Transactional Analysis DEFINITIONS transactional analysis - by Dr.

Dr. Eric Berne - is the method for studying interactions between individuals with using one of Bernes Three Ego States: Child, Parent and Adult transaction - the unit of social intercourse according to Dr. Berne - is an exchange or interaction, verbal or nonverbal, between two or more persons - If two or more people encounter each other sooner or later one of them will speak, or give some other indication of acknowledging the presence of the others. This is called transactional stimulus. Another person will then say or do something which is in some way related to the stimulus, and that is called the transactional response. Dr. Eric Berne complementary transaction - occurs when stimulus given by one person gets the expected response from another person - the response must go back from the receiving ego state to the sending ego state - For Example: Adult Agent: Do you know when my pen is? o Adult Respondent: Yes, I think I saw it on the desk. complementary transaction Husband: Im tired tonight. (Adult Agent) Wife: I understand. (Adult Respondent) Husband: Lets not have sex. (Child Agent) Wife: OK. (Child Respondent) crossed transaction - an ego state different than the ego state which received the stimuli is the one that responds - an unexpected response - For Example: Wife: Can you carve the roast? (Adult Agent, note this stimuli is directed at the Respondents Adult)

Husband: Why are you always telling me what to do? (Child Respondent directed to Wifes Parent Ego State) ulterior transaction - two messages exchange: one social (overt) and one psychological (covert) 1. ostensible/overt -a spoken agreement, usually Adult-to-Adult - both Adults say I do 2. ulterior/covert -an unspoken agreement, usually Child-to-Child -has a secret message 3. Duplex - two ego states in both persons are active - the behavior that follows a duplex transaction depends more on the secret message than on the spoken message - For Example Husband: where do you want to eat tonight? (Adult) Wife: it doesnt matter to me (Adult) Husband: I want to eat at Casa Verde (Child) Wife: We always go where you want to go! (Child) 4. Angular - a person directs a message toward one ego state but directs another message to another ego state of the same person - Husband: If you are dissatisfied, you can get a divorce. (directed: Wifes Adult and Child ego state) To Wifes Adult ego state: You can get a divorce. To Wifes Child ego state: Want to go it alone? - Wifes Child Respondent to Husband: Im not THAT dissatisfied. 5. Locked - implied agreement between people - usually Parent-to-Child and vice-versa - For Example: Child Agent: If Im sick, you take care of me. o Adult Respondent: If youre sick, Ill take care of you. bulls-eye transaction - a transaction that addresses all ego states - For Example: I can see you are upset (Adult to Child)

and that you dont want to show weakness (Adult to Parent) many people cry when they first recall painful memories (Adult to Adult) ego state - a consistent pattern of feeling and experience directly related to a corresponding consistent pattern of behavior according to Dr. Berne - Child, Parent and Adult Parent Ego State - the majority of the external events experienced by a child are actions of the parent, the ego state was appropriately called Parent. - Note that events perceived by the child from individuals that are NOT parents (but who are often in parent-like roles) are also recorded in the Parent. - Examples of recordings in the Parent include: Never talk to strangers Always chew with your mouth closed Look both ways before you cross the street Child Ego State - In contrast to the Parent, the Child represents the recordings in the brain of internal events associated with external events the child perceives. - stored in the Child are the emotions or feelings which accompanied external events. - Examples of recordings in the Child include: When I saw the monsters face, I felt really scared The clown at the birthday party was really funny! Adult Ego State - Close to one year of age, a child begins to exhibit gross motor activity. (beginning of the Adult in the small child) - Adult data grows out of the childs ability to see what is different than what he or she observed (Parent) or felt (Child). - the Adult allows the young person to evaluate and validate Child and Parental data. - Berne describes the Adult as being principally concerned with transforming stimuli into pieces of information, and processing and filing that information on the basis of previous experience One of the key functions of the Adult is to validate data in the parent., for example:

Wow. It really is true that pot handles should always be turned into the stove said Sally as she saw her brother burn himself when he grabbed a pot handle sticking out from the stove. - Sallys Adult reached the conclusion that data in her Parent was valid. - Her Parent had been taught always turn pot handles into the stove, otherwise you could get burned. And with her analysis of her brothers experience, her Adult concluded that this was indeed correct. SUMMARY - Parent: what the person observes from external events or stimuli - Child: what the person internally percepts in feelings and emotions as a result from external events and stimuli - Adult: turning external stimuli into pieces of information and storing it as a previous experience - time structuring - how intensely people spend time with other people - ritual - an individuals everyday behavior IMPORTANCE OF TRANSACTIONAL ANALYSIS Importance of Transactional Analysis improve communication shows how one communicates and behaves with others helps us to understand what happens in human interaction shows if whether a communication is destructive or constructive gives an increase in self-awareness and advances self-development gives equality between the therapist and the patient

Complementary transactions

along with a stern look will usually mean a Parent > Child ulterior. - The meaning of the communication will always be at the ulterior level: this is the third rule of communication. TIME STRUCTURE: - Berne described how we structure our time in order to gain strokes and to meet our need for structure... we all have a drive or need to Complementary transactions: Where the ego structure our lives. state responding is complimentary to the ego As you move through the different ways of state offering the stimulus... when drawn the spending time from 1-6 the level of strokes vectors indicating the transaction are parallel. exchanged increases. Communication first rule is ... communication Awareness of time-structure can give people will continue if the transactions are extra options in choosing how they will use their complementary! time in order to gain the strokes they need. The diagram is of an Adult : Adult 6 WAYS OF STRUCTURING TIME: complimentary transaction. l. WITHDRAWAL: Entering into their own private Crossed Transactions world, only internal fantasy strokes are available. 2. RITUALS: Hi there How are you 3. PASTlMES: Aint it awful Have you seen? 4. ACTIVITIES: Often group activity such as playing football and strokes are frequently given according to performance. 5. GAMES AND RACKETEERING: Transactions Crossed Transactions: Where the vectors in the with ulterior messages. diagram are crossed: When the ego state 6. INTIMACY: Strokes are freely given and addressed is different for the one responding spontaneous with material from all three ego states the communication ceases. This is the second being available. rule of communication. There are no ulterior transactions or The diagram shows a Parent to Child stimulus is motivations. crossed with an Adult response. Ulterior Transactions Ulterior Transactions: There is a social and an ulterior level transaction. The social level is the o socially acceptable stimulus... for example, do you know what time it is? Ulterior transactions are by definition out of the persons awareness... it is an unconscious process. The ulterior level can be either: Parent > Child ... "You stupid boy, you are late!" or Child > Parent... "Please don't be angry; I did my best to get it finished on time ". The ulterior transaction is shown as a broken line in the transactional diagram The meaning will be made clear to the receiver by the use of non-verbal language clues... a wagging finger for example