Use of time is related to the agenda. Russians often use time to their advantage as part of the nonverbal communication in negotiations. For instance they may delay negotiations in order to make the other side anxious. This behavior towards North Americans, for instance, is based on two assumptions: They regard compromise as both desirable and inevitable, and Americans feel frustration and failure when agreements are not reached promptly.
Negotiators from the United States are well known for their impatience. They think that some solution is better than no solution, which leads them to compromise more than their Mexican counterparts. Decades of negotiations have taught Japanese that Westerners, and especially delegates from the United States, are not patient.If the Japanese prolong the negotiations sufficiently, the Westerns will probably agree to whatever the Japanese want. In Japan, however, to
take time is to show maturity and wisdom. Haste shows poor judgment and lack of genuine commitment. Foreign negotiators in the Middle East often complain that meetings are not arranged. Foreign negotiators in Latin America complain that they have to wait. In Asia, foreign negotiators complain that they do too much sightseeing and not enough negotiating. In the United States, foreign negotiators often feel rushed.
