The dynamics of long-term business-to-business exchange relationships

A framework for business-to-business interaction is proposed that integrates approaches to bargaining from social psychology and economics to provide a conceptual paradigm emphasizing long-term exchange relationships rather than individual transactions. The authors propose a classification of negotiation behavior along two continuous dimensions and examine the mechanics of the dyadic negotiation process that translate negotiation behavior into long-term relationships. They suggest that exchange relationships are formed by achieving mutually beneficial outcomes from a series of exchange transactions and that there is a bi-directional link between negotiation behavior and exchange relationships mediated by negotiation outcomes. The framework also explores the determinants of negotiation behavior in dyadic negotiations between businesses in terms of organizational, individual, and “other party” influences. Propositions are developed, using both role theory and economic bargaining theory, to support the overall framework. Finally, the classification of negotiation behavior is revisited to examine the evolution of exchange relationships over time. She received her Ph.D. from Georgia State University. Her research interests include attitude and choice models, services marketing, customer satisfaction, and business-to-business relationships. She has published articles in theJournal of Consumer Research, Journal of Business Research, Psychology and Marketing, Journal of Consumer Satisfaction, Dissatisfaction, and Complaining Behavior, and theJournal of Health Care Management, as well as various conference proceedings. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh. His research interests include organizational buying behavior, negotiation strategies, small group dynamics, and cross-cultural differences in buyer-seller interactions. His research has been published in theJournal of Marketing, Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of International Business Studies, andIndustrial Marketing Management, as well as numerous conference proceedings. She also holds an M.B.A. from the Uni- versity of Tennessee. Her research interests include consumer value determination, consumer satisfaction, and business-to-business relationships.     

FINANCIAL STRESS AND CONSUMPTION EXPECTATIONS AMONG FARM HOUSEHOLDS: NEW ZEALAND'S EXPERIENCE WITH ECONOMIC LIBERALISATION

A review of New Zealand's experience with assistance to agriculture through the 1960s and 1970s and the subsequent deregulation of the sector in the mid-1980s provides background to this study. Data for sheep and beef farmers are used to elaborate the variety of financial changes in the boom and bust cycles that followed the policy changes. Changes in farm business stress are examined using some conventional financial ratios. New measures which partition household expenditure between consumption and investment are then developed. These better explain the stress experienced among farm households as a consequence of the readjustment process and provide insight to the impact of the legacy of debt, encouraged by government intervention, on farmers' current and expected household consumption over recent years. New Zealand's experience reveals that farm household consumption stress has been unevenly distributed. This suggests that policy concern, following the removal of government assistance to agriculture, should focus principally on the mitigation of the household distress caused by ongoing farm debt commitments.