Some people behave as though the most important aspect of a negotiation is the agreement that they reached, while others maintain the importance of fairness, developing relationships, and maintaining their standards. Curhan, Elfenbein, & Xu (2006) surveyed a broad spectrum of lay people, negotiation researchers, and negotiation practitioners about what they valued in a negotiation.

Results suggested that negotiators tend to care about four basic domains: (a) feelings about the instrumental outcome (i.e., the terms of the deal), including subjective perceptions about whether the economic outcome was desirable, balanced, and consistent with principles of legitimacy and precedent; (b) feelings about the self, including losing face versus feeling competent and satisfied that one has behaved appropriately; (c) feelings about the negotiation process, including the perception that one has been heard and been treated fairly; and (d) feelings about the relationship among the negotiators, including positive impressions, trust, and a solid foundation for working together in the future.

Resulting from this research is our Subjective Value Inventory (SVI), a 16-item self-report questionnaire that is freely available for research and classroom settings. Using it can help negotiators learn to conceptualize their performance in a negotiation along multiple dimensions—dimensions that our later research showed can lead to long-term value.

For more information about the Curhan, Elfenbein, & Xu (2006) Subjective Value Inventory, please click here. http://www.subjectivevalue.com