Transactional analysis is a model of personality and communication developed by Eric Berne in the 1960s. It views communication as occurring through three ego states: parent, adult, and child. The parent ego state involves messages learned from one's own parents. The adult ego state approaches communication rationally and objectively. The child ego state involves emotional reactions based on feelings from childhood. Transactional analysis is used to better understand behaviors in relationships and communicate more effectively by being aware of which ego state one is operating in.