Etude descriptive et expérimentale des comportements de flexibilité dans des négociations sociales
Institution:
Paris 5Disciplines:
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Abstract EN:
The earlier studies of the negotiation process demonstrated that negotiators' flexible behaviors are necessary in order to reach integrative agreements which give satisfaction to the negotiated parties involved. However, the mixed nature of the negotiation process (integrative and distributive strategies and tactics) hinders the appearance of the afore mentioned types of behavior, especially in conflictual negotiations such as labormanagement ones. Our study seeks to explore the initiating conditions of flexible behaviors in labor negotiations. In order to obtain complete information about the initiating conditions of flexibility we used a double methodology. A content analysis of real negotiation meetings happened in france allowed us to describe the dynamics of flexible and distributive behaviors, dynamics being defined as the description of the more frequent immediate antecedents and consequences of specific behaviors. Results from this analysis offered a plethora of details concerning initiating conditions of flexible behaviors enabling us to distinguish behaviors which are very instrumental for negotiators and mediators in order to introduce a more integrative climate in conflictual labor negotiations. After the description of the initiating conditions of flexibility in labor negotiation and in order to explore the mechanisms explaining flexibility appearance in negotiation, we studied the effects of negotiation planning (individual vs bilateral), strategic orientation (distributive vs problem solving) and batna (existence vs non-existence of an alternative to negotiated agreement) on the relative frequency of flexible behaviors. 160 male and female undergraduated commercial school students participated in a simulation of a bilateral labor negotiation. Results show that the three variables have a significant effect on the relative frequency of flexible behaviors. The significant effect of the interaction between the three variables on flexible behaviors demonstrates the necessity of the simultaneous experimental study of several variables affecting behaviors in negotiation. Theoretical and empirical implications of these results are discussed.
Abstract FR:
Dans notre travail nous avons souhaite etudier le processus comportemental de la negociation. Inspiree par la distinction entre les processus integratifs et distributifs nous nous interessons a l'etude des tactique integratives specifiques : les tactiques de flexibilite. Afin d'acquerir une large connaissance des conditions d'instauration de la flexibilite dans la negociation nous avons utilise une double methodologie de recherche. Dans un premier temps les conditions d'instauration des comportements flexibles ont ete etudiees au niveau descriptif a travers l'analyse du contenu de negociations sociales reelles. Partant du concept de dynamiques comportementales nous avons decrit les comportements antecedents et consequents (dynamique interne) des tactiques flexibles comme ils se presentent au sein des negociations sociales reelles. Afin d'elucider l'articulation entre ces deux types de processus nous avons compare la dynamique interne de la flexibilite a celle de la distributivite. Cette comparaison a mis en evidence une relation d'interdependance entre les deux types de processus. A la suite de l'etude descriptive, nous avons etudie les mecanismes explicatifs de l'apparition des comportements flexibles par le biais de la methode experimentale. Nous avons effectue une etude experimentale au sein de laquelle nous avons manipule simultanement trois variables ayant un impact important sur l'apparition des concessions et d'autres comportements flexibles. Les resultats de cette etude mettent en evidence que toutes les trois variables etudiees influencent significativement l'apparition des comportements flexibles. Les effets d'interaction entre ces variables traduisent la complexite du processus de la negociation et soulignent la necessite de l'etude simultanee de plusieurs facteurs affectant les comportements des negociateurs. Les implications et les orientations que les resultats des etudes descriptive et experimentale peuvent donner au developpement de la recherche sur la negociation sont discutees.