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This chapter explores how electronic affective displays may influence individual perceptions, behavior and performance by conducting an exploratory analysis using a sample of real work emails (study 1), along with a laboratory experiment (study 2). The findings from both studies indicate that positive affective displays may have a stronger impact on individual perceptions (study 1) and invoke greater reciprocity from electronic partners (study 2) than negative affective displays. Moreover, some interesting gender effects with respect to affective displays and individual negotiation performance are observed. The implications for the field, along with limitations of the current research, are discussed.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of humor in online negotiations and assess whether humor can act as a bridge for the otherwise relationship‐poor experience of negotiating via e‐mail.

Two experimental studies are conducted, using 122 executive MBA students and 216 MBA students respectively.

Study 1 demonstrates that beginning an e‐mail transaction with humor results in: increased trust and satisfaction levels; higher joint gains for the dyad; and higher individual gains for the party who initiated the humorous event. Analyses reveals that it is the exploration of compatible issues (as opposed to effective tradeoffs) – that increased the level of joint gain. Study 2 demonstrates that first offers in a purely distributive negotiation are more likely to be within the bargaining zone when e‐negotiations are initiated with humor, and the resulting final settlements in the humor condition are also more equally distributed between parties (more of an “even split”) than are transactions without a humorous start.

The highly controlled laboratory setting (the classroom) limits the generalizability and encourages future research in a more real‐world setting.

Managers may benefit by making personal connections in the online realm before engaging in professional communications, such as strategically employing humor at the outset of e‐mail negotiations.

This is the first study to empirically explore the direct role of humor in online negotiations a controlled experimental setting, and find its positive effects on the negotiation process.

The purpose of this research is to argue that people's inherent attitudes towards the various communication media (e‐mail, paper‐form, face‐to‐face) will change their reactions to identical performance feedback.

Using an empirical scenario study with 171 business school students as participants, peoples' attitudes were explored about the use of e‐mail for feedback by having participants enact the role of an organizational employee receiving (identical) feedback via e‐mail, paper‐form, or a face‐to‐face conversation.

It was found that people responded most positively to the feedback when they believed it was delivered via paper‐form, and most negatively when they believed it was delivered via e‐mail. Thus it is theoretically challenged that the notion that all text‐based media (i.e. paper‐form and e‐mail) should be considered identical, and empirically document differences. Further, the negative reaction to the concept of feedback delivered via e‐mail was magnified by a performance‐goal orientation as opposed to a learning goal‐orientation.

It is argued that the norms and expectations about each medium should play a significant role in determining appropriate feedback communication tools.

This research can help individuals and organizations decide the mode of communication they use to deliver feedback.