Impression Motivation

Impression motivation is usually defined as the desire to make a good impression on the other and to get along (Snyder, 1992; Tetlock and Manstead, 1985). However, in the context of negotiation, individuals may be highly motivated to convey the impression of a tough negotiator not to be trifled with (Wall, 1991). A manager may be motivated to convey the image of a tough negotiator, only to avoid his or her employees trying to negotiate about every single task assignment or allocation decision. Likewise, a personnel officer overseeing salary negotiations may prefer the image of a tough negotiator rather than the image of a friendly and compliant person who likes to please others.

Impression motivation can be rooted in individual differences or vary as a function of the situation. For example, individuals high in self-monitoring have more impression-management concerns than individuals low in self-monitoring (e.g., Snyder, 1992). Likewise, individuals with collectivist values are more concerned with face than individuals with individualist values (Triandis, 1989). Brown (1968) showed that negotiators are willing to incur substantial cost to “save face” and impress an audience.