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The increase in international business and in foreign investment has created a need for executives with knowledge of foreign languages and skills in cross-culturalcommunication. Americans, however, have not been well trainedin either area and, consequently, have not enjoyed the same level ofsuccess in negotiation in an international arena as have their foreigncounterparts. Negotiatingis the process of communicating back and forth for the purpose of reaching anagreement. It involves persuasion and compromise, but in order toparticipate in either one, the negotiators must understand the ways in which people are persuaded and howcompromise is reached within the culture of the negotiation.In manyinternational business negotiations abroad, Americans are perceived as wealthyand impersonal. It often appears to the foreign negotiator that the American represents a large multi-million-dollar corporation thatcan afford to pay the price without bargaining further. The Americannegotiators role becomes that of an impersonal purveyor of informationand cash.In studies of American negotiators abroad, several traits have beenidentified that may serve to confirm this stereotypical perception, whileundermining the negotiators position. Two traits in particular that causecross-cultural misunderstanding are directness and impatience on the partof the American negotiator. Furthermore, American negotiators often insist on realizing short-term goals. Foreign negotiators, onthe other hand, may value the relationship established betweennegotiators and may be willing to invest time in it for long-termbenefits. In order to solidify the relationship, they may opt for indirect interactions without regard for the time involved in getting to know theother negotiator. | 
