What is Transactional Analysis?

Transactional Analysis is a psychotherapy theory developed by psychiatrist Eric Berne in the 1950s.

This theory focuses on understanding the communication patterns between individuals and the roles they play in different situations. It is used to help people understand and improve their communication, relationships and overall emotional health.

Berne’s Transactional Analysis theory identifies three distinct ego states in each individual: the Parent, the Adult, and the Child. Each ego state is associated with certain internal dialogue and behavior.

• The Parent ego state is the part of us that holds our values, beliefs, and opinions that we have learned from society, culture, and our parents.
• The Adult ego state is the part of us that uses logic and reason to make decisions and solve problems.
• The Child ego state is the part of us that holds our emotional responses and feelings.

The theory states that in any given situation, we may switch between these three ego states.

For example, we may respond to a situation in our Parent ego state by using authority, rules, and expectations that have been learned from our parents. We may respond in our Adult ego state by using logic and reasoning to evaluate the situation. And we may respond in our Child ego state by expressing our emotions and feelings.

By understanding how these three ego states interact, we can learn how to effectively communicate with others, build better relationships, and improve our overall emotional health.

We can better understand how our own emotions and behaviors affect our interactions with others and how we can better manage our emotions and reactions. This can help us to become better communicators and develop healthier relationships with those around us.