Learning about preferences in electronic negotiations - A volume-based measurement method

To create an integrative solution in a bargaining problem, negotiators need to have information about each other's preferences. Empirical negotiation research therefore requires methods to measure the extent to which information about preferences is available during a negotiation. We propose such a method based on Starr's domain criterion, which was originally developed for sensitivity analysis in decision making. Our method provides indices for the amount of preference information that can be inferred both in negotiations reaching an agreement and negotiations where an agreement was not (yet) reached. To test the external validity of our proposed measures, we conduct an empirical study which shows that the proposed measures exhibit positive relationships to the success of negotiations as well as to the efficiency of outcomes that would be expected according to negotiation theory.

[1]  B. Mareschal,et al.  Novel types of sensitivity analysis for additive MCDM methods , 1995 .

[2]  John C. Harsanyi,et al.  Approaches to the Bargaining Problem before and after the Theory of Games: A Critical Discussion of Zeuthen’s, Hicks’, and Nash’s Theories , 1956 .

[3]  Leigh Thompson,et al.  Learning Negotiation Skills: Four Models of Knowledge Creation and Transfer , 2003, Manag. Sci..

[4]  Theodor J. Stewart,et al.  Multiple Criteria Decision Analysis , 2001 .

[5]  Horst A. Eiselt,et al.  Some Extensions of Domain Criteria in Decision Making under Uncertainty , 1990 .

[6]  Jean B. Lasserre,et al.  An analytical expression and an algorithm for the volume of a convex polyhedron inRn , 1983 .

[7]  Rudolf Vetschera,et al.  Inconsistent Behaviour in Electronic Negotiations - An Exploratory Analysis , 2006, Electron. Mark..

[8]  Martin Kenneth Starr.  Product design and decision theory , 1963 .

[9]  J. Mumpower,et al.  The Accuracy of Post-Negotiation Estimates of the Other Negotiator's Payoff , 2004 .

[10]  J. Siskos.  Assessing a set of additive utility functions for multicriteria decision-making , 1982 .

[11]  Gregory E. Kersten,et al.  WWW-based negotiation support: design, implementation, and use , 1999, Decis. Support Syst..

[12]  L. Thompson,et al.  Social Judgment, Feedback, and Interpersonal Learning in Negotiation , 1994 .

[13]  Jyrki Wallenius,et al.  Identifying Pareto-optimal settlements for two-party resource allocation negotiations , 1996 .

[14]  D. G. Pruitt,et al.  NEGOTIATION AND MEDIATION , 1992 .

[15]  E. Triantaphyllou,et al.  A Sensitivity Analysis Approach for Some Deterministic Multi-Criteria Decision-Making Methods* , 1997 .

[16]  Salvatore Greco,et al.  Ordinal regression revisited: Multiple criteria ranking using a set of additive value functions , 2008, Eur. J. Oper. Res..

[17]  William N. Dilla,et al.  Judgment Accuracy and Outcomes in Negotiation: A Causal Modeling Analysis of Decision-Aiding Effects , 1995 .

[18]  James K. Sebenius,et al.  Negotiation analysis: a characterization and review , 1992 .

[19]  Rudolf Vetschera,et al.  Experimentation and Learning in Repeated Cooperation , 2003, Comput. Math. Organ. Theory.

[20]  G. Schneller,et al.  Decision making under uncertainty: Starr's Domain criterion , 1983 .

[21]  L. Thompson.  Information exchange in negotiation , 1991 .

[22]  Rudolf Vetschera,et al.  A multi-criteria agency model with incomplete preference information , 2000, Eur. J. Oper. Res..

[23]  D. G. Pruitt.  Strategic Choice in Negotiation , 1983 .

[24]  Harri Ehtamo,et al.  Searching for joint gains in multi-party negotiations , 2001, Eur. J. Oper. Res..

[25]  James R. Evans.  SENSITIVITY ANALYSIS IN DECISION THEORY , 1984 .

[26]  C. C. Waid,et al.  An Experimental Comparison of Different Approaches to Determining Weights in Additive Utility Models , 1982 .

[27]  H. A. Eiselt,et al.  The use of domains in multicriteria decision making , 1992 .

[28]  R. L. Keeney,et al.  Decisions with Multiple Objectives: Preferences and Value Trade-Offs , 1977, IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics.

[29]  R. Hastie,et al.  Social perception in negotiation , 1990 .

[30]  Jyrki Wallenius,et al.  Advances in Negotiation Science , 1994 .

[31]  S. Zionts,et al.  An Interactive Programming Method for Solving the Multiple Criteria Problem , 1976 .

[32]  Erhan Erkut,et al.  On sensitivity analysis in the analytic hierarchy process , 1991 .

[33]  J. Cross,et al.  A theory of the bargaining process , 1965 .

[34]  Theodor J. Stewart,et al.  An aspiration-level interactive model for multiple criteria decision making , 1992, Comput. Oper. Res..

[35]  Charles P. Schmidt,et al.  Sensitivity Analysis of Additive Multiattribute Value Models , 1988, Oper. Res..

[36]  Bertrand Mareschal,et al.  Weight stability intervals in multicriteria decision aid , 1988 .

[37]  Gregory E. Kersten,et al.  Modeling Distributive and Integrative Negotiations. Review and Revised Characterization , 2001 .

[38]  K. Thomas.  Conflict and conflict management: Reflections and update , 1992 .

[39]  Jeffrey L. Ringuest,et al.  LP-metric sensitivity analysis for single and multi-attribute decision analysis , 1997 .

[40]  R. R. Blake,et al.  The Managerial Grid , 1994 .

[41]  R. Soland,et al.  Multiple‐attribute decision making with partial information: The comparative hypervolume criterion , 1978 .