Shared Cognition in Negotiation

Negotiation is a joint decision-making process in which parties who have differing interests, incentives, and preferences attempt to reach mutual agreement regarding the division of scarce resources. Given that negotiation involves parties with differing incentives who willingly come to the table to divide scarce resources, parties must share similar goals and possess a common script for conducting negotiation. Unfortunately, faulty perceptions about one&s;s own interests, the other party&s;s interests, the process to be followed, and the division of resources seriously curtail successful negotiation. We examine social-psychological strategies that facilitate the development of shared cognition, and technology-based tools for enhancing shared cognition. By creating a shared reality, in which negotiators hold accurate perceptions of one another&s;s interests and preferences, converge on a script by which to communicate, make proposals, and agree with regard to how scarce resources should be divided, negotiators can reach mutually rewarding outcomes and pave a path toward positive future interaction.