Transactional Analysis

Deva Pramod V B

M.Sc. Psychology

Department of Psychology

Bharathiar University, India

vbdevan.psy@gmail.com

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A Sketch of Eric Berne

• DoB: May 10, 1910; Place of Birth: Canada

• Studied Medicine & received M.D. and C.M (Master of Surgery) - 1935

• Began training as psychoanalyst at NY Psychoanalytic Institute in 1941

• Army psychiatrist during World War II

• Practiced Group Therapy

•Presented first paper on TA in 1957 - Introduced ego states

•Had started testing his theories on TA in the 1950`s itself in seminars

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What is Transactional Analysis (TA)?

• When two people interact with each other,

they engage in social transactions, in which

one person responds to the other.• Study of such ”Social Transactions” is

called ’Transactional Analysis’.• Transactions are Psychological in nature and

relate to how people behave and how other people behave with them in response to their behaviour.

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Transactional analysis

Transactional analysis defined by Eric Berne is a

theory of personality and social action and a

clinical method of psychotherapy based on the

analysis of all possible transaction between two

or more people on the basis of specially defined

ego states.

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What is a Transaction?

• A Transaction is an exchange of two

strokes between two people. The first

stroke is called ’Stimulus’, the second is

called the ’Response’.

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Ego States

Set of consistent and coherent patterns of thinking, feeling and behaving

-Berne

set: each ego state has more than one manifestation

consistent & coherent: clear & integrated self-awareness arising from diagnosis of ego-states

thinking, feeling & behaving: total experiences of an individual

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Ego States- PAC Model

• Parent Ego State• Adult Ego State• Child Ego State• Later on Parent and child stages have

been subdivided into two subgroups• Parent– Nurturing or Controlling

• Child– Free or Adaptive

P

A

C

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Parent Ego State

• Set of thoughts, feelings and behaviors learnt or borrowed from parents or other care takers– Critical Parent – prejudiced thoughts, feelings &

behaviors– Nurturing Parent – Soft, loving and permission

giving

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P

Parent Ego StateVocabulary: Should, don’t, must,

always, never, now what? Because I said so

I’ll take care of you, poor thing, there-there, come on, give it a try

Tone: Sneering, loud, harsh,contemptuous,condescending, punishing, sympathetic,

encouraging

Gesture/Posture: Pointed finger, shaking head, arms folded on chest,

tapping feet/fingers,

Facial Expression: smile encouragingly, set jaw, outthrust chin, raised eyebrows

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P

Parent Ego State

Don’t argue!

Shame on you!

Be quite!

That’s really bad.

Don’t worry!

There there!

Let me help you.

Everything will be fine!

Don’t you DARE ! Have some fun.

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• Seat of emotions, thoughts, memories from childhood

Child Ego State

• How one responded to early experiences and the positions one took about oneself & others

• Feelings of happiness, fear ,anxiety, withdrawal etc.

−Free Child – Spontaneous feeling, playful, authentic, emotional −Adapted Child – Comply with parental messages

−Rebellious Child – Does not comply with parental messages

• Types:

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C

Child Ego stateVocabulary: Wow, give me what I want, MINE, I wish, I’m scared, help,

Tone: giggle, chuckle,

whine, swear, yell, fast & high-pitched,

whistle, playful, ask permission.

Gesture/Posture: slumped, curled up, putting up hand to ask

question

Facial Expression: tears, pouting,

downcast or uplifted eyes, tilted head,

wide-eyed, fluttering eyelashes, flirtatious,

admiring

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C

I don’t wanna !!

Pleeeeeeeeaassse!

I can’t!

No-no-no!

O! that’s fun!

WOW-WEE!

I want……!

Yayyyy….!I don’t care!

Look how tall my castle is!

Child Ego State

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Adult Ego State

• Oriented towards current reality and objective gathering of information

• No relation with a person’s age

• Data processing center

• Solutions based on facts and not solely on pre-judged thoughts or childlike emotions

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A

Adult Ego StateVocabulary: how, why, when,

where, what, alternatives, results,

yes, no, caused by, statistics, facts not opinions.

Tone:clear & calm, confident, factual,enquiring.

Gesture/Posture: straight (not stiff), lean forward to listen/look, relaxed, thinking with

hand on chin, patient.

Facial Expression: thoughtful, watching

attentively, questioning, alert,

lively

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Respect.

Aware.

Equality

Rational

Assertive.

Open

Present

Objective

A

Sand looks interesting. Lets make a castle!

Adult Ego State

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Ego States

Acting, thinking, feeling like your parent

Dealing with current realities, gathering facts, objectivity

Acting or feeling like u did when u were child

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Life Positions

• T.A has four possible life positions:

I am O.KYou are O.K

You are O.KI am not O.K

I am O.KYou are not O.K

I am not O.KYou are not O.K

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• "I'm OK; You're OK." This life position is the only healthy attribute or attitude.The adult must be realistic, aware, tolerant and maintain control of the child and the parent. A person with such an orientation feels positive.

• "I'm not OK; You're OK." This life position requires that others sustain one‘s position to feel OK. When one feels weak and unable to do many things others can do, the dominant feeling is "not OK." If an "I'm not OK" attitude prevails, the client runs a risk of being anxious, depressed, and passive.

• "I'm OK; You're not OK." This life position is a self-centered, self-serving position

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• "I'm not OK; You're not OK." This life position is the most futile and helpless position of the four. There is no way to turn for help; others won't help the client and the client can't help himself.

• Nothing seems worthwhile and everything is futile.

• This is an unhappy state of affairs and, in the extreme, such a person's only recourse may be to withdraw into the utter hopelessness of depression or other emotional disturbances.

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Levels of Transaction

Transactions between people are seen as having 3 types:

– Complementary – both people are operating from the same ego state

– Crossed – the other person reacts from an unexpected ego state

– Ulterior – two ego states within the same person but one disguises the other

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Complementary ‘Transactions’

Interactions, responses, actions regarded as appropriate and expected from another person.

Parallel communication arrows, communication continues.

Such transaction in our lives make our relationship with others happy and long lasting

Example:

#1 What time do you have?

#2 I’ve got 11:15.

P

A

C

P

A

C

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Crossed ‘Transactions’

Interactions, responses, actions NOT regarded as appropriate or expected from another person.

Crossed communication arrows, communication breakdown.

Example 1#1 What time do you have?

#2 There’s a clock on the wall, why don’t you figure it out yourself?

P

A

C

P

A

C

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Ulterior ‘Transactions’

Interactions, responses, actions which are different from those explicitly stated

Involve more than two ego state at same time.

Example#1 How about coming up to my room and

listening to some music?P

A

C

P

A

C

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CONCLUSION

Transactional Analysis is a rational and

easy to understand method of clarifying

and managing human relationships

and behaviours and a clinical method of

psychotherapy.

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KEYWORDS

• Transactional Analysis• Ego States• PAC Model• Parent Ego State• Adult Ego State• Child Ego State• Life Positions• Complementary Transactions• Crossed Transactions• Ulterior Transactions

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REFERENCES

Gibson.R.L. & Mitchell.M.H.(2008), Introduction to Counselling and Guidance (7th Ed). PHI Learnig Pvt Ltd : New Delhi

Clarkson.P. (1992). Transactional Analysis and Psychotherapy . Routlodge: London and New York

Palmer.S. (2000) Introduction to Counseling and Psychotherapy .Sage Publications:London

Thompson.R.A. (2003) Counseling Techniques (2nd Ed). Routledge: New York

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Thank You…