Rowman & Littlefield Publishers International Negotiation in a Complex World (New Millennium Books in International Studies)

The process of negotiation, standing as it does between war and peace in many parts of the globe, has never been a more vital process to understand than in today's rapidly changing international system. Students of negotiation must first understand key IR concepts as they try to incorporate the dynamics of the many anomalous actors that regularly interact with conventional state agents in the diplomatic arena. This hands-on text provides an essential introduction to this high-stakes realm, exploring the impact of complex multilateralism on traditional negotiation concepts such as bargaining, issue salience, and strategic choice. Using an easy-to-understand board game analogy as a framework for studying negotiation episodes, the authors include a rich array of real-world cases and examples to illustrate key themes, including the intensity of crisis situations for negotiators, the role of culture in communication, and the impact of domestic-level politics on international negotiations. Providing tools for analyzing why negotiations succeed or fail, this innovative text also presents effective exercises and learning approaches that enable students to understand the complexities of negotiation by engaging in the diplomatic process themselves. Review A welcome addition to the large and growing literature on negotiation. The authors have had a long association with the International Communication and Negotiation Simulation Project (ICONS) at the University of Maryland, and a strong desire to develop an approach to the study of negotiation that is based on simulation exercises, utilizing sophisticated network techniques. Their short book is both substantially rich and a valuable tool for students and policy makers alike.-- "International Affairs"As international negotiations proliferate, so too does the need to understand their context, structure and process. This book provides a useful account of the myriad challenges facing negotiators today, addressing the changes in technology, actors and agendas. . . .The book's value is in its easily accessible approach to explaining negotiations using a range of real-world examples. The authors aim not only to explain the processes, but also to provide a tool in the teaching and practice of negotiations. . . .The book is therefore of interest to those teaching and learning about the complexities involved in the 'give-and-take' processes of international negotiations.-- "South African Journal of International Affairs"Despite the importance of international negotiation there are remarkably few texts that can unconditionally be recommended for international relations courses. Professors Starkey, Boyer, and Wilkenfeld are to be congratulated for producing an authoritative introduction to international negotiation that is at once clear, interesting, innovative, and enjoyable. The authors have produced an excellent, user-friendly text for students that brilliantly succeeds in getting across key features of the negotiating process. They cover the major concepts, approaches, and theories in the field in a concise and highly readable way. Their synthesis of case study and theoretical analysis is just what is called for. What particularly impressed me was the ability of the authors to explain the context and mechanics of international negotiation while at the same time placing negotiation exactly where it should be--at the heart of international relations. As well as enthusiastically endorsing the adoption of this fine study as an introduction to international negotiation, I would also wish to recommend it most highly as an essential component of general courses on diplomacy and foreign policy.--Raymond Cohen, Hebrew University of Jerusalem; author of Negotiating Across CulturesNegotiating a Complex World is more than merely 'an introduction to international negotiation.' Starkey, Boyer, and Wilkenfeld have presented a sophisticated framework for understanding internat