TRANSACTIONAL ANALYSIS…

A method to improve communication

According to TA, all forms of communication are transactions.

Transactional Analysis suggests that communication requires a contract or agreement between the communicators.

This contract includes:

•Why they want to do something •With whom •What they are going to do •By when •Any fees, payment or exchanges there will be

• What transactions or contracts can you see here?

• For the communication transaction to be successful, it needs to be:

•Congruent…everyone has the same expectations

•Positive… stated in terms of what is wanted, not what is not wanted.

•Detailed… these will depend on the nature of the contract

•Manageable… parties need to be competent and able to do what is asked.

• Transactional analysis says that the way we relate to each other is the result of three ego states.

PARENT: thoughts, behaviours and feelings copied from parents and other authority figures

ADULT: thoughts, feelings and behaviours that are rational responses to the present.

CHILD: thoughts, feelings and behaviours from childhood.

The Parent Ego State is comprised of the set of feelings, thought patterns and behaviours that we copy from others.

The Adult Ego State is our direct response to the present. When we are in the Adult Ego State, we deal with things without negative influences from our past.

The Child Ego State is a set of thoughts, feelings and behaviours that we replay from our own childhood.

Talk about this video clip. What ego state(s) can you see at play?

According to Transactional Analysis, there are two types of communication transactions that can occur, based on these ego states:

Complementary Transactions

Crossed Transactions

REFERENCES

• Berne, E. (1986). Games people play. Reading: Cox & Wyman.