Transactional Analysis Now: Gift or Commodity?

Abstract

“What is good is given back”: So reads the dedication to Lewis Hyde's (2006) book, The Gift: How the Creative Spirit Transforms the World. Hyde looks at gift economies from traditional cultures to contemporary society and contrasts them with the commodification that results from market forces and extends even to works of art. In this article, the author discusses how these ideas can also affect psychology, especially the humanistic and radical psychology of transactional analysis. She explores what choices we can make in sharing and exchanging our own gifts. This article is based on a keynote speech delivered on 13 August at the 2010 ITAA Eric Berne Centenary Conference in Montreal, Canada.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Trudi Newton

Trudi Newton is a Teaching and Supervising Transactional Analyst (education) and a writer, researcher, and consultant who works nationally and internationally with educators to facilitate radical learning and community development. She can be contacted at Langley Cottage, Chelmondiston IP9 1HS, United Kingdom; e-mail [email protected].