Personality in negotiation revisited: Recent advances and future directions
Yannik A Escher1, Hannes M Petrowsky1, Sudeep Sharma2
1School of Management and Technology, Leuphana University Lüneburg, Germany.
Current Opinion in Psychology
|July 31, 2026
Summary
Personality significantly impacts negotiation outcomes, particularly in early stages and relational aspects. Future research should focus on dyadic interactions and advanced computational methods for better insights into negotiation dynamics.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Behavioral Economics
- Organizational Behavior
Background:
- Historically, individual differences were overlooked in negotiation research.
- Recent scholarship emphasizes the complexity of negotiation, necessitating a focus on personality traits.
Purpose of the Study:
- To synthesize evidence on the role of personality in negotiation.
- To explore contextual factors, interaction dynamics, and methodological approaches for studying personality in negotiation.
Main Methods:
- Review and synthesis of existing negotiation research.
- Analysis through three lenses: contextual contingency, interactional effects, and methodological design.
- Examination of trait detectability across negotiation phases and outcomes.
Main Results:
- Personality traits are most evident in early negotiation phases (initiation, preparation) and influence subjective, relational, and reputational outcomes.
- The impact of personality is often contingent on negotiation partners and situational factors.
- Methodologies separating actor/partner effects and capturing dynamic trajectories are more informative.
Conclusions:
- Personality plays a nuanced role in negotiation, contingent on context and interaction.
- Future research should employ phase-specific theories, dyadic mechanisms, and innovative methods like computational measurement and agent-based modeling.
- Understanding personality's influence is crucial for a comprehensive view of negotiation processes and outcomes.
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