DIP 730
Cross Cultural Negotiation and Bargaining
Spring 1999
 

Professor John D. Stempel

Office:  Patterson Office Tower, Room 461
Telephone:  257-4666;  e-mail: stempel@pop.uky.edu
Class Time:  Wednesday 2:00 p.m. to 4:40 p.m.
Classroom:  Room 145,  Patterson Office Tower
 

COURSE OVERVIEW:  This multidisciplinary graduate-level course explores negotiation and bargaining from the individual to the international level, including both public and private sector examples.  It contains a special emphasis on cross cultural elements which affect both the perception as well as the process of negotiation at all levels.  The course covers the context of negotiation, proceeds to the structure of negotiations and thence to the dynamics--strategy and tactics--for persuading, coercing, and bargaining through to conclusion.  Group and national differences and approaches will be highlighted and demonstrated using intra-cultural negotiating exercises.  The context and importance of negotiations in several cultures (including different religious contexts) will be explored, and case studies from different cultures and cultural contexts will be examined.  Material will be drawn from Political Science, Communications, Sociology, Anthropology, History, Conflict Resolution, Law, and other disciplines as appropriate.  Multilateral and commercial (private sector) negotiation in a cross cultural context will be explored.  Exercises and case studies involving different cultural contexts will be undertaken.  Material will be drawn from any relevant disciplines, and energetic, proactive student research will be required and rewarded.

EXAMINATIONS AND GRADING:  Assuming an interest in--but not a terminal neurotic preoccupation with--grades, the following activities constitute the evaluation system:

There will be a 60-minute midterm on FEBRUARY 17, which will cover material through that date, and a 60-minute exam at the final class session on APRIL 29 which will cover readings since the midterm.  These and all other graded exercises are listed below:

Activity   Weight   date due/to be taken

Midterm Exam  20 per cent    March 10
case reports   10 per cent each, oral and written/March 3
Trial negotiation  30 per cent    April 22 (report due)
class participation 10 per cent (total)  every session
Final Test   20 per cent    April 29

The instructor reserves the right to factor for improvement over time.  In simple terms:  you will never do worse than figuring your score by the above percentages; if you improve consistently over the time line of the course, you may do better.  Letter grades--A,B,C,D,F will be given for all exercises.
ATTENDANCE:  This is a graduate course and participation is marked.  All credit-earning members of the class should be present for all class meetings, and be reasonably flexible to participate in activities outside of class associated with the trial negotiation.  Just as in business, government or politics, occasionally a scheduled appointment must be missed.  In case of such an emergency, a phone/ voice or e-mail notification, note under my door or some other communication should precede any absence.  You will be responsible for all material missed.  Makeup exams and exercises will be permitted ONLY  in the case of excused absences.

SUBJECTS OF STUDY:  A topical syllabus follows the list of required texts.  Students are expected to do the class readings assigned for each week before the class period.  A list of texts is included below.   Other readings are available in two special boxes in the Vandenbosch Room of the Patterson School, Rm. 420 P.O.T.; and/or are also available on two-hour reserve (see list attached at end of syllabus).  HOWEVER, STUDENTS ARE ALSO URGED TO DO THEIR OWN RESEARCH READING WHEREVER THEY FIND RELEVANT MATERIALS.  Some good sources can be found on the three-day reserve list appended at the end of the syllabus. Other materials may be handed out during the semester.

CASE REPORTS:   By the second week of the course, each student will select a case study of a negotiation to work with through the next month.  By the third week in the semester, you should be able to comment on your case with respect to issues arising in class. Oral reports on the cases and individual written 4-page reports on negotiation case situations will be due on March 3.  These will be discussed further at the opening seminar.  A penalty of 1/3 of a grade for each day late will be assessed unless permission is obtained beforehand--and this is not easily  obtained!   You are expected to allow and plan for last-minute emergencies.

CLASS PRESENTATIONS: Each member of the class will be assigned a presentation, either individually or in tandem, with one week’s notice, based on material suggested/provided by the instructor.  This is to give added dimension to each class, while developing your expertise at fast turn-around work. These will count under class participation.

TRIAL NEGOTIATION:  Each person will be assigned to a negotiating team for a practice negotiation when the case reports are given (March 3).  Short initial oral progress reports of trial negotiations will be made in class by each pair of negotiating teams on April 7, and the longer, final report in class on April 2.    Timing, context and duration of these reports will be set forth in the information sheet for the negotiating exercise.

