Power, Persuasion,

and
Ethics
 Never underestimate the power of BATNA!!!

• Good BATNAs can:

– Make reaching settlement easier
– Help negotiators reach favorable terms

• Strategies:
– Keep your options open
– Signal your BATNA, but do not reveal it
– Assess the other party’s BATNA
– Develop your own BATNA
 Consider:
• How did power of BATNA affect your
position in Strategic Alliances?
– Team A vs. B
– Team A vs. C
– Team B vs. C
 Power
• Potential power
• Perceived power
• Power tactics
• Realized power
Tapping into Power in Negotiation
• Information
(BATNA, positions, underlying interests, priorities, arguments and reasoning behind them,
key facts)
• Keep your focus
• Analyze patterns and identify opportunities
• Status
• Primary status characteristics
• Secondary status (pseudostatus) characteristics
• Social networks
• Social capital (access to “important” others)
• Boundary spanners (bridging networks)
• Physical appearance
 Effects of Power in Negotiation
• Those with less power:
– More precise and scrutinizing
– More insecure
– More self-monitoring

• Those with more power:

– Oblivious to others
– Pay less attention, are less self-monitoring,
gather less information and are less vigilant
 Persuasion Tactics
• Either you have power or you will need to
persuade.

• Persuasion is based on:

– Central: Rational, analytical, logical, facts, etc.
– Peripheral: Emotional liking, prestige,
credibility, emotional involvement, etc…
 Central Route Persuasion Tactics
is direct, mindful and information-based ideal for
analytical counterparts
• The power of agenda package issues & be involved in setting it
• The power of alternatives helps you bargain & helps you find info
• The power of options many choices are better than one
• Attitudinal structuring WoW! Really? But so and so….
• The power of contrast $100,000, $102,000 ! $110,000 isn’t so bad is it?
• Commitment and consistency get/beware of initial commitment…
• Framing effects half full half empty
• Fairness heuristics I want to be fair….
• Time pressure can be a disadvantage/ create an advantage
 Peripheral Route Persuasion Tactics
Attempts to change opponent behavior through innate inherent need to be
liked, approved of, respected by others.
• Delayed liking grow to like them…make them earn it
• To err is human show you too make mistakes! less suspicion, endearing !
lowers guard

• Unconscious priming effect of previous thoughts/exposure on current

perception

• Reinforcement nods, smiles, eye contact to manipulate behavior

• Social proof principle look to social standards to get confirmation & buy in
• Reactance technique take opponents’ impression of freedom away by
labeling their actions

• Foot-in-the-door technique get yes on a little issue and then bring out
the big gun

• Door-in-the-face technique (“rejection-then-retreat”)

start by seeking a huge or outlandish concession and then ask for what you originally
wanted

• That’s-not-all-technique (“sweetening the deal”) add

little freebies
 Science of Persuasion
Implications for Contingencies in Negotiation

Dr. Robert Cialdini

Professor Emeritus of Psychology and
Marketing, Arizona State University
 Network Theory

Degrees-- the number of direct connections a node has. Diane has the most direct connections in the
network, the most active node, 'hub'

"the more connections, the better." vs. where those connections lead-- and how they connect the
otherwise unconnected!

Betweenness
Heather has few direct connections -- 'broker' role” = power & single point of failure.

Closeness
Fernando and Garth have fewer connections than Diane, but have shortest paths to all others -- they are
close to everyone else. They monitor the information flow in the network. They are boundary spanners
connecting their group to other clusters in the network.

Network Centralization
Centralized network is dominated by one or a few very central nodes. If these nodes are removed or
damaged, the network quickly fragments into unconnected sub-networks.
 Ethical Negotiation:
Questionable Strategies

• Lying
• Traditional competitive bargaining
• Manipulation of opponent’s network
• Reneging on negotiated agreements
• Retracting an offer
• Nickel-and-diming “just one more thing…”
Figure 7-1: Conditions under which Negotiators Say They
Would Engage in Deception (i.e., Lying) in Negotiations
Review of Categories (Left to Right on
X-Axis):
• Lie-for-a-lie: When I suspect the other
party is deceiving me
• One shot: In a one-shot situation, with
no potential for a long-term relationship
• Personal gain: If there was a gain to be
had
• Not getting caught: If I felt I could get
away with it
• Life or death: If the situation was “life or
death”
• Low power: If the other party had more
power (i.e., to “level the playing field”)
• Protecting reputation: When I would
not have to worry about my reputation
• Dislike: If I did not like the other person
• Fixed pie: If the situation was purely
distributive
 Psychological Bias and
Unethical Behavior

• Human biases
• Illusion of superiority
• Illusion of control
• Overconfidence
• Calibrating ethical behavior
• The front page test
• Reverse golden rule
• Role modeling
• Third-party advice
• Strengthening your bargaining position