Karpman drama triangle - Wikipedia

Karpman. The triangle maps a type of destructive interaction that can occur among people in conflict. ... The drama triangle model is a tool used in psychotherapy ... Karpmandramatriangle FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia Jumptonavigation Jumptosearch Modelofhumaninteraction(proposed1968) DramatriangleproposedbyStephenKarpman TheKarpmandramatriangleisasocialmodelofhumaninteractionproposedbyStephenB.Karpman.Thetrianglemapsatypeofdestructiveinteractionthatcanoccuramongpeopleinconflict.[1]Thedramatrianglemodelisatoolusedinpsychotherapy,specificallytransactionalanalysis.Thetriangleofactorsinthedramaarepersecutors,victims,andrescuers. Karpmandescribedhowinsomecasestheseroleswerenotundertakeninan"honest"mannertoresolvethepresentingproblem,butratherwereusedfluidlyandswitchedbetweenbytheactorsinawaythatachievedunconsciousgoalsandagendas.Theoutcomeinsuchcaseswasthattheactorswouldbeleftfeelingjustifiedandentrenched,buttherewouldoftenbelittleornochangetothepresentingproblem,andothermorefundamentalproblemsgivingrisetothesituationremainedunaddressed. Contents 1Use 2Theory 3Historicalcontext 3.1Familytherapymovement 3.2Transactionsanalysis 3.3Triangles/triangulation 3.4Pathological/perversetriangles 3.5KarpmantriangleandEricBerne 4Transactionalanalysis 5Therapeuticmodels 6Seealso 7Furtherreading 7.1Books 7.2Articles 8References Use[edit] Throughpopularusage,andtheworkofStephenKarpmanandothers,Karpman'strianglehasbeenadaptedforuseinstructuralanalysisandtransactionalanalysis.[2] Theory[edit] Karpmanusedtrianglestomapconflictedordrama-intenserelationshiptransactions.[1]TheKarpmanDramaTrianglemodelstheconnectionbetweenpersonalresponsibilityandpowerinconflicts,andthedestructiveandshiftingrolespeopleplay.[3]Hedefinedthreerolesintheconflict;Persecutor,Rescuer(theoneuppositions)andVictim(onedownposition).Karpmanplacedthesethreerolesonaninvertedtriangleandreferredtothemasbeingthethreeaspects,orfacesofdrama.[1] TheVictim:TheVictiminthismodelisnotintendedtorepresentanactualvictim,butrathersomeonefeelingoractinglikeone.[1]TheVictimseekstoconvincethemselfandothersthattheycannotdoanything,nothingcanbedone,allattemptsarefutile,despitetryinghard.Onepayoffforthisstanceisavoidingrealchangeoracknowledgementoftheirtruefeelings,whichmaybringanxietyandrisk,whilefeelingtheyaredoingalltheycantoescapeit.Assuch,theVictim'sstanceis"Poorme!"TheVictimfeelspersecuted,oppressed,helpless,hopeless,powerless,ashamed,andseemsunabletomakedecisions,solveproblems,takepleasureinlife,orachieveinsight.TheVictimwillremainwithaPersecutoror,ifnotbeingpersecuted,willsetsomeoneelseupintheroleofPersecutor.Theywillalsoseekhelp,creatingoneormoreRescuerstosavetheday,whowillinrealityperpetuatetheVictim'snegativefeelingsandleavethesituationbroadlyunchanged. TheRescuer:TheRescuer'slineis"Letmehelpyou."Aclassicenabler,theRescuerfeelsguiltyiftheydon'tgototherescue,andultimatelybecomesangry(andbecomesaPersecutor)astheirhelpfailstoachievechange.Yettheirrescuinghasnegativeeffects:itkeepstheVictimdependentanddoesn'tallowtheVictimpermissiontofailandexperiencetheconsequencesoftheirchoices.TherewardsderivedfromthisrescuerolearethatthefocusistakenoffoftheRescuer,whocanalsofeelgoodforhavingtried,andjustifiedintheirnegativefeelings(totheotheractor/s)uponfailing.Whentheyfocustheirenergyonsomeoneelse,itenablesthemtoignoretheirownanxietyandissues.ThisrescueroleisalsopivotalbecausetheiractualprimaryinterestisreallyanavoidanceoftheirownproblemsdisguisedasconcernfortheVictim'sneeds. ThePersecutor:(a.k.a.Villain)ThePersecutorinsists,"It'sallyourfault."ThePersecutoriscontrolling,blaming,critical,oppressive,angry,authoritarian,rigid,andsuperior.But,ifblamedinturn,thePersecutormaybecomedefensive,andmayswitchrolestobecomeaVictimifattackedforcefullybytheRescuerand/orVictim,inwhichcasetheVictimmayalsoswitchrolestobecomeaPersecutor. Initially,adramatriangleariseswhenapersontakesontheroleofavictimorpersecutor.Thispersonthenfeelstheneedtoenlistotherplayersintotheconflict.Asoftenhappens,arescuerisencouragedtoenterthesituation.