International Negotiations

Extension activity

Write the following questions on the board. Trainees discuss in pairs what they can 

remember about the answers, and then listen again to check. They discuss again in pairs 

before feeding back to the class.

1 

What examples of questions does the American negotiator use? What do you notice 

about these questions?

2 

What does the Chinese negotiator say about directness and indirectness?

3 

What three stages in the negotiation, each at different times, does the German 

negotiator mention?

Answers

1  The first question (OK, well, if there was a way to make it less expensive, then you’d 

be more interested, right?) uses hypothetical language (if + past, would) to encourage 

the other person to express an interest in the product. The question isn’t really a 

question, just a statement with right? at the end. The second question (All right, so 

what else concerns you?) is a very open question, designed to get the other person 

talking as openly as possibly.

2  Chinese people are direct in the sense that they say what they want, in both their 

offers and their counter-offers. But they try to find out what the other person wants 

indirectly, by reading between the lines.

3  First, the parties provide all the details and figures before the meeting. Then they meet 

to ask lots of questions about the information, to make sure nothing has changed. The 

bargaining phase comes much later.

3 

Trainees read the extract to identify the main point about how to be persuasive. They discuss 

the question in pairs, as well as the follow-up question about their own experiences, and then 

share their ideas with the class.