The Impact of Cultural Differences on the Negotiation Process between Western and Non—Western Nations

贺璐

【Abstract】Along with the development of economic globalization， business negotiation has become increasingly frequent. Miscommunication and misunderstanding are of common occurrence among negotiators with distinct cultures in the negotiation process.

The main purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of cultural differences on the negotiation process. In order to examine the impact of cultural differences on the negotiation process， it is highly important to select nations with completely different cultures. Therefore， in order to make the research more convincing and specific， this paper adopts China and Germany as one group of example， and Japan and America as another group of example. The impacts of culture on the negotiation are analyzed from several perspectives. The comparison between western and non-western nations will be highly useful to avoid the potential conflicts and achieve eventual negotiation success in the cross-cultural negotiation. This paper could also provide lessons for other nations that belong to the two types of cultures.

【Key words】 culture； difference； business； negotiation

1. The Impact of Cultural Differences on the Negotiation Process

Under the context of a highly integrated global market， the cross-cultural negotiations are of common occurrence. Cross-cultural negotiation is defined as the negotiation in which the negotiating parties are on behalf of different cultures with different thinking and behavioral pattern （Casse， 1981）. It is easy to predict that nations with divergent cultures may be confronted with a lot of miscommunications during the negotiation process， which may result in a series of consequences. In order to reach a success of international business activities， it is essential to take more concern about the impacts of cultural differences on negotiation process.

Germany and China can be selected as typical examples for investigating the effects of cultural different on the negotiation process because Germany is a typical example of low-context culture and China represents the high-context culture （Copeland & Griggs， 1985）. The divergence in culture and the highly frequent business negotiation between China and Germany could demonstrate the influence of cultural differences on the negotiation process more clearly. Likewise， the cultural value differences between America and Japan have demonstrated from various perspectives， such as the attitudes towards time， the communication styles， the views of the hierarchy and the negotiation goals （Training Management Cooperation， 1992）. The intimate economic relationship and divergent cultures between Japan and America will further prove the impacts of cultures on the negotiation. The comparison between the two groups of examples will enable more people from different nations to have a comprehensive understanding of the effect of cultures on negotiation and finally help to avoid the business conflict during negotiation process.

2 The comparison between western and non-western nations

2.1 Different negotiation goals

2.1.1 China vs. Germany

The goal of negotiation varies among cultures. Chinese society remains the relationship-oriented culture （Redding & Wong， 1986）. On the contrary， Germany belongs to task-oriented culture （Browne， 2012）. As a result， Chinese negotiators take more concerns about building friendly relationship during negotiations， while German negotiators focus on the accomplishment of the task and final results that could be assessed by objective standards.

In fact， Chinese negotiators are fundamentally characterized by their sustained efforts to identity the members who are sympathetic to their causes from the other negotiating parties， to establish a sense of friendship and obligation， and then to influence their business negotiating counterparts by controlling the friendship and obligation that have just established （Solomon， 1985）. In this regarding， it is easy to understand why building a long-term relationship has a priority to the accomplishment of the task for Chinese negotiators. Compared to Chinese negotiation strategies， Campbell， Gramham， Jolibert and Meissner （1988） hold that German negotiators take effort to keep their personal distance during negotiation because they believe personal relationships may intervene with the business.

2.1.2 Japan vs. America

The negotiation goals are also influenced by cultures. Some nations claim that the negotiation goal is to sign the contract， while some other nations believe the goal is to establish a long-term business relationship. Nations influenced by long term orientation culture may attach more importance to the preparation for the future， while nations impacted by short term orientation culture may show more respect for the achievement of the task.

Actually， in Japan and some other nations in East Asia， the long-term orientation cultures not only reflect in the relationship among organizations but also show in the preference to long-term attitudes （Ryu & Moon， 2009）. The personal and business relationship in long-term orientation cultures are maintained and strengthened by the sustained and long-term connections. For instance， Japanese negotiators are inclined to establish long-term relationship with negotiating parties. They show more patience in building friendship so as to achieve further success in the future.

In contrast， the United States and some other western countries， which gain a much lower score on the long term orientation index， are on behalf of low-term orientation culture. American business puts more emphasis on the immediate gains （Googins， 2002）. During the negotiation process with American negotiators， the interaction is not viewed as an approach to establish relationship. Time is more valued by American negotiators， which is consistent with Franklins famous saying ‘Time is money.

2.2 Different communication styles

2.2.1 China vs. Germany

Negotiators with divergent cultural background have different communication styles. Germany is a typical example of low-context culture while China belongs to the high-context culture. High context communication shows that a very small proportion of message is exchanged in an explicit approach， and low context communication refers to that most of the information is explicitly transmitted （Hall， 1976）. In high context culture such as China， much information is exchanged through nonverbal approaches during the negotiation. The body gesture， the facial expression， the tone and intonation could all be seen as a form of communication. In contrast， influenced by the low context culture， German negotiators are claimed to adopt direct and rational negotiating style （Salacuse， 1998）. Therefore， German negotiators are more likely to point out the disputable issue directly and precisely during the negotiation process.

Furthermore， Chinese negotiators may probably not demonstrate their preferences and dislikes， even when they intend to decline some offer， they may not choose direct and explicit approaches with the intention of keeping a harmonious negotiation environment. On the contrary， German negotiators may emphasize more on stating their viewpoints relationally， taking the action and figuring out the solution to the problem.

