A Transactional Analytic View of War and Peace

Since Eric Berne did not provide an in-depth objective analysis of war as a transactional game, the author takes on the daunting task of confronting this horseman of the apocalypse. He focuses on intergroup conflicts, which can escalate into violence that results in mortal combat. The structural and transactional bases of violent conflict are examined to show how contaminated thinking from polarized political and religious ideologies and feelings lead to such conflict. The example of two countries in conflict is used to illustrate crossed and ulterior transactions that can interfere with peace efforts. Using Berne’s (1972) Formula G, the author introduces an example of a game that he calls “Tyrants and Terrorists” to demonstrate how a game of war can start. For wars in general, he uses Berne’s original analysis of life games. The goal of this article is to stimulate dialogue on how transactional analysts, working together with the international community, can contribute their expertise to preventing war.