The Influence of Weight Bias on Processes and Outcomes in Negotiation.

In two studies, using a mix of samples, we examined the influence of weight bias on behaviors in competitive, potentially high stakes situations. As predicted, weight bias directed focal actors' treatment of counterparts in a negotiation. Negotiators made lower value offers to overweight counterparts relative to average-weight counterparts. In addition, overweight counterparts also received more negative messages over the course of their negotiation and were evaluated less favorably after the negotiation than average-weight counterparts.

When Less Is More: How Complexity Impacts Goal Setting, Judgment Accuracy, and Deals in Negotiation.

In two studies, we examine how objective complexity-in terms of numbers of negotiable issues-affects negotiators' aspirations, perceptions, actions, and ultimately, the quality of agreements they reach. We hypothesized and found that when negotiators had a greater number of issues to resolve, they were less ambitious for their own outcomes and developed less accurate insights into their partners' interests.

Influence of third party expertise on disputants' reactions to mediation.

When people cannot resolve their conflicts, they often turn to a third party, called a mediator, for help. What guides disputants' choice of mediators is the present focus. Two kinds of mediator's expertise were compared, which might affect disputants' judgment of mediators and their recommendations--process expertise and content expertise. The mediator's particular content expertise about the details of the dispute appeared to be irrelevant if the mediator was considered to be an expert in the process of conflict resolution. When mediators were seen as process experts, disputants viewed them as more credible and were more favorably disposed toward engaging their services. These judgments extended to the mediators' recommendations. Those recommendations offered by process expert mediators were viewed as higher quality and were judged more favorably. When the mediator was perceived as lacking process expertise, disputants' perceptions of how well the mediator understood the particular details of the dispute increased their evaluations of the mediator and the mediator's recommendation.

Negotiators' bargaining histories and their effects on future negotiation performance.

In 2 studies the authors show that the quality of deals negotiators reach are significantly influenced by their previous bargaining experiences. As predicted, negotiators who reached an impasse on a prior negotiation were more likely either to impasse in their next negotiation or to reach deals of low joint value compared to those who had reached an initial agreement. Notably, the impact of past performance on subsequent deals was just as strong for negotiators who changed partners on the 2nd occasion. Results highlight the role of bargaining histories as significant predictors of negotiation behavior. Moreover, they suggest that, at least in some cases, negotiations should be conceptualized as interrelated exchanges rather than separable incidents.