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Full-Text Articles in Labor Relations

Power And Tactics In Bargaining, Samuel B. Bacharach, Edward J. Lawler Aug 2012

Power And Tactics In Bargaining, Samuel B. Bacharach, Edward J. Lawler

Edward J Lawler

This paper develops and tests an analytical framework for analyzing the selection of tactics in bargaining. Using a variant of power-dependence theory, the authors propose that bargainers will use different dimensions of dependence, such as the availability of alternative outcomes from other sources and the value of the outcomes at stake, to select among different tactics. To test this model, the authors conducted two simulation experiments that portrayed an employee-employer conflict over a pay raise, manipulating four dimensions of dependence: employee's outcome alternatives, employee's outcome value, employer's outcome alternatives, and employer's outcome value. Within this context, respondents estimated the likelihood …


From Revolutionary Coalitions To Bilateral Deterrence: A Nonzero-Sum Approach To Social Power, Edward J. Lawler Aug 2012

From Revolutionary Coalitions To Bilateral Deterrence: A Nonzero-Sum Approach To Social Power, Edward J. Lawler

Edward J Lawler

This chapter reviews a program of work investigating how social power, defined as a structurally based capability, affects the tactics chosen in a conflict. A nonzero-sum approach to power stipulates that the total amount of power in a relationship can have effects distinct from those of relative power or power difference. This assumption is grounded in Emerson's power dependence theory and reminiscent of Tannenbaum's concept of control. The basic ideas are that (1) higher total power in a relationship has an integrative effect on that relationship, resulting in more conciliatory and less hostile responses to conflict; and (2) larger power …


Emotion And Group Cohesion In Productive Exchange, Edward J. Lawler, Shane R. Thye, Jeongkoo Yoon Aug 2012

Emotion And Group Cohesion In Productive Exchange, Edward J. Lawler, Shane R. Thye, Jeongkoo Yoon

Edward J Lawler

This study refines and experimentally tests a theory of relational cohesion that explains how and when actors become committed to one another in the context of multiactor exchange. The theory asserts that frequent social exchange results in (1) positive emotions that solidify and strengthen the person-to-group bond and (2) uncertainty reduction that renders the focal group more salient in relation to others. These two mechanisms produce a sense of psychological group formation and ultimately increase observable acts of commitment. In a “productive exchange” setting, three actors negotiate a joint venture that requires the assent of all members. The exchanges featured …


The Power Process And Emotion, Edward J. Lawler Aug 2012

The Power Process And Emotion, Edward J. Lawler

Edward J Lawler

[Excerpt] Power is a crucial phenomenon in organizations, both pervasive and somewhat elusive. The study of power in organizations has a long tradition (Crozier 1964), yet the literature on power is fragmented and has been a central focus only intermittently over time. Fundamental assumptions about the role of power vary widely. On the one hand, power can be construed broadly as a negative and divisive force in relations, groups, and organizations. It enables those having power to exert influence over or command the compliance of others through coercion, force, and threats. This is the punitive, manipulative face of power (Deutsch …


Power Dependence In Individual Bargaining: The Expected Utility Of Influence, Edward J. Lawler, Samuel B. Bacharach Aug 2012

Power Dependence In Individual Bargaining: The Expected Utility Of Influence, Edward J. Lawler, Samuel B. Bacharach

Edward J Lawler

This study examines the impact of certain dimensions of dependence on the expected effectiveness of an influence attempt in a two-person bargaining situation. Assuming the role of employer, employee, or outside observer, 1,056 college students estimated the utility of an attempt by an employee to influence his employer with respect to a pay raise under various conditions of dependence. The results show that respondents attributed greatest utility to the attempt when the employee had many alternatives (other job possibilities) and valued highly the outcomes at issue (a pay raise) and when the employer had few alternatives (other workers) and ascribed …


Clergy Authority And Friendship With Parishioners, Phillip E. Hammond, Albert Gedricks, Edward J. Lawler, Louise Allen Turner Aug 2012

Clergy Authority And Friendship With Parishioners, Phillip E. Hammond, Albert Gedricks, Edward J. Lawler, Louise Allen Turner

Edward J Lawler

[Excerpt] Without challenging the general truth of the observation, one can nevertheless note considerable variation in the friendliness of clergymen. Is that variation owing simply to "personality" differences, or are there further structural features that differentially apply within the occupation? This paper argues that there are further structural features which can usefully be employed in understanding the friendship patterns of clergy with parishioners.


An Affect Theory Of Social Exchange, Edward J. Lawler Aug 2012

An Affect Theory Of Social Exchange, Edward J. Lawler

Edward J Lawler

This article develops a theory that explains how and when emotions, produced by social exchange, generate stronger or weaker ties to relations, groups, or networks. It is argued that social exchange produces positive or negative global feelings, which are internally rewarding or punishing. The theory indicates that social units (relations, groups, networks) are perceived as a source of these feelings, contingent on the degree of jointness in the exchange task. The jointness of the task is greatest if (1) actors find it difficult to distinguish their individual effects on or contributions to solving the exchange task (nonseparability) and (2) actors …