Emotional Currents in Negotiations: Integrating Theory and Insights for Practice

Abstract

Emotions play an important role in coordinating social interaction in general, and conflict and negotiation in particular. In the last decade, traditional research on the intrapersonal effects of emotions has been complemented by a growing focus on interpersonal effects. Emotions that a negotiator experiences and displays, as well as the emotions displayed by the other party are likely to influence the negotiation process and impact both financial and relational outcomes. In this symposium, we discuss and integrate three theoretical lenses on emotions in negotiations: emotions as social information, strategic emotions, and emotional resilience. We survey these perspectives and highlight empirically based implications for expression of negative emotions (e.g. anger) and positive emotions (e.g. happiness) in negotiations. The symposium is intended to generate a dialogue between academics and practitioners and inspire future collaborations that will further improve our understanding of emotional dynamics in negotiations. The session will include a 10-minute introduction, three 15-minute presentations, followed by a 30-minute generative discussion with participants about future directions.