In this chapter we examined the basic structure of competitive or distributive bargaining situations and some of the strategies and tactics used in distributive bargaining. Distributive bargaining begins with setting opening, target, and resistance points. One soon learns the other party's starting points and his or her target points directly or through inference. Usually one won't know the other party's resistance points, (the points beyond which she or he will not go), until late in negotiation—they are often carefully concealed. All points are important, but the resistance points are the most critical. The spread between the parties' resistance points defines the bargaining range. If positive, it defines the area of negotiation within which a settlement is likely to occur, with each party working to obtain as much of the bargaining range as possible. If negative, successful negotiation may be impossible.

It is rare that a negotiation includes only one item; more typically, a set of items, referred to as a bargaining mix, is negotiated. Each item in a bargaining mix can have opening, target, and resistance points. The bargaining mix may provide opportunities for bundling issues together, trading off across issues, or displaying mutually concessionary behavior.

Under the structure of distributive bargaining, a negotiator has many options to achieve a successful resolution, most of which fall within two broad efforts: to influence the other party's belief about what is possible and to learn as much as possible about the other party's position, particularly about their resistance points. The negotiator's basic goal is to reach a final settlement as close to the other party's resistance point as possible. To achieve this goal, negotiators work to gather information about the opposition and its positions; to convince members of the other party to change their minds about their ability to achieve their own goals; and to justify their own objectives as desirable, necessary, or even inevitable.

Distributive bargaining is basically a conflict situation, wherein parties seek their own advantage—sometimes through concealing information, attempting to mislead, or using manipulative actions. All these tactics can easily escalate interaction from calm discussion to bitter hostility. Yet negotiation is the attempt to resolve a conflict without force, without fighting. Further, to be successful, both parties to the negotiation must feel at the end that the outcome was the best they could achieve and that it is worth accepting and supporting. Hence, effective distributive bargaining is a process that requires careful planning, strong execution, and constant monitoring of the other party's reactions. Finally, distributive bargaining skills are important when at the value claiming stage of any negotiation. This is discussed in more detail in the next chapter on integrative negotiation.