To understand the negotiations leading to the Good Friday agreement 1998

Sammanfattning: This article uses negotiations theory to analyze the Good Friday agreement negotiations in 1998. Negotiations theory is often divided into either rational choice or cognitive perspectives whereas negotiations in fact constitutes of both. The article uses framework models, inspired by the work of Kjell Hausken who includes both rational and cognitive factors to analyze the negotiations leading to the Good Friday agreement with the aim to develop a good analytical tool for the understanding of negotiations. The conclusion will be that besides the rational choice and cognitive perspectives, a third perspective or factor is necessary if you are to understand the Good Friday negotiations. To explain the outcome of the negotiations, the influence of the mediators must be taken into consideration and the framework- models developed to constitute the mediating factor.