SOURCE/TEXT BOOKS:  (available at book stores)

Jacob Bercovitch, Resolving International Conflicts, Lynne Rienner, 1996  (referred to below as RESOLVE)

Raymond Cohen, Negotiating Across Cultures: Communications Obstacles,  Institute of Peace, 1991 (referred to below as Cohen)
Roger Fisher, et al., Coping with International Conflict: A systematic Approach   to  Influence in International negotiation, Prentice-Hall, 1997, (referred  to below as COPING)

Roger Fisher, Getting to YES: Negotiating Without Giving In, Penguin books,  1987 (referred to below as YES)

Kishore Mahbubani, Can Asians Think?, Times Books Intnl, 1998 (referred to  below as ASIANS)

Aviel Muldoon & Sullivan Reitano, Multilateral Diplomacy and the United  Nations Today, Westview Press, 1999 (referred to below as  MULTILATERAL)

David A. Ricks, Blunders in International Business, Blackwell Business, 1993  (referred to below as BLUNDERS)

 In addition, you are expected to keep up with relevant current events by reading the appropriate sections of at least one daily newspaper and one weekly newsmagazine, such as the Economist, Newsweek, or Time.

 A King Library reserve reading list is appended to this syllabus: non-book items listed may also be found in the Van Room Boxes, Patterson Office Tower Rm. 420.
 

TOPICS AND READINGS:

NEGOTIATING AND BARGAINING

Jan. 13 Negotiation and Bargaining

 ASIANS, pp. 16-36
 YES, intro, ch. 1
 RESOLVE, intro, ch. 1
 COPING, ch. 1
 MULTILATERAL, pp. 15-34, 102-110

Jan. 20 Negotiation Processes

 ASIANS, pp. 37-80
 YES, chs 2-4
 COPING, chs 4-6
 RESOLVE, chs. 2-3
 

Jan. 27 Bases of Negotiating

 COPING, chs 8-10
 YES, ch. 5
 CHAOS, chs 13-15
 

Feb. 3 Cultural Aspects of Negotiation

 Cohen, forward, chs 1-5
 MULTILATERAL, pp. 35-43
 RESOLVE, ch. 5
 John Stempel, “Cross Cultural Competence,” (handout)

Feb. 10 Blending Cultural Aspects and Negotiational Reality

 COPING, chs 11,13,14
 Cohen, chs 6-10
 Jean Bonthous, "Understanding Intelligence Across Cultures," International    Journal of Intelligence and Counterintelligence, Fall 1994, pp 7-34
 RESOLVE, ch. 8
 

Feb. 17       MIDTERM:  NOTE: THERE WILL BE A 90-minute MIDTERM DURING      THIS CLASS   BRING BLUEBOOKS!!!!!!!!!!
 

Feb.  24 Negotiation and Diplomacy

 ASIANS, pp.  81-114
 COPING, chs 16 and 17
 MULTILATERAL, PP. 1-14, 44-53

March 3 Negotiating Types and Styles  (case report due & trial negotiation
       teams assigned)

 RESOLVE, chs 7 and 10
 Roy Melbourne, “National Cultures and Foreign Affairs,” (handout)
 National Style selection--read on TWO countries from National Style excerpt in    box, or any country reading on the reserve list.

Mar. 10 Conflict Resolution
 
 ASIANS, pp. 115-137, 149-156
 COPING, ch. 15
 RESOLVE, ch. 9, 11
 Michael Desch, “Culture, Schmulture?” (in box)
 

***************Week of March 16-20: MIDTERM BREAK*****************
 

Mar. 24 Multilateral and Coalition  Negotiations
 

 MULTILATERAL, pp. 80-86, 112-135, 202-209, 234-244
 Mingst and Warkentin, “What Difference Does Culture Make in Multilateral    Negotiations?  in Global Governance 2 (1996, (copies in box)
 Gary Goodpaster, "Coalitions and Representative Bargaining, " The Ohio
  State Journal of Dispute Resolution, vol. 9, 1994, pp. 243-274 (in box)

March 31 Commercial and Other Private Sector Negotiation Variants

 BLUNDERS, chs 1, 7, 8 and 9
 MAC, Spheres of Culture (in boxes)
 Stephen Robbins, "Organizational Behavior in a Global Context," book     chapter, copies in boxes

April 7 Commercial/ Business II

 BLUNDERS, chs 3,4,6,8
 MULTILATERAL, PP. 87-101
 MAC, Culture and Organization (in boxes)
 

Apr. 14 Special Issues in Negotiation

 ASIANS, pp. 157-192
 MULTILATERAL, pp. 54-78
 George Weigel, "War , Peace and the Christian Conscience," In Weigel,     Just War and the Gulf War,  (copies in boxes),
 Optional: Just Peacemaking: Foundations and Doctrines, items from     theologians conference, (in box)
 

April 21 Trial Negotiation Presentations

 (no assigned reading)

April 29 Concluding Discussion:  Negotiation--the Answer? (also critique of trial   negotiations

 MULTILATERAL, pp. 190-200, 156-176

(REMEMBER: 60-minute “exam” in this, the last class!)