Abstract

China is the largest developing country in the world and the US is the most developed country in the word. With the development of the Sino-US relationship, trade between the two countries has grown impressively. In business negotiations, for the economic interest, both negotiating parties have to mutually compete against each other, but simultaneously have to cooperate with each other. If both parties go to the extremes, the negotiation is doomed to break down. Fortunately, negotiators can use compliments to shorten distance between counter parties and create harmonious atmosphere. This thesis attempts to explore the application of compliments in Sino-US business negotiation. It involves the definition of compliments and business negotiations. The author set forth different characteristic of compliments in Sino-US business negotiations and analyzes the reasons why negotiators need to use compliments from these aspects, such as view of privacy, behavior, faith, value, thought patterns. At last, the author puts forward some strategies in order to make the negotiation process smooth and effective.

Keywords: compliments; Sino-US business negotiations; strategies 

Contents

Abstract

摘要

1. Introduction-1

2. Literature Review-1

2.1 The definition of compliment-2

2.2 The definition of business negotiation-2

3. Different Characteristics of Compliments in Sino-US Business Negotiations -3

3.1 Different compliments in different phases of negotiations-4

3.2 Different choices of complimentary words-4

3.3 Different use of explicit and implicit compliments-5

4. Root-causes for the Different Expressions of Sino-US Compliments-5

4.1 View of privacy-5

4.2 Behaviors and faith-6

4.3 Values-6

4.4 Thought patterns-7

5. Strategies of Using Compliments in Sino-US Business Negotiation-7

5.1 Being sincere-8

5.2 Showing concerns-8

5.3 Understanding other’s culture-8

5.4 Respecting the other’s complimenting habit-9

5.5 Meeting the psychological needs of negotiators-9

6. Conclusion-10

Works Cited-12