[AI Synthesis]: Berne's structural analysis holds that every person carries Parent, Adult, and Child ego states—coherent bundles of thinking, feeling, and behavior—and shifts among them according to time and circumstance.
Three ego states
- At any moment in a social setting, a person operates from Parent, Adult, or Child, and can move between them with varying degrees of willingness.
- Once an ego state is recognized, it becomes the lens for reading what someone is doing and why.
- Everyone carries parents inside; everyone has an Adult; everyone carries a little boy or girl inside.
Parent
- "That's your Parent ego state" means your mind is acting like a parent figure from the past—same mannerisms, posture, vocabulary, and feelings.
- Parent appears in two forms: directly active ("Do as I do") and as an indirect influence ("Do as I say").
- Parent makes many responses automatic, which saves time and energy; it also enables effective care of real children.
Adult
- "That's your Adult ego state" means you assess the situation objectively and respond without prejudice—stating your reasoning, what you notice, or your conclusions.
- Adult is necessary for survival: it processes data and calculates how to handle the external world.
- Another Adult task is to constrain Parent and Child and mediate between them; satisfaction comes when that regulation succeeds.
Child
- "That's your Child ego state" means you react with the behavior and motives you would have had as a young boy or girl.
- Child is the most precious part of personality—charm, joy, and creativity; intuition, spontaneity, play, and fun live here.
- Two forms: adapted Child (shaped by Parent—compliant, precocious, withdrawing, whining) and natural Child (spontaneous—rebellion, creativity).
- There is no "immature person"—only people whose Child takes over at the wrong time; everyone has a complete Adult that can be activated.
Actions
- When a reaction feels automatic or over-familiar, name which ego state is running before deciding how to respond.
- Use Adult to check whether Parent scripts or Child impulses fit the present situation.
- Notice whether Child is adapted (performing for Parent) or natural (spontaneous).
Sources
| Source | Location | Role |
|---|---|---|
| books/Games People Play The Psychology of Human Relationships.epub | 1 Structural Analysis | primary |
| notes/2026-08-27-games-people-play.md | 1 · 結構分析 | highlights |