TA (Transactional analysis) is:

• a theory of personality,
• a model of communication,
• a system for analyzing organizational effectiveness,
• a systematic model for coaching
• as well as a systematic model of psychotherapy for personal growth and personal change.

Developed by Eric Berne, M.D., TA is outstanding in the depth of its theory and the wide variety of its applications.  Transactional Analysis is practiced worldwide and has national organizations for training and certification in most countries.

As a theory of personality, transactional analysis gives us a picture of how people are structured psychologically using the three part ego-state model, labelled "Parent", "Adult" and "Child".  Transactional analysis also provides a theory of communication using the same model.  TA is a method for analyzing systems and organizations and offers powerful tools to help leaders and teams perform their best.  The model is easily understood and yet it has the depth and breadth when applied to create workplaces where people are free to excel. It can help those same people create a life filled with purpose and joy. 

"The ego-state model itself is a developmental one, charting significant early experiences (child), the important influences of others (parent) and the integration of these into a here-and-now working reality (adult). Significant failures to meet a child's needs eventually lead to a psychological weakening and significant intra-psychic flaws. Ego states and life script map the internal and interpersonal difficulties that can arise when early needs are unmet.".(Lister Ford, 2002)

 When working person by person, the client is engaged with a transactional analyst as either a coach, counsellor or psychotherapist. The goal of this work is to love, change and be effective. The major goal of TA development / therapeutic work is the progression towards autonomy and the recovery of our capacity for awareness, spontaneity and intimacy. Most of us encounter limits in one or more of these areas as life presents challenges with which we feel ill prepared to deal. 

Transactional analysis further offers a theory of human development.  The concept of Life Script explains how our present life patterns originated in childhood and are played out in adulthood – in the workplace and in relationships.  The concepts of Rackets and Games provide explanations of how we may continue to replay childhood strategies in grown-up life, even when these produce results that are ultimately self-defeating, ineffective and often painful for the person or those around them. Read the business pages for real life examples of childhood strategies lived out ineffectively in organizations.

It is used in management development and training, communications training, and organizational analysis to improve working relationships, problem-solving, decision making, resolution of conflict and competition, and organizational efficiency. It is also used in educational settings to help teachers and learners stay in clear communication and avoid setting up unproductive confrontation.  As a system of psychotherapy it can be used with individuals, groups, couples, and families to treat all types of psychological disorders, from everyday problems of living to severe psychosis.  It is one of the clearest conceptual frameworks for understanding psychological issues and how those can be changed. In fact, transactional analysis can be used in any field in which there is a need for understanding organizations, individuals, relationships, and communication.

Practitioners of transactional analysis include leaders, consultants, coaches, managers, educators, executives, psychotherapists and people like you and me.