Cultural Stereotypes in Business Negotiations PDF

# When cultural stereotypes affect a negotiation Jennifer Murphy arrived at the grand opening of her new lingerie store in the heart of Shanghai. Everything was ready. The guests had arrived and this former American beauty queen felt prepared to reclaim fame with a "creative" advertising strategy...

# When cultural stereotypes affect a negotiation Jennifer Murphy arrived at the grand opening of her new lingerie store in the heart of Shanghai. Everything was ready. The guests had arrived and this former American beauty queen felt prepared to reclaim fame with a "creative" advertising strategy that would entertain her Asian friends. She approached the microphone and began to sing a Chinese song in a Chinese accent, full of Japanese references. The recording of the next few minutes not only ruined her business, but it also immortalized her as a blonde fool who didn't know that ninjas and geishas have nothing to do with China, the host country. Many companies with globalization aspirations will commit all sorts of errors in pursuit of cultural stereotypes: recipes that shelter negotiation styles and tips on how to interact with anyone from an exotic country. When we negotiate with foreigners, it's comfortable to rely on cultural schemas or profiles that tell us how the nationals of other cultures are, what not to do in their presence, which customs to follow, etc. This is intended to adapt our behavior to please our counterpart and avoid problems. But what would happen if, instead of making the other person feel comfortable, we end up creating unnecessary barriers? When we rely on "cultural profiles," many of us fall into a mental trap known as "confirmation bias." It's an automatic pattern of thought that, according to studies by the American Psychological Association, leads us to selectively adapt reality to favor the imposed "cultural profile." This is the same phenomenon behind conspiracy theories, where almost any event can be adapted to a subjective interpretation that supports the belief. **Activity:** Answer the following questions and discuss your answers with your partner: - How are work meetings conducted in your country? - Do you know of any other forms of negotiation besides those used in your country? - What do you think Jennifer Murphy should have done before opening her clothing store in China? - What would you do if cultural conflicts arose during a negotiation?