Chat phases, disagreements and claim backing in simulated sales negotiations : an applied linguistics perspective

Abstract

This study compared simulated sales negotiations with authentic negotiations. Specifically, three areas of language were considered: (i) chat phases, (ii) mitigation in disagreements, and (iii) argumentation. Findings indicated that greatly reduced use of chat phases in the simulations led to an impoverishment of the interactional aspect of communication. A statistical analysis indicated that mitigation of disagreements was significantly reduced when compared to authentic negotiations. Finally, in spite of the difference noted between professional and non-professional negotiators in the simulated negotiations, a significant increase in the use of argumentation was found in the simulations. Even though further research would be required, it could be hypothesized that these differences may be attributed to the one-off nature of simulations, the absence of a surrounding business context and the intrinsic difficulty of using interactional language in simulations. These factors should be considered when simulations are used and designed for business and LSP training courses.