The Conflict Resolution Toolbox by: Gary T. Furlong
CHAPTER EIGHT
MODEL #5:
THE LAW OF RECIPROCITY
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BACKGROUND OF THE NATURAL LAWST
This model, along with Loss Aversion Bias in the next chapter, is slightly different than the other models in the book, in that
these two are drawn from patterns of behavior that have been identified and repeatedly studied by psychologists, sociologists,
and behaviorists for a long time. The research on these cognitive biases is both fascinating and deep, showing just how
powerfully they guide our behavior. This information, however, has remained in the realm of research, rarely making its way
into common use and practice. That needs to change. These patterns are strong and influential, they help determine a great
many of our choices in many settings, and yet they remain largely unconscious, especially in conflict situations. In this and
the following chapter, they are presented as simple models to help practitioners diagnose and intervene more effectively by
understanding the impact of these unconscious habits on the decisions people make.By way of background, the Law of
Reciprocity and the Loss Aversion Bias operate as if they were ¡tural laws. n the hard sciences, natural laws are
inviolable principles such as the law of gravity or the three laws of motionãientifically provable laws of nature. Take the
law of gravity as an example. Gravity is a natural law that is so common, so pervasive, that we rarely think of itet gravity
affects and shapes what we do every waking moment. Humans have adapted to gravity from the beginning, building
aqueducts that relied on gravity to function, and pyramids that required lifting massive stones against gravity to construct. In
spite of this, it was not until the 1600s that Sir Isaac Newton (and others) named it and defined it as a natural law.The social
sciences have analogous natural laws; here, these principles operate as powerful, often unconscious tendencies that guide and
shape much of our actions and decisions in predictable ways. Unlike true natural laws, however, laws in the social sciences
are not inviolable. That said, they are strong tendencies that guide and shape our actions in predictable and definable
ways.Take, for example, one such principle from the social science of economics. Human beings have engaged in trading
goods and services for thousands of years, and this process of buying, selling, bartering, and exchanging is fundamentally
governed by the law of supply and demand. Supply and demand are very powerful predictors of how economic markets work
and behave, yet it wasn’t until 1776 when Adam Smith described this principle of economics as a !w4hat it began to be
understood and consciously put to use.Similarly, the Law of Reciprocity and the Loss Aversion Bias are fundamental
patterns of behavior to which people unconsciously and predictably default. The goal of these two chapters is to put these
patterns into a simple format that will help practitioners identify and diagnose them in real time and to offer clear strategies
to help address and mitigate these biases in order to achieve better outcomes.
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The Dynamics of Trust
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The Conflict Resolution Toolbox by: Gary T. Furlong
CHAPTER NINE
MODEL #6:
THE LOSS AVERSION BIAS
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