Sam and Tashie have been married for 12 years. Sam wants to quit his job because he is bored and believes they had an agreement that he would be able to complete his education after they had been married a few years. Tashie owns her own company, which is finally getting off the ground, and she doesn’t believe they have the money for Sam to leave his job. Select two students to role-play the discussion between Sam and Tashie in front of the class. After the role-play, use the principled negotiation procedure with the entire class to help Sam and Tashie manage the conflict.
1. People: Ask the role-players how they feel about the argument, themselves, and the other person. Emphasize the importance of recognizing feelings.
2. Interests: Distinguish between the irreconcilable positions and the interests behind each position. Have the class and the role-players participate in discovering what each person’s interests may be.
3. Options: Ask the class and the role-players to brainstorm creative options for this couple.
Emphasize the point that interests may be met in a variety of ways, one of which is bound to be acceptable to both.
4. Criteria: Explore whether any objective criteria might apply to this couple’s dilemma.