Rational games : a philosophy of business negotiation from practical reason / Mark A. Young.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Young, Mark A., 1958-

Contributor:

Charles R. Anderson Endowment Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Negotiation in business.

Practical reason.

Physical Description:

xii, 292 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Westport, Conn. : Quorum Books, 2001.

Summary:

Offers pragmatic and useful answers to the question: why do people settle for less in a business negotiation when they could, and should, get more?

Contents:

1. Summary of the Argument 1

Negotiation Dilemmas 2

Received Philosophical Assumptions 3

Considered Economic Rationality (CER) 4

Application to Business Negotiations 5

2. What Is Economic Rationality? 7

Objective versus Subjective Rationality 8

Why Be Rational? 11

Theoretical versus Practical Reason 13

Monological versus Social Reason 16

Economic Rationality and Its Assumptions 18

Summary: Connection to Decision and Game Theory 20

3. The Problem: Opportunity Lost 25

Some Practical Dilemmas 26

Theoretical Foundations: A Primer on Game Theory 31

"Intuitive Correction": Will "Irrationality" Solve the Problem? 44

4. The Roots of the Problem 61

Philosophical Foundations 62

Applications to Decision and Game Theory 87

Conclusion: The "Dead End" of Prescriptive Economic Rationality 97

5. Gauthier's Proposal: A Strategic Bargaining Solution 103

Gauthier's Bargaining Solution 104

Omissions and Problems 114

Limits of This Approach: Can Strategic Rationality Be Corrected? 127

6. Elements of Considered Economic Rationality 133

Requirements of a New Theory 134

Considered Economic Rationality: A Brief Sketch 137

Four Elements of Considered Economic Rationality 138

Summary and a Way Forward 172

7. Negotiating on the Basis of Considered Economic Rationality 185

Can We Draw Practical Lessons from Philosophy? 186

Elements of a CER-Based Negotiation Strategy 187

How Has Considered Economic Rationality Been Applied? 209

8. Case Studies: The Privatization of Electricity Distribution 215

Case Study 1 Privatization of the U.K. Electricity Distribution Industry 216

Case Study 2 Privatization of the Electricity Distribution Industry in Eastern Germany 232

9. Beyond Negotiating Success 251

Descriptive Accuracy 252

Prescriptive Success 256

Normative Validity 262.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [273]-281) and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Charles R. Anderson Endowment Fund.

ISBN:

1567204139

OCLC:

45066008