Professor Mara Olekalns’ research is in the field of negotiation. It focuses on the relationships between how individuals think about negotiation, what they do and say during the negotiation, and their outcomes.
Her current research is focused on relational resilience, the process of responding to adversity in negotiations. A second research stream focuses on how gender influences perception of strategic choices, and the extent to which women may encounter social and economic reprisals when the violate normative expectations in negotiation. The aim of her research is to help negotiators understand and improve the process of negotiating, with the goal of creating better agreements. Her research has been published in leading, international journals. She served on the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Conflict Management for 2003-2005; she co-edited Negotiation and Conflict Management research for several years; and, she is currently a Division Editor for Group Decision and Negotiation. In 2020, she joins the Editorial Board of Negotiation Journal. She is a Past President of the International Association for Conflict Management, and a Past Chair of the Academy of Management's Conflict Management Division.
Before joining Melbourne Business School, Professor Olekalns taught organisational behaviour for the Department of Management at Melbourne University, and for the Department of Psychology at the University of Otago (New Zealand). In 1999, she was awarded a Universitas 21 Teaching Fellowship by the University of Melbourne.
Less recently she has worked for Department of Employment, Education & Training (Staff Training, Equal Opportunity, Organization Development, Resources); Public Service Board (Project Officer for Regional Director) and National Police Research Unit (research on recruitment, training, stress, domestic violence).
Find out more about Mara Olekalns' experience
Mara Olekalns' highlights
FEATURED Journal article
Gradual drifts, abrupt shocks: From relationship fractures to relational resilience
Read moreMara Olekalns' selected work
Projects
Displaying the 6 most recent projects by Mara Olekalns.
Project Types
6
Research Grant
Scholarly Works
Displaying the 98 most recent scholarly works by Mara Olekalns.
Honours, Awards and Fellowships
Fellow of the Australian and New Zealand School of Government
Fellow of the International Association for Conflict Management
FASSA - Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia
Credentials
Positions
Honorary
Business Administration
Honorary
Melbourne School Of Psychological Sciences
Member
International Association for Conflict Management
Member
Academy of Management
Member
American Psychological Association
Education
Doctor of Philosophy
Adelaide University
Bachelor of Arts (Honours)
Adelaide University
Bachelor of Arts
Adelaide University