The Emerging Role of Artificial Intelligence in the Study and Practice of Negotiation & Mediation

Abstract

This symposium explores how the rapidly growing field of artificial intelligence might transform the way we study and practice negotiation and mediation. Four presentations by leading scholars at the nexus of computer science and psychology explore new research tools, innovative paradigms, and insights for the fields of negotiation and dispute resolution. By analyzing negotiation behavior in the cloud, we streamline the process of collecting large quantities of nonverbal data efficiently, and generate findings on the role of facial expressions and paralinguistic features, such as speaking rate, turn- taking, and volume. We present results from a study on the use of virtual agents to shed light on negotiator characteristics, such as gender and race. Using an avatar as a mediator of an online dispute, we demonstrate how mimicry by the mediator leads to disputants becoming more conciliatory. Finally, we discuss both advantages and disadvantages of introducing artificial intelligence in the context of negotiation and mediation. Taken together, results offer advances for both researchers and practitioners alike. Processing Negotiation Behavior in the Cloud Presenter: Michelle Fung; U. of Rochester Presenter: Jared R. Curhan; Massachusetts Institute of Technology Presenter: Mohammed Ehsan Hoque; U. of Rochester Virtual Confederates in the Study of Negotiation Presenter: Celso M. de Melo; U. of Southern California Presenter: Peter J. Carnevale; U. of Southern California Presenter: Jonathan Gratch; U. of Southern California Barriers to the Effective Use of Artificial Intelligence in Online Dispute Resolution Presenter: John Zeleznikow; Victoria U.