Initiation in the E-Negotiation of Facebook Ukay-Ukay Trading

Abstract

The rising attention to e-negotiations has resulted from the forceful presence of the internet which has enabled the design and the distribution of software capable of supporting negotiators. However, most studies on e-negotiation are still on support systems and other areas such as communication are unheeded and are mostly experimental. Qualitative and empirical investigations are widely open for execution. In the characterization of negotiation as communication, stage models presuppose that negotiations pass through a series of expectable phases toward agreement: initiation, problem solving, and resolution. Consequently, the dearth of studies on e-negotiation as communication has resulted in the neglect of the examination of the initiation stage which is considered an essential stage in understanding and establishing the context and culture of the communication process. The current study attempted to fill the wide gap of initiation studies by inductively categorizing the initiation practices in the e-negotiation of second-hand clothing business in the Philippines. Although widespread and a phenomenon in the Philippines, this business, commonly known as ukay-ukay is still an understudied field, particularly the online ukay-ukay trading. Using inductive categorization, multimodal critical discourse as theoretical framework, and discourse-oriented online ethnography as data gathering procedure, the study determined the initiation practices of the e-negotiation of Facebook ukay-ukay traders, their representations, and their reconstruction of the ukay-ukay trade. The study found five categories of initiation practices, determined representative words, phrases, sentences, emojis, and images and further concluded that the initiation stage of the e-negotiations has not only clarified and intensified colonial memories but has reconstructed the presentation, perception, pricing and target market, and threats.