In this chapter, we have addressed the nature of coalitions and explored the processes by which they are formed, led, maintained, and ultimately disbanded. We suggested that coalition formation occurs when there are more than two negotiating parties and is most likely when parties need to add the resources or support of others to enhance the likelihood of achieving their own individual outcomes. We discussed when, why, and how coalitions form; addressed how they work (and don't work) once formed; and considered the role of power and leverage in coalition politics. Finally, we offered some advice to those who are building a coalition, particularly regarding how one can think about potential partners, and what should be the agenda in conducting negotiations with those partners.

We conclude with a cautionary note about the importance of underlying relationships among the parties to a dispute that may involve the formation of coalitions. As Murnighan (1991) notes, much of the earlier work on coalitions ignored one important factor: whether the people who form coalitions together can actually work with each other effectively. . . . Whom you choose as a partner depends on the potential payoffs that can result from that partnership. Those payoffs include the interpersonal benefits you get from your work interactions. . . . More generally, you may maximize your monetary outcome in all your negotiations, but if you also sour all your interpersonal relationships, you'll end up rich and lonely. There's more to bargaining (and life) than winning negotiations, especially if you pay the price of alienating the other person. Burn enough personal bridges and the very opportunity to negotiate will disappear.

These issues of relationships between the parties—past, present, and future—clearly have an impact on how the parties select their coalition partners and whether those partnerships are likely to endure or to shift as economic incentives change.