In today's economic climate, getting an annual salary increase is not a forgone conclusion. However, a new study highlights the effectiveness of negotiation, and why it's important to be upfront with the issues.
The study by George Mason and Temple University researchers uncovered the most effective strategies to negotiating a bigger salary. The study analysed various approaches to the negotiation process, which methods were the most successful and which ones were more likely to leave both parties satisfied with the outcome.
Five negotiation strategies were examined: Accommodating, Avoiding, Collaborating, Competing and Compromising. Individuals who negotiated by using the Collaborating and Competing strategies—using open discussion of issues and perspectives—showed the best results. In contrast, those who used the Avoiding, Accommodating and Compromising approaches were less successful in negotiating larger salaries.
Michelle Marks, associate professor in Mason' School of Management, and co-author of the study said "While more aggressive negotiation strategies succeeded in raising starting salaries, people who used them felt less satisfied with their outcome than did those who used more collaborative approaches," Marks said. "Those who were overly accommodating ended up feeling the least satisfied and that the process was unfair."
The study found that men and women were equally likely to negotiate, but that women were less effective at raising their salaries when compared to men. Though women were more likely to have integrative attitudes about negotiation, they were no more inclined to use a particular strategy than men.
"We were surprised to find no differences with respect to how men and women negotiated," said Crystal Harold from Temple University. "Previous research tended to focus on gender differences and the negotiated outcome, assuming that women approached negotiations differently than men and that men were more competitive. Our study found that, although job-seekers approach negotiation differently, negotiation strategy was unrelated to gender."
