Gratitude in Terms of Transactional Analysis

Abstract

Gratitude is one of the rarest researched aspect of human interaction. Partially because in scientific reflection gratitude and gift giving is generally treated as a sign of corruption. Research held in Polish public hospitals on the topic of gift giving to medical staff shows that patients very precisely differentiate bribes from gifts as a token of gratitude.In TA there there is very difficult to find any reflection about gratitude, however Erskine admits that need of showing gratitude appears to be one of the most significants relational needs he noticed. Gratitude is not easy to analyse in TA terms because it is both an emotion and cultural attitude. As an emotion it is a kind of joy, one of the four authentic emotions according Eric Berne. As a cultural response it activated equally three Ego States: Parent, Adult and Child. What is more – a need for showing gratitude in a form of benevolent action toward the person someone feels gratitude for and this is an occasion to make a step towards intimacy.