TRANSECTIONAL

ANALYSIS
 Interpersonal Skills

language &
communication
listening using
feedback

questioning
conflict handling

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 Eric Berne and Transactional
Analysis

A transaction consists of a transactional

stimulus and transactional response.

A model for explaining why and how:

People think like they do
People act like they do
People interact/communicate with
others
 Ego States

An ego state is a pattern of behavior that a

person develops as he/she grows, based on the
accumulated network of feelings &
experiences.
People have three ego states: parent, adult,
child
Parent: when a person thinks, feels &
behaves in ways copied from his/her parents
Child: thinking, feeling, behaving as one did
as a child
Adult: thoughts, feelings, or behaviors that
are a direct result of current happenings
Key point: people shift in & out of these states4
 The Three Ego States

Parent- Do as I do
Child- What shall I do?
Adult- I will be frank with you
Biological conditions are irrelevant to these ego
states.
We shift from one ego state to another in
transactions.
Parent- Why dont you prepare a time-
table?
Child- What is the point when one cannot
follow it? Becomes an Adult. 5
 Ego Portraits

People have favorite, preferred ego state, depicted

by larger circle in a diagram
Parent Adult Child

P P
P

A
A
A

C
C C
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Transactional Analysis further
development

Parent & child ego states subdivided

Parent state:
Controlling/Critical or nurturing
Child state:
Natural child, The little professor,
adaptive child
Adult state: current self

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 Parent Ego State
Thoughts, feelings, attitudes, behavioral patterns based
on messages or lessons learned from parents and
other parental or authoritarian sources

Shoulds and should nots; oughts and ought nots;

always and never

Prejudicial views (not based on logic or facts) on things

such as:
religion dress salespeople
traditionswork products
money raising children companies

Nurturing views (sympathetic, caring views)

Critical views (fault finding, judgmental, condescending
views)
 Adult Ego State

Thoughts, feelings, attitudes, behavioral

patterns based on objective analysis of
information (data, facts)

Make decisions based on logic, computations,

probabilities, etc. (not emotion)
 Child Ego State
Thoughts, feelings, attitudes, behavioral patterns
based on child-like emotions, impulses, feelings
we have experienced
Child-like examples

Impulsive Happy Curious

Self-centered Pleasure seeking Eager to please
Angry Rebellious
Fearful Happy
The three types of transactions
Complementary
Crossed
Ulterior

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 Types of Transactions

Complementary Transactions: Appropriate and

Expected Transactions indicating healthy
human relationships.
Communication takes place when transactions
are complementary. A stimulus invites a
response; this response becomes a stimulus
inviting further response and so on.

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Transactional Analysis Types
(I)
Complementary transaction

Supervisor Employee
P P
A A
C C

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 Eric Berne and Transactional Analysis

For a leader-follower, the following complementary

transactions could occur:

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Crossed Transaction: This causes most difficulties
in social situations.
May be, you should improve your study habits.
You always find fault with me whatever I do
Parent-Child interaction.

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Crossed transaction

Supervisor Employee
P P
A A
C C

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 Ulterior transaction

Interactions, responses, actions which are different from those

explicitly stated. Overt and Covert message

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#1 What time do you have?
#2 Ive got 11:15.

P P

A A

C C
#1 Youre late again!
#2 Yeah, I know, I had a flat tire.

P P

A A

C C
 #1 Youre late again!
P P
#2 Im sorry. It wont
A A happen again.

C C
#1 What time do you have?
#2 Theres a clock on the wall, why dont you
figure it out yourself?

P P

A A

C C
 How about coming up to my room and
listening to some music?

P P

A A

C C
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 Complementary, Crossed
and
ulterior/ covert Transactions

Complementary transaction occurs when

response to a
stimulus is from an expected ego state
A transaction is crossed when unexpected or
inappropriate response is made to a
transaction stimulus
A covert transaction contains hidden message
 Life Positions
Attitude toward Oneself

Positive Im OK Im OK
Youre not OK Youre OK

Im not OK Im not OK
Negative
Youre not OK Youre OK

Negative Positive

Attitude toward Others

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Four basic life scripts:
Im OK, youre OK ideal
Im OK, youre not OK get away
from me
Im not OK, youre OK Ill never
get anywhere
Im not OK, youre not OK get rid
of each other