A threefold meta-analysis of economic first-offer effects in negotiations

Description

Is it advantageous to move first in a negotiation? Should one make an ambitious first offer? Does first-offer magnitude impact final outcomes? While a plethora of research suggests that these three questions can be answered affirmatively with a remarkable robustness across cultures, countries, and contexts, recent findings are not unequivocally advantageous and range from positive to null to even negative effects. Despite decades of research, a comprehensive meta-analysis of economic first-offer effects and their moderators remains missing. Our preregistered meta-analysis with the robust variance estimation (RVE) approach conceptualized and quantified three empirical first-offer effects on negotiation outcomes: (1) a first-mover advantage (g = 0.49), (2) a first-offer magnitude effect (g = 1.30), and (3) a positive offer-outcome correlation (r = 0.53; g = 1.51). Overall, effect sizes were highly heterogeneous and moderated by publication, sample, negotiation, and first offer characteristics. We discuss theoretical and applied implications for the negotiation literature.

Period	11.07.2023
Event title	36th Annual Conference of the International Association of Conflict Management
Event type	Conference
Conference number	36
Organiser	International Association for Conflict Management
Location	Thessaloniki, GreeceShow on map
Degree of Recognition	International