A Study of Principled Negotiation Based on the Chinese Harmony Thought

Abstract

Roger D. Fisher, a Harvard law professor and William Ury brought up principled negotiation in 1981 in “Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement without Giving In”. For over thirty years, the method of principled negotiation has been the dominant formative approach to negotiation in the world. Since most of the literature on negotiations in an international environment has a common opinion that Chinese culture and Western culture is different on negotiation, this study focuses on their connections from a Chinese perspective.

The study begins a brief overview of the Chinese harmony thought and principled negotiation. It is followed by analysis about the connection between the Chinese harmony thought and principled negotiation. Last, this study includes a summary. China is considered a cradle of civilization with 5,000 years of Chinese history, has a systematic thought of interpersonal interaction, so this study has positive significance to promote understanding Chinese negotiation thought and enrich the theory of international negotiation.