Does AI Coaching Prepare us for Workplace Negotiations?

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Duddu, Veda, Parekh, Jash Rajesh, Mao, Andy, Min, Hanyi, Xiao, Ziang, Swain, Vedant Das, Saha, Koustuv
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Duddu, Veda
Parekh, Jash Rajesh
Mao, Andy
Min, Hanyi
Xiao, Ziang
Swain, Vedant Das
Saha, Koustuv
author_facet Duddu, Veda
Parekh, Jash Rajesh
Mao, Andy
Min, Hanyi
Xiao, Ziang
Swain, Vedant Das
Saha, Koustuv
contents Workplace negotiations are undermined by psychological barriers, which can even derail well-prepared tactics. AI offers personalized and always -- available negotiation coaching, yet its effectiveness for negotiation preparedness remains unclear. We built Trucey, a prototype AI coach grounded in Brett's negotiation model. We conducted a between-subjects experiment (N=267), comparing Trucey, ChatGPT, and a traditional negotiation Handbook, followed by in-depth interviews (N=15). While Trucey showed the strongest reductions in fear relative to both comparison conditions, the Handbook outperformed both AIs in usability and psychological empowerment. Interviews revealed that the Handbook's comprehensive, reviewable content was crucial for participants' confidence and preparedness. In contrast, although participants valued AI's rehearsal capability, its guidance often felt verbose and fragmented -- delivered in bits and pieces that required additional effort -- leaving them uncertain or overwhelmed. These findings challenge assumptions of AI superiority and motivate hybrid designs that integrate structured, theory-driven content with targeted rehearsal, clear boundaries, and adaptive scaffolds to address psychological barriers and support negotiation preparedness.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2509_22545
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Does AI Coaching Prepare us for Workplace Negotiations?
Duddu, Veda
Parekh, Jash Rajesh
Mao, Andy
Min, Hanyi
Xiao, Ziang
Swain, Vedant Das
Saha, Koustuv
Human-Computer Interaction
Artificial Intelligence
Computation and Language
Computers and Society
Workplace negotiations are undermined by psychological barriers, which can even derail well-prepared tactics. AI offers personalized and always -- available negotiation coaching, yet its effectiveness for negotiation preparedness remains unclear. We built Trucey, a prototype AI coach grounded in Brett's negotiation model. We conducted a between-subjects experiment (N=267), comparing Trucey, ChatGPT, and a traditional negotiation Handbook, followed by in-depth interviews (N=15). While Trucey showed the strongest reductions in fear relative to both comparison conditions, the Handbook outperformed both AIs in usability and psychological empowerment. Interviews revealed that the Handbook's comprehensive, reviewable content was crucial for participants' confidence and preparedness. In contrast, although participants valued AI's rehearsal capability, its guidance often felt verbose and fragmented -- delivered in bits and pieces that required additional effort -- leaving them uncertain or overwhelmed. These findings challenge assumptions of AI superiority and motivate hybrid designs that integrate structured, theory-driven content with targeted rehearsal, clear boundaries, and adaptive scaffolds to address psychological barriers and support negotiation preparedness.
title Does AI Coaching Prepare us for Workplace Negotiations?
topic Human-Computer Interaction
Artificial Intelligence
Computation and Language
Computers and Society
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2509.22545