The paper considers the efficacy of role reversal, used in conflict situations, for reducing distortions in perceptions of the opponent's position, for increasing understanding of the opponent's position, for clarifying communication during negotiations, and for inducing cooperative behavior in conflict situations. It was noted that little research has concerned the variables which mediate its effectiveness. Three such variables were manipulated in this experiment: (1) warmth of interaction; (2) accuracy of understanding; and (3) the proposal of compromises. A two phase intergroup competition procedure was used with 128 volunteers from a small liberal arts college. Results supported the hypotheses: (1) that accuracy of understanding of the opponent's position was related to the number of agreements reached in negotiations; (2) that warmth of interaction facilitates negotiations, but not opponent's attitude change; and (3) that proposing compromises leads more readily to agreements than not proposing them. (TL)