[4]Theseenlistedplayerstakeonrolesoftheirownthatarenotstatic,andthereforevariousscenarioscanoccur.Thevictimmightturnontherescuer,forexample,whiletherescuerthenswitchestopersecution. Thereasonthatthesituationpersistsisthateachparticipanthastheir(frequentlyunconscious)psychologicalwishes/needsmetwithouthavingtoacknowledgethebroaderdysfunctionorharmdoneinthesituationasawhole.Eachparticipantisactingupontheirownselfishneeds,ratherthanactinginagenuinelyresponsibleoraltruisticmanner.[citationneeded]Anycharactermight"ordinarilycomeonlikeaplaintivevictim;itisnowclearthattheonecanswitchintotheroleofPersecutorprovidingitis'accidental'andtheoneapologizesforit".[4] Themotivationsoftherescueraretheleastobvious.Inthetermsofthetriangle,therescuerhasamixedorcovertmotiveandbenefitsegoicallyinsomewayfrombeing"theonewhorescues".Therescuerhasasurfacemotiveofresolvingtheproblemandappearstomakegreateffortstosolveit,butalsohasahiddenmotivetonotsucceed,ortosucceedinawayinwhichtheybenefit.Theymaygetaself-esteemboost,forexample,orreceiverespectedrescuestatus,orderiveenjoymentbyhavingsomeonedependonthemandtrustthemandactinawaythatostensiblyseemstobetryingtohelp,butatadeeperlevelplaysuponthevictiminordertocontinuegettingapayoff.[citationneeded]. Therelationshipbetweenthevictimandtherescuermaybeoneofcodependency.Therescuerkeepsthevictimdependentbyencouragingtheirvictimhood.Thevictimgetstheirneedsmetbyhavingtherescuertakecareofthem. Participantsgenerallytendtohaveaprimaryorhabitualrole(victim,rescuer,persecutor)whentheyenterintodramatriangles.Participantsfirstlearntheirhabitualroleintheirfamilyoforigin.Eventhoughparticipantseachhavearolewithwhichtheymostidentify,onceonthetriangle,participantsrotatethroughallthethreepositions.[5] Eachtrianglehasa"payoff"forthoseplayingit.The"antithesis"ofadramatriangleliesindiscoveringhowtodeprivetheactorsoftheirpayoff.[1] Historicalcontext[edit] Familytherapymovement[edit] AfterWorldWarII,therapistsobservedthatwhilemanybattle-tornveteranpatientsreadjustedwellafterreturningtotheirfamilies,somepatientsdidnot;someevenregressedwhentheyreturnedtotheirhomeenvironment.Researchersfeltthattheyneededanexplanationforthisandbegantoexplorethedynamicsoffamilylife–andthusbeganthefamilytherapymovement.Priortothistime,psychiatristsandpsychoanalystsfocusedonthepatient'salready-developedpsycheanddownplayedoutsidedetractors.Intrinsicfactorswereaddressedandextrinsicreactionswereconsideredasemanatingfromforceswithintheperson.[1] Transactionsanalysis[edit] Inthe1950s,EricBernedevelopedtransactionalanalysis,amethodforstudyinginteractionsbetweenindividuals.ThisapproachwasprofoundlydifferentthanthatofFreud.WhileFreudreliedonaskingpatientsaboutthemselves,Bernefeltthatatherapistcouldlearnbyobservingwhatwascommunicated(words,bodylanguage,facialexpressions)inatransaction.Soinsteadofdirectlyaskingthepatientquestions,Bernewouldfrequentlyobservethepatientinagroupsetting,notingallofthetransactionsthatoccurredbetweenthepatientandotherindividuals.[6] Triangles/triangulation[edit] Thetheoryoftriangulationwasoriginallypublishedin1966byMurrayBowenasoneofeightpartsofBowen'sfamilysystemstheory.[1]MurrayBowen,apioneerinfamilysystemstheory,beganhisearlyworkwithschizophrenicsattheMenningerClinic,from1946to1954.Triangulationisthe“processwherebyatwo-partyrelationshipthatisexperiencingtensionwillnaturallyinvolvethirdpartiestoreducetension”.[7]Simplyput,whenpeoplefindthemselvesinconflictwithanotherperson,theywillreachouttoathirdperson.Theresultingtriangleismorecomfortableasitcanholdmuchmoretensionbecausethetensionisbeingshiftedaroundthreepeopleinsteadoftwo.[1] BowenstudiedthedyadofthemotherandherschizophrenicchildwhilehehadthembothlivinginaresearchunitattheMenningerclinic.BowenthenmovedtotheNationalInstituteofMentalHealth(NIMH),whereheresidedfrom1954to1959.AttheNIMHBowenextendedhishypothesistoincludethefather-mother-childtriad.Bowenconsidereddifferentiationandtrianglesthecruxofhistheory,BowenFamilySystemsTheory.Bowenintentionallyusedthewordtriangleratherthantriad.InBowenFamilySystemsTheory,thetriangleisanessentialpartoftherelationship. Coupleslefttotheirownresourcesoscillatebetweenclosenessanddistance.Twopeoplehavingthisimbalanceoftenhavedifficultyresolvingitbythemselves.Tostabilizetherelationship,thecoupleoftenseektheaidofathirdpartytohelpre-establishcloseness.Atriangleisthesmallestpossiblerelationshipsystemthatcanrestorebalanceinatimeofstress.Thethirdpersonassumesanoutsideposition.Inperiodsofstress,theoutsidepositionisthemostcomfortableanddesiredposition.Theinsidepositionisplaguedbyanxiety,alongwithitsemotionalcloseness.Theoutsiderservestopreservetheinsidecouple'srelationship.Bowennotedthatnotalltrianglesareconstructive–somearedestructive.[7] Pathological/perversetriangles[edit] In1968,NathanAckermanconceptualizedadestructivetriangle.Ackermanstated“weobservecertainconstellationsoffamilyinteractionswhichwehaveepitomizedasthepatternoffamilyinterdependence,rolesthoseofdestroyerorpersecutor,thevictimofthescapegoatingattack,andthefamilyhealerorthefamilydoctor.Ackermanalsorecognizedthepatternofattack,defense,andcounterattack,asshiftingroles.[8] KarpmantriangleandEricBerne[edit] In1968,StephenKarpman,whohadaninterestinactingandwasamemberoftheScreenActorsGuild,chose"dramatriangle"ratherthan"conflicttriangle"as,here,theVictiminhismodelisnotintendedtorepresentanactualvictim,butrathersomeonefeelingoractinglikeone.[1]Hefirstpublishedhistheoryinanarticleentitled"FairyTalesandScriptDramaAnalysis".Hisarticle,inpart,examinedthefairytale"LittleRedRidingHood"toillustrateitspoints.Karpmanwas,atthetime,arecentgraduateofDukeUniversitySchoolofMedicineandwasdoingpostpost-graduatestudiesunderBerne.[9]Berne,whofoundedthefieldtransactionalanalysis,encouragedKarpmantopublishwhatBernereferredtoas"Karpman'striangle".Karpman'sarticlewaspublishedin1968.In1972,KarpmanreceivedtheEricBerneMemorialScientificAwardforthework. Transactionalanalysis[edit] Mainarticle:Transactionalanalysis EricBerne,aCanadian-bornpsychiatrist,createdthetheoryoftransactionalanalysis,inthemiddleofthe20thcentury,asawayofexplaininghumanbehavior.Berne'stheoryoftransactionalanalysiswasbasedontheideasofFreudbutwasdistinctlydifferent.Freudianpsychotherapistsfocusedontalktherapyasawayofgaininginsighttotheirpatients'personalities.Bernebelievedthatinsightcouldbebetterdiscoveredbyanalyzingpatients’socialtransactions.[10] Gamesintransactionalanalysisreferstoaseriesoftransactionsthatiscomplementary(reciprocal),ulterior,andproceedstowardsapredictableoutcome.Inthiscontext,theKarpmanDramaTriangleisa"game". Gamesareoftencharacterizedbyaswitchinrolesofplayerstowardstheend.Thenumberofplayersmayvary.Gamesinthissensearedevicesused(oftenunconsciously)bypeopletocreateacircumstancewheretheycanjustifiablyfeelcertainresultingfeelings(suchasangerorsuperiority)orjustifiablytakeoravoidtakingcertainactionswheretheirowninnerwishesdifferfromsocietalexpectations.Theyarealwaysasubstituteforamoregenuineandfulladultemotionandresponsewhichwouldbemoreappropriate.Threequantitativevariablesareoftenusefultoconsiderforgames: Flexibility:"Theabilityoftheplayerstochangethecurrencyofthegame(thatis,thetoolstheyusetoplayit).'Somegames...canbeplayedproperlywithonlyonekindofcurrency,whileothers,suchasexhibitionisticgames,aremoreflexible",[11]sothatplayersmayshiftfromwords,tomoney,topartsofthebody. Tenacity:"Somepeoplegiveuptheirgameseasily,othersaremorepersistent",referringtothewaypeoplesticktotheirgamesandtheirresistancetobreakingwiththem. Intensity:"Somepeopleplaytheirgamesinarelaxedway,othersaremoretenseandaggressive.Gamessoplayedareknownaseasyandhardgames,respectively",[11]thelatterbeingplayedinatenseandaggressiveway.[11] Theconsequencesofgamesmayvaryfromsmallpaybackstopaybacksbuiltupoveralongperiodtoamajorlevel.Basedonthedegreeofacceptabilityandpotentialharm,gamesareclassifiedintothreecategories,representingfirstdegreