This document provides an overview of transactional analysis (TA). It discusses key concepts in TA including ego states (parent, adult, child), complementary vs crossed transactions, and life positions. TA is a model for understanding how and why people think, act, and interact the way they do. It emphasizes problem solving, mutual understanding and respect between people. Mastering TA can help people improve their communication, relationships, and emotional intelligence.

1. Why understand TA?

2. Why understand TA?
 People are OK as long as each person has validity, importance and
equality of respect.
 Everyone (with only few exceptions) has full adult capability to think.
 People decide their story and destiny.
 The aims of TA is problem solving as opposed to avoidance or
passivity and learning to make the right choices.
 The ultimate objective of TA is „You are OK, I am OK‟.
 Mastering TA empowers you with Tactful Awareness!

3. TA
 Is a model for explaining why and how:
 People think like they do
 People act like they do
 People interact and communicate with others like they do
 TA published works can be found in the following books:
 Games People Play (Dr. Eric Berne)
 I’m OK - - You’re OK (Dr. Tom Harris)
 Born to Win (Dr. Dorothy Jongeward)

4. Most Successful People . . .
 Are psychologists first, being students of „people‟, sensitive to
feelings and emotions, not anxious to rush into engagements until
they know the kind of person they are dealing with.
 Understand people:
 Because they are different. What appeals to one person may
not work with another.
 They must buy into you before what you propose.
 Are excellent communicators
 Emphasis is on the „body language‟ and not the literature!!

5. TA
 Has 4 life positions:
 I‟m OK; you‟re OK
 I‟m not OK; you‟re OK
 I‟m OK; you‟re not OK
 I‟m not OK; you‟re not OK
 Individuals need to feel
adequate (satisfied)

6. TA
 Is based on:
 Ego Drive
 Distinct Ego states
1) Adult
2) Parent
3) Child

7. Adult Ego State
 Relating as equals
 Reasons dominating Emotions
 Decisions made on
 Logic
 Computations
 Probabilities
 etc.,.

8. Parent Ego State
 Telling others „WHAT‟ or „HOW‟ to do.
 Caring
 Shouldering Responsibility
 Working to Succeed
 Anger
 Fault Finding
 Etc
are all found within the Parent Ego state.

9. Parent Ego State
 Nurturing Parent
 Sympathetic, caring views.
 Eg: Let me show you …………………
 Critical Parent
 Fault finding, judgmental, conflicting views.
 Eg: Questioning, Comparing, Know it all, Do as I say approaches.

10. Child Ego State
 Being submissive, throwing temper tantrums and flaunting
authority.
 Distractible
 Fun
 Shy responsibility
 Taking/following instructions
 Curiosity
 Explore
 Child-like examples
Impulsive Happy Curious
Self-centered Pleasure seeking Eager to please
Angry Rebellious
Fearful

11. Child Ego State
 Natural
 Pleasure seeking, Happy State
 Adaptive
 Taking/Follow instructions, Good desciple
 Rebellious
 Curiosity, Break away from norm, Creative

12. 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

13. Human Interaction Analysis
 A transaction = any interaction or communication between 2
people
 People send and receive messages out of and into their different
ego states
 How people say something (what others hear?) just as important
as what is said
 Types of communication, interactions
1) Complementary
2) Crossed
3) Ulterior

14. What Does That Mean?
 This morning, Ram said to Sita, “Why don‟t I take you to
dinner tonight?” To explain what Ram meant, likely
depended on how he asked the question.

15. Intonations: It‟s the Way You Say It!
Placement of the emphasis What it means
Why don‟t I take you to dinner tonight? I was going to take someone else.
Why don‟t I take you to dinner tonight? Instead of the guy you were going with.
Why don’t I take you to dinner tonight? I‟m trying to find a reason why I
shouldn‟t take you.
Why don‟t I take you to dinner tonight? Do you have a problem with me?
Why don‟t I take you to dinner tonight? Instead of going on your own.
Why don‟t I take you to dinner tonight? Instead of lunch tomorrow.
Why don‟t I take you to dinner tonight? Not tomorrow night.

16. Types of transaction
 Complementary
 Crossed

17. Complementary „Transactions‟
 Interactions, responses, actions regarded as appropriate and
expected from another person.
 Parallel communication arrows, communication continues.
Example 1: # How much time do you have?
# I‟ve got 10 mins.
P P
A A
C C

18. Complementary „Transactions‟
Example 2:
 Single response
# You‟re late again!
P P
# I‟m sorry. It won‟t happen again.
A A
C C

19. Crossed „Transactions‟ cont‟d
 Interactions, responses, actions NOT regarded as appropriate or
expected from another person.
 Crossed communication arrows, communication breakdown.
Example 3: # You‟re late again!
# Yeah. I know. I had a flat tyre.
P P
A A
C C

20. Crossed „Transactions‟
Example 4: # What time is it now?
# There‟s a clock on the wall, why don‟t you
figure it out yourself?
P P
A A
C C

21. Implications of TA
 Develop strategies based on Ego situations
 Try for the „Best‟ communication exchange
 Responding in „complementary‟ manner
 Most effective decisions are always in adult to adult transaction
 Strokes or positive interactions are extremely important
 Greet with a smile (first interaction)
 Touch (handshake, pat on back)
 Give compliments whenever possible!
 Listen more than talk!

22. Become a „Response Able‟ Person
 Recognize you cannot control others behavior. But you can affect
their behavior by the way you respond to them
 Remember you control your own behavior and thoughts.
1) Keep things in perspective
 Don‟t sweat small stuff
 Give it test of time
 Ask if it‟s happened before
 Distinguish what can be changed from what can‟t
 Focus on haves vs. have nots (only 10% of people in the
world know what want)
2) Have realistic expectations
 Life is not fair or perfect
 Bad (good) things happen, usually don‟t last forever
 Things don‟t always go according to plan
 People don‟t always act as you‟d like (remember ego state
explanations)

23. TA on Mind & Emotions
Happiness, Optimism ,
State of
Sadness Pessimism
Mind
Internal
Energy
Excitement, Emotions Pleasure,
Anxiety External Grief
Energy

24. TA Provides for Inter-dependence
C
Fear
P
Inter-
dependence
People A A
Respect
Work
Quality
streamlined
Process Product

25. TA Helps to Build Emotional Intelligence
95% of
normal
humans have
scores of 70 - Work Life
135 IQ Balance
Response EQ
Ability 2 Knowledge
QI

26. Use TA to Deal with Difficult Customers
 Keep „adult‟ ego state in control of yourself.
 Don‟t get defensive, argumentative, emotional.
 Don‟t take it personal. (Most problems comes from this!)
 Move cautiously, stay cool, remember complementary
transactions and strokes.
 Do not need to take continued abuse. (TA does not
mean take abuse!!!!)
 If handled well (e.g. did not embarrass customer, allow
them to take something out on you), can turn out to be
positive later.

27. TA Sales Quotes:
 When a relationship is right, details are
negotiable
 When tension is high, details become
obstacles.

28. TA Sales Rules:
 Rule #1:
The customer is never wrong.
 Rule #2:
If the customer is wrong, read rule #1.