NEGATIVE distance value between paragraphs?

You can't set Spacing Before or After to less than zero. But you can reduce the Line Spacing (choose an "Exactly" value which is identical to or smaller than the font size) so that text lines overlap, if that helps.

As an alternative, you may use text boxes, which can overlap. But if your document consists of more than a few paragraphs, it will be difficult to maintain, of course.

Stefan, thanks for the answer. Unfortunately, this does not work as intended by me.

The concerning paragraph contains only a SmartArt graphic which extends visually vertically on its right side, so there is some white space between the SmartArt graphic and the adjacent paragraphs on the left side which I wanted to be partly filled with a negative paragraph distance value.

I've also played with the layout options for this paragraph and switched off the "Move with the text" option, however the SmartArt graphic still moves with the text.

I've given up and now use a text box which in this specific case is acceptable. After all, Word is not a DTP program.

It would be SO EASY if Microsoft would allow negative values for the space before and after a paragraph!

Please Microsoft, make it happen!