Emotions as strategic information: Examining the direct and ripple effect of emotions in negotiations

Abstract

Emotions are inherent to negotiations and social conflicts. In this paper, we examine how emotion (positive and negative) affects value claiming in a dyadic negotiation. Using a simulated negotiation involving 282 participants, the study indicated that sellers demonstrating negative emotions claimed more values than positive sellers, and opponents' perceived power disadvantage mediated the effect of emotion expression on claiming value. Moreover, buyers in the happy dyads displayed higher evaluation of their relationship, even after controlling the economic outcome. This paper also indicated that, as emotion recipients, buyer's reactions exerted further influence on the outcomes; specifically, when buyers meet happy counterparts, their negative emotion reactions were positively related to their gains, while the relationship was reverse in the unhappy dyads, supporting the mismatching or strategic choice perspective. Finally, buyers with low agreeableness were more likely to display negative emotion reactions, indicating that agreeableness is a liability when confronted tough opponents. These findings qualify previous research on emotion in negotiation and shed some light on the influence of emotion recipients' reactions. Implications for the understanding of emotion and negotiation are discussed.