Peer-reviewed
National culture, trust, and perceptions about ethical behavior in intra- and cross-cultural negotiations: An analysis of NAFTA countries
This study investigates the role of national culture in the formation of the trust that people are likely toextend to exchange partners in business negotiations and, consequently, how the level of such trust influences thelikelihood of using certain questionable tactics in intra- and cross-cultural negotiations. Based onsurvey data collected from businesspeople from Canada, Mexico, and the United States, this article shows that trustis culturally embedded and has a negative relationship with the likelihood of using certain questionable negotiationtactics. The study found that Mexican negotiators are less likely to use questionable negotiation tactics inintracultural negotiations as compared to cross-cultural negotiations. On the other hand,the intendednegotiation behaviors of Canadian and U.S. negotiators were not found to vary significantly across intra- andcross-cultural negotiations. The findings of the study underscore the importance of building relationshipwith exchange partners, especially when such exchange partners come from countries that represent collectivistic,high-context, strong uncertainty-avoidance,and large power-distance cultures. © 2002 WileyPeriodicals, Inc
Article, 2002