra.barthelmess@zhaw.ch
2 Department International Business, Zurich University of Applied Sciences, School of Management and Law, patricia.enzmann@zhaw.ch
3 Department International Business, Zurich University of Applied Sciences, School of Management and Law, michael.settelen@zhaw.ch
4 Zurich University of Applied Sciences, School of Management and Law, Zurich, Switzerland, schaeni1@students.zhaw.ch

People usually view negotiations as either an integrative process in which both sides can gain (win-win) or a distributive struggle in which one side wins and the other loses (win-lose). Culture affects how people conduct negotiations, and the Chinese people can rely on a long civilizational tradition of both – highly refined integrative as well as smart and ruthless distributive negotiation styles. The coexistence of both styles may lead to ambiguous negotiation situations. The purpose of this study is to explore whether the relationship relevance influences the Chinese people’s choice of negotiation style. We investigated the research question by conducting ten in-depth interviews among European executives with long-term experience in China and analyzed the content of the transcripts by deductively building qualitative categories. The findings indicate that high relationship relevance influences the Chinese negotiation style towards a more collaborative integrative approach. By focusing on the relationship aspect of negotiations, we aim to contribute towards better understanding in an under researched field of relationship’s impact on negotiation.

Keywords: Integrative bargaining; distributive bargaining; negotiation tactics; Chinese negotiation; Chinese negotiation principles
JEL classification: F23, F51, Z1

Received: March 15, 2018; Revised: June 29, 2018; Accepted: September 9, 2018; Published: July 1, 2018  Show citation

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Barthelmess, P.Y., Enzmann, P., Settelen, M., & Schärmeli, N. (2018). Navigating Ambiguity: Distributive and Integrative Negotiation Tactics in China. Central European Business Review, 7(2), 21-43. doi: 10.18267/j.cebr.197
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