Managerial Communication

Transactional Analysis
 Overview:

• Transactional Analysis is a personality theory which gives us a picture of how

people are structured psychologically.

• Transactional Analysis is underpinned by the philosophy that people can change

and we all have a right to be in the world and be accepted.

• Transactional Analysis (TA) was greatly influenced by one of the foremost

theories in Personality, the Psychoanalysis by Sigmund Freud
 Overview Contd…
• But Freud’s greatest contribution to Eric Berne’s theory was the fact that the
human personality is multi-faceted

• Another contributory to Eric Berne’s theory would be Dr. Wilder Penfield who did
experiments on the application of electrical currents to specific regions of the
brain.

• Berne mapped interpersonal relationships to three ego-states of the individuals

involved: the Parent, Adult, and Child state.

• He then investigated communications between individuals based on the current

state of each. He called these interpersonal interactions transactions and used
the label games to refer to certain patterns of transactions which popped up
repeatedly in everyday life.
Transactional Analysis is
Primarily Concerned with
following:
• Analysis of Self Awareness

• Analysis of Ego States

• Analysis of Transactions

• Script Analysis

• Games Analysis

• Analysis of Life Positions

• Stroking
 The Birth of
Transactional Analysis
 The Theory

• A transaction – the fundamental unit of social intercourse.

• A transactional stimulus. 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.

• A transactional response. Another person will then say or do something which is in

some way related to the stimulus.

The Agent - The person sending the stimulus.

Respondent - The person who responds.

JOHARI WINDOW
 Three Ego States

• The human brain works like a camcorder it records all our thoughts, feelings and
emotions since childhood which we tend to replay in our adult life.

• Ego state - a consistent pattern of feeling and experience directly related to a

corresponding consistent pattern of behavior.
 Parent
This is a set of feelings, thinking and behavior that
we have copied from our parents and significant others.

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

Physical - angry or impatient body-language and

expressions, finger-pointing, patronising gestures,

Verbal - always, never, for once and for all, judgmental

words, critical words, patronising language,
posturing language.
Two Types of Parent Ego -
 Adult
This go state is about direct responses to the here and now.
We deal with things that are going on today in ways that
are not unhealthily influenced by our past.

“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.”

Physical - attentive, interested, straight-forward, tilted

head, non-threatening and non-threatened.

Verbal - why, what, how, who, where and when, how

much, in what way, comparative expressions, reasoned
statements, true, false, probably, possibly, I think, I realise,
I see, I believe, in my opinion
 Child
This is a set of behaviors, thoughts and feelings which are
replayed from our own childhood.
- Child are the emotions or feelings which accompanied
external events.

“When I saw the monster’s face, I felt really scared”

“The clown at the birthday party was really funny”

Physical - emotionally sad expressions, despair, temper

tantrums, whining voice, delight, laughter, speaking behind
hand, raising hand to speak, squirming and giggling.

Verbal - baby talk, I wish, I dunno, I want, I'm gonna, I

don't care, oh no, not again, things never go right for me,
worst day of my life, bigger, biggest, best, many superlatives,
words to impress.
Child Ego
 Analyzing Transactions

Structural Analysis - the process of analysing personality in terms of ego states.

Straight Transactions (or Complementary Transactions) - the response must

go back from the receiving ego state to the sending ego state.

Simplest Transactions are between Adult - Adult ego states.

Parent – Child transactions are almost as simple as Adult-Adult transactions

Concept Map
 Crossed Transactions

Not all transactions between humans are healthy or normal. In those cases, the
transaction is classified as a crossed transaction.

In a crossed transaction, an ego state different than the ego state which received the
stimuli is the one that responds.

Example:

Agent’s Adult: “Do you know where my cuff links are?” (note that this stimuli is
directed at the Respondents Adult).

Respondent’s Child: “You always blame me for everything!”

Crossed Transactions Ulterior Transactions
 Straight and Crossed
Transactions

When we learn to recognize and differentiate between straight and crossed

transactions we increase our ability to communicate clearly with others.

Conversations made up of straight transactions are more emotionally satisfying and

productive than conversations that have frequent crossed transactions.

Transactional Analysts will pay attention to all of the cues including non-verbal cues
when analyzing a transaction and identifying which ego states are involved.
 Ulterior Transactions

Berne says that we can communicate on two levels. There is the social message –
what we say, and the psychological message – what we mean.

Sarcasm is a great example of this. When we are sarcastic what we say is the
opposite of what we mean.
 Strokes
Berne defined a stroke as the “fundamental unit of social action.”

Berne introduced the idea of strokes into Transactional Analysis based upon the
work of Rene Spitz, a researcher who did pioneering work in the area of child
development

Berne postulated that adults need physical contact just like infants, but have
learned to substitute other types of recognition instead of physical stimulation.

Berne defined the term recognition-hunger as this requirement of adults to receive

strokes.

