Advanced negotiation: does a good mood improve the agreement?
The atmosphere in a negotiation is often treated as a matter of courtesy rather than a condition shaping how people think. The management question is more precise: does encouraging a positive mood help produce a better agreement, or merely make the discussion more pleasant?
What the literature establishes
Peter J. Carnevale and Alice M. Isen (1986, Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes) experimentally examined the influence of positive affect and visual access in a bilateral negotiation. Their findings indicate that positive affect can encourage the discovery of integrative solutions, which improve joint gains rather than simply shift concessions. Mood is therefore not merely an outcome of the exchange: it can also help shape the conditions under which participants seek agreement.
A possible mechanism: flexible thinking
Alice M. Isen, Kimberly A. Daubman and Gary P. Nowicki (1987, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology) showed that positive affect can facilitate creativity in experimental problem-solving tasks. Their research does not directly concern negotiation, but it illuminates a possible mechanism: considering less obvious associations and solutions. In a contractual discussion, this might help participants move beyond a choice between accepting a condition and rejecting it.
The premature conclusion
It would be tempting to conclude that making the exchange friendly is enough to secure a better agreement. Yet these studies show neither that a pleasant atmosphere guarantees the other party’s cooperation nor that it protects against an unfavourable commitment. A positive atmosphere can support exploration; it cannot replace scrutiny of economic terms, risks and obligations. (our executive and employee training programmes)
What these findings cannot prescribe
These findings come from experimental settings, not from an evaluation of actual negotiations in Zurich-based companies. A mood induced in a laboratory does not automatically translate into a relationship shaped by compliance procedures, a history of conflict or a power imbalance. The cited studies therefore do not justify prescribing a universal technique for creating a friendly atmosphere, still less requiring participants to display enthusiasm.
A practical check in Zurich
One possible application in SHR’s “Advanced Negotiation” programme would be to compare two conditions of the same simulated case: a neutral professional opening and a cordial opening, with identical information and time available. The case could concern a services contract between a tech company and a financial services firm, an insurer or the European headquarters of an international group in Zurich. With negotiating pairs randomly assigned to the conditions, participants would report their mood after the opening, and each agreement’s joint gain would then be assessed using a predefined scoring system, with impasses recorded separately. This local check would distinguish a discussion perceived as more pleasant from an agreement that is actually better, without treating a training result as general proof. To go further: explore the Advanced Negotiation training in Zurich in the canton of Zurich, or browse our executive and employee training programmes in Switzerland.
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