The text describes a study conducted in the 1980s in which students rated a plan to divest university funds from South African c
ompanies. In the abstract, the plan was rated highly, but when the same plan was actually proposed by the university administration, students rated it lower. This is an example of
Reactive devaluation is a term used to describe a situation whereby an individual or a group of people devalues a proposal that is made by a party who they perceive in a bad light or do not trust. In this case, if the proposal comes from another party that they agree with or trust, they would likely accept the proposal. Reactive devaluation often stems out of distrust or the tendency of a party to view the other party making a proposal in a negative way.
The case cited in the question is an example of reactive devaluation.
In negotiation, leverage is the power that one side of a negotiation has to influence the other side to move closer to their negotiating position. A party’s leverage is power based on its ability to award benefits or impose costs on the other side.