Positive or Negative, is better than no strokes at all. Or, as summarized in TA Today,

“any stroke is better than no stroke at all.”
 Life Scripts and
Early Decisions

A life script is an unconscious life plan based on decisions made in early childhood
about ourselves, others, and our lives.

The early decision (or sets of early decisions) is the most important part of our life
script

It is what we do with these messages that are so important

 Existential Positions

These are:

I'm OK, You're OK

I'm OK, You're Not OK

I'm Not OK, You're OK

I'm Not OK, You're Not OK

 Existential Positions
I am OK, you are OK:
It appears to be an ideal life position. People with this type of life position have
confidence in themselves as well as trust and confidence in others.

I am OK, you are not OK:

This is a distrustful psychological positions. This is the attitude of those people,
who think that whatever they do is correct.

I am not OK, you are OK:

This is a common position for those people who feel power less when they
compare themselves to others.

I am not OK,, you are not OK:

people in this position tend to feel bad about themselves and see the whole
world as miserable. They do not trust others and have no confidence in
themselves.
 Games
“A game is an ongoing series of complementary ulterior transactions progressing to
a well-defined, predictable outcome. Descriptively, it is a recurring set of
transactions… with a concealed motivation… or gimmick

Games are learned patterns of behaviour, and most people play a small number of
favourite games with a range of different people and in varying intensities.
 GAMES ANALYSIS
When people fail to get enough strokes at work they try a variety of things.

One of the most important thing is that they play psychological games.
A psychological game is a set of transaction with three characteristics:

The transaction tend to be repeated.

They make sense on superficial or social level.

One or more transactions is ulterior.
 Types of Games:
• First Degree games are played in social circles generally lead to mild upsets
not major traumas.

• Second Degree games occur when the stakes may be higher. This usually
occurs in more intimate circles, and ends up with an even greater negative
payoff.

• Third Degree games involve tissue damage and may end up in the jail, hospital
or morgue.
 People play games for
these Reasons:
• To structure time

• To acquire strokes

• To maintain the substitute feeling and the system of thinking, beliefs and actions
that go with it

• To confirm parental injunctions and further the life script

• To maintain the person's life position by "proving" that self/others are not OK

• To provide a high level of stroke exchange while blocking intimacy and

maintaining distance

• To make people predictable

Examples of games players are:

• The Persecutor: "if it weren't for you", "see what you made me do", "yes,
but".

• The Rescuer: "I'm only trying to help", "what would you do without me?“

• The Victim: "this always happens to me", "poor old me", "go on, kick me".
 Discussion –
Similarities to Other Theories
• Transactional Analysis (TA) first and foremost is similar to that of Sigmund
Freud’s three components of the personality.

• Humanistic perspective particularly Carl Roger’s humanistic psychology. Both

theorists believe that people can change and grow.
Differences from Other Theories
• Eric Berne focused on the treatment of the observable transactions known as
"games" rather than on the unconscious drives for sex and hunger of that of
Freud.
 Critical Analysis
• Transactional Analysis is indeed a fresh method in our approach to understanding
ourselves. I find it very simple and quite easy to understand, since it uses terms
that are of our age which many people could easily relate to it.

• I also agree to TA ‘s philosophy that indeed we as human being have the right to
be here and we have the capacity to change and grow.
Characterization
 STROKING
• Stroking is an important aspects of the transactional analysis.

• The term stroke refers to “giving some kind of recognition to others.”

• People need strokes for their sense of survival and well being on the job. Lack of
stroking can have negative consequences both on physiological and
psychological well being of a person.

• There are three types of strokes:

 Types of Strokes
1.Positive strokes:
the stroke one feel good, is a positive stroke. Recognition, approval are
some of the examples.

2. Negative strokes:
a stroke one feel bad or not good is a negative stroke. negative strokes hurt
physically or psychologically.

3.Mixed strokes:
a stroke may be of a mixed type also.

Example :the boss comment to a worker “you did an excellent job inspite your
limited experience.
 Benefits and Utility of TA
• Improved Interpersonal Communication.

• Source of Positive Energy.

• Understanding Ego State.

• Motivation.

• Organisational Development.
 Selling Implications of
Transactional Analysis
• Developing an Adaptive Selling Strategy for ‘Parent’, ‘Adult’, ‘Child’ type of
customers

• ‘Best’ Communication Exchange for Selling?

• Strokes or Positive Interactions are Important

• Being a Responsible Sales Person

 Suggested / Further Reading
• Eric Berne M. D., 1964, Games People Play, Grove Press.

• Thomas Anthony Harris, 1967, I’m OK – You’re OK, Harper.

• Muriel James and Dorothy Jongeward, 1978, Born to Win, Penguine Publishing
Group

• Deepak Behl, 2012, Winning is Everything, Sterling Publishers

Thank You
For Being Emotionally Intelligent