2.2.2 Japan vs. America

The communication style is deeply influenced by the culture. In accordance with Hall （1976）， high context communication refers to the condition in which a minority of information in the interaction is explicitly expressed and the low context communication is just the opposite of high context communication. Japan is a typical example of high-context culture， while North America is identified as the low context cultures （Hall & Hall， 1990）. During the negotiation， Japanese negotiators tend to make use of the physical context such as time， circumstance and relationship to advance the communication.

High context communication is characterized by the indirectness， ambiguity and efforts to maintain harmony， while low context communication is regarded as direct， precise and explicit expression of true feelings. Influenced by the high context culture， Japanese negotiators tend to keep the harmony of negotiations without directly pointing out the disputes between the negotiating parties with the intention of establishing a long-term business relationship. They prefer to use implication and inference rather than explicit expressions. Compared to the indirectness of Japanese negotiators， American negotiators may verbalize their idea precisely and directly. They place more emphasis on the accomplishment of the negotiation task rapidly rather than the harmony of the negotiating environment.

2.3 Different team organization

2.3.1 China vs. Germany

The selection of negotiator and the way that the team is organized are also impacted by cultural values. According to Keillor （2007）， negotiators from the Germany or the United States are selected based on their ability， while negotiators from China， Brazil， Mexico and Japan are mainly selected due to their status. In terms of the information that has been provided， Chinese negotiator selection are influenced by ascription oriented culture， while German negotiator selection are affected by achievement oriented culture. Chinese negotiators are selected in terms of the age， position， social status， kinship and some other aspects related to social skills. Unlike the emphasis on relation and social status， German negotiators selection focuses on the objective ability.

In addition， Chinese culture has frequently been seen as collectivistic， while German culture has been regarded as individualistic （Schnack， 2002）. The collectivistic culture has motivated China to put emphasis on team negotiating and collective decision making during negotiating processes. By comparison， the personal achievement and power are of great importance to German negotiators. In this way， less consensus decision will be made among German negotiators even though there is still some brief discussion during the negotiating process. They take more concern about the objective environment and the corresponding solution.

2.3.2 Japan vs. America

In accordance with Hosfstede （1997）， power distance is related to the acceptance and expectation of unequal distribution of the power. It implies that power distance could measure the extent of the acceptance of authority within organizations. Power distance has a great influence on the types of decision making. Halbert and Ingulli （2011） points out that Japan is a nation with low individualism， low dynamism and high power distance， while the United States is a country with high individualism， high dynamism and low power distance. Japanese negotiators influenced by high power distance cultures are likely to show respect for the elders and seniority in the negotiation team. Therefore， Japanese negotiators tend to consult the problems with the elder negotiators in detail， which may consume a great deal of time. The final decision will be made by negotiators in the highest position to show superiority and respect.

In contrast， people influenced by low power distance cultures may not take much concern about the seniority. In accordance with Sagie and Aycan （2003）， members influenced by low power distance cultures believe that they have the right to participate in the decision-making process of their work without taking the unequal position into consideration. Besides， in low power distance cultures， the independence is more important than the conformity （Mead， 2004）. Members in high position may collaborate with common negotiators so as to solve the problems and information occurring in the negotiation process as soon as possible. American negotiators problem-solving approach could save a lot of time compared to the Japanese negotiators.

2.4 Different attitudes towards time

The attitudes towards time are also influenced by culture. Monochronic societies are characterized by low-context communications， task orientation， punctuality and doing one thing at a time （Fells， 2012）. Under such impacts of monochronic culture， German negotiators are sensitive to time during the negotiation process. Besides， German negotiators tend to focus on one item at a time and finish it according to time schedule. They handle a complex negotiation task sequentially by separating the issues and address them one by one.

However， Chinese negotiators hold more flexible attitudes to the time schedule， just like the saying held by Confucius that it did not matter how slowly one person went as long as he did not stop. （下转第233页）

（上接第231页）In accordance with Fells （2012）， polychronic societies are characterized by high-context communication， the focus on history， meeting and relationship building. Deeply influenced by polychronic culture， Chinese negotiators may deal with many items simultaneously without leaving specific activities with specific time. They may arrange the activities in terms of the schedule， while they are not controlled by scheduled plan.

Similar to German， American negotiators hold the same attitudes towards time—doing one thing at a time. However， nations with high-profile culture， like China and Japan may believe time for negotiation is flexible and is willing to do many things simultaneously without designing a fixed schedule.

3. Conclusion

Due to the highly frequent business communication and negotiation between western and non-western nations， it is of great importance to figure out the influence of cultural differences on the negotiation process. Through the study of the two groups of examples， it is obvious to find out that different cultures have led to some major differences in negotiation， such as negotiation goals， communication styles， team organization and attitudes towards time. In terms of the analysis of the paper， China and Japan is described as relationship oriented， polychronic， implicit， and ascription oriented. By comparison， German and America is more likely to be task oriented， monochronic， explicit， and achievement oriented. As a result of the influence of cultures， Chinese and Japanese negotiators tend to emphasize more on establishing friendship at first， while Germany and American negotiators are inclined to keep personal distance from the negotiation in order to keep objective. Besides， Chinese and Japanese negotiators hold more flexible attitudes towards time and would deal with the multiple tasks at a time. In contrast， Germany and American negotiators are sensitive to punctuality. During the negotiation， Chinese and Japanese negotiators do not explicitly state their idea but rather express their viewpoints by non-verbal communication with the intention of keeping a harmonious negotiation environment， while Germany and American negotiators adopt the direct and precise approach. Finally， social skills are emphasized in the selection of negotiators in China and Japan. Germany and America holds more objective criteria which are based on technical ability. In fact， only by clearly understanding the different negotiation styles among different countries could the cross-cultural negotiations achieve further success.

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