Drama triangle - Transactional Analysis

Prepared By Manu Melwin JoyResearch Scholar

School of Management StudiesCUSAT, Kerala, India.Phone – 9744551114

Mail – manu_melwinjoy@yahoo.com

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Drama Triangle• Stephen Karpman

devised a simple yet powerful diagram for analyzing games, the drama triangle.

• He suggested that whenever people play games, they are stepping into one of three script roles: Persecutor, Rescuer or Victim.

Persecutor

• He is someone who puts

other people down and

belittles them.

• The persecutor views

others as being one

down and not ok.

Rescuer

• He sees others as being

not OK and one down.

• But the rescuer responds

by offering help from a

one up position.

Victim• He is himself one down

and not OK. • Sometimes, the victim

will seek a persecutor to put him down and push him around.

• The victim may be in search of a rescuer who will offer help and confirm the victim’s belief “I can’t cope on my own”.

Drama Triangle• Every one of the drama

triangle roles entails a discount. Both persecutor and rescuer discount others.

• The persecutor discounts other’s value and dignity. Extreme persecutor may discount other people’s right to life and physical health.

• The rescuer discounts others abilities to think for themselves and act on their own initiative.

• A victim discounts himself.

Activity

• Take one minute to write down all the words you can think of that might be applied to a persecutor.

• Do the same for a Rescuer and for a victim.

Drama Roles• All three drama triangle

roles are inauthentic.• When people are in one

of these roles, they are responding to the past rather than to the here and now.

• They are using old scripty strategies they decided upon as children or took on board from their parents.

Drama Triangle• To signal the

inauthenticity of the triangle roles, the words Persecutor, Rescuer and Victim are spelled with initial capitals.

• If we spell the words beginning with small letters, we mean real life persecutors, rescuers or victims.

Activity• Can you think of a real life

persecutor who would not also be a persecutor.

• What would be examples of the difference between an authentic rescuer and a person playing the role of Rescuer.

• Would you say it is possible for anyone to be a victim without also being a Victim.

Switch• Usually, someone who

is playing a game will start at one of the positions and then will switch to another.

• This switch in Drama Triangle positions takes place at the moment of the Switch in the Game formula.

Activity

• What drama triangle

switched did you make

in your own personal

game example.

Thank You

Other TA topics available on slideshare1. Strokes - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/strokes-24081607.

2. Games People Play - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/psychological-games-people-play.

3. Structural Analysis - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/the-ego-state-model.4. What is TA? - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/what-ta-is5. Cycles of Development -

http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/cycles-of-developement-pamela-levin-transactional-analysis.

6. Stages of Cure - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/stages-of-cure.7. Transactions - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/transactions-33677298.8. Time Structuring - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/time-structuring.9. Life Position - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/life-position.10. Autonomy - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/autonomy-33690557. 11. Structural Pathology - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/structural-pathology.12. Game Analysis - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/game-analysis-33725636.13. Integrated Adult - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/integrated-adult.14. Stroke Economy - http://www.slideshare.net/manumjoy/stroke-economy-33826702.