LEADING THOUGHTS

It may disappoint you to read this but anger has a productive role in negotiations. Empirical studies (such as those by Sinaceur and Tiedens in 2006) have shown that expressing anger induces larger concessions when negotiating with another party. Angry negotiators are perceived to be tougher and to have higher “reservation prices” (higher standards for the worst deal they are willing to accept) than other negotiators. But these studies are all based on North American and Western European subjects. Is expressing anger in negotiations equally effective in other cultures?

Adam (INSEAD), Shirako (U of California, Berkeley), and Maddux (INSEAD) conducted the “first investigation of how the interpersonal effects of discrete emotions in negotiations vary across cultures,” according to their paper published in the journal Psychological Science.

They hypothesized that anger would elicit larger concessions from Western negotiators but smaller concessions from East Asian negotiators. They figured that anger is at odds with the East Asian emphasis on interdependence and social harmony and would therefore be perceived by East Asian negotiators as an inappropriate display.

The research backed them up. Adam et al conducted three studies using scenarios and computer simulations (none involving face-to-face interactions) and found consistent evidence that “anger not only may be less effective in East Asian cultural contexts, but may actually backfire and lead to worse outcomes.”

Culture, they say, has a significant impact not only on how people from different cultural backgrounds perceive certain behaviour but also how they actually react to that behaviour.

Hajo Adam, Aiwa Shirako, & William W. Maddux (2010). Cultural Variance in the Interpersonal Effects of Anger in Negotiations Psychological Science, 21 (6), 882-889 : 10.1177/0956797610370755

photo credit: Frederic Poirot

Hail the outsider, for she will bring inspiration. Or at least help her new team solve problems more effectively.

Researchers Katherine Phillips (Northwestern), Katie Liljenquist (Brigham Young), and Margaret Neale (Stanford) wanted to test whether or not a “socially distinct newcomer” to an existing team would have any effect on how the group solved problems.

They conducted a traditional group problem-solving experiment with a number of fraternities but with a twist: a newcomer from a rival fraternity was added to each group five minutes into their deliberations. The researchers found that when the newcomer was a social outsider, teams were more likely to solve the problem successfully.

Writing in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, the researchers conclude that a socially distinct newcomer shakes up group dynamics and causes discomfort but ultimately acts as a catalyst for better outcomes. In such situations, the group tends to analyze options more critically, even if the outsider does not ask tough questions.

Interestingly, while group members felt they worked less effectively together, in fact they outperformed the socially homogeneous groups.

The lesson: next time someone from another department joins your team with a different background or education, acknowledge that there may be tense and awkward moments but that the group will be better for it.

Is the Pain Worth the Gain? The Advantages and Liabilities of Agreeing With Socially Distinct Newcomers; Katherine W. Phillips, Northwestern University, Katie A. Liljenquist, Brigham Young University, Margaret A. Neale, Stanford University; Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin (Vol. 35, No. 3, 336-350, 2009)

photo credit: IsaDaGreat

You have seen the character on TV and you may have the displeasure of sitting alongside one or two of them at work. They are The Entitled, self-serving people who feel they are owed special treatment, even if they haven’t done anything to deserve it. Run for the hills: these characters are more likely to be the source of workplace conflict and less likely to be satisfied with their jobs.

Writing in the Journal of Organizational Behaviour, Paul Harvey (U of New Hampshire) and Mark Martinko (Florida State U) say their research shows that people who feel they deserve preferential treatment are more likely to be the first to take credit when things go well and to blame others when things go wrong.

The authors say that, true to the stereotype, young Gen Y workers are more likely than others to have a self-inflated view of their worth and have trouble listening to negative feedback. They expect a high level of respect and reward that is unrelated to their actual experience or performance, and therefore are bitter when they are not treated like royalty.

The way to deal with The Entitled is to document areas of responsibility and lines of reporting in order to remove as much ambiguity as possible. That way, employees with entitlement attitudes are less likely to form biased judgments.

An empirical examination of the role of attributions in psychological entitlement and its outcomes, Paul Harvey and Mark J. Martinko; Journal of Organizational Behavior (Vol. 30, Issue 4 , Pages 459 – 476)

Email me for a copy of this paper: Alan [at] AlanMorantz.com

photo credit: ChrisB in SEA

The average manager spends about 18 percent of her working day handling conflict, nearly double from the 1980s, making conflict resolution skills of prime importance. But you would never know that judging by the undergraduate curricula of university business schools.

In the Journal of Education for Business, Matthew Lang of Morgan State University reports on his study of 166 U.S. and European business schools. Among U.S. schools, only 44 of the 97 studied clearly identified conflict management as part of a business course, and of those only 18 had a course dedicated to the subject. Of the 69 non-U.S. schools studied, 14 identified dealing with conflict as part of an undergraduate course; only seven offered a required course.

Lang says universities should better equip the next generation of workers for the reality of organizational life. “Completion of a required conflict resolution course should result in better group and team performance, improving management effectiveness for graduates as they move into organizations abundant in conflict.”

Conflict Management: A Gap in Business Education Curricula, by Matthew Lang, Journal of Education for Business (March/April 2009)
Email me for a copy of this paper: Alan [at] AlanMorantz.com

photo credit: Ariston Collander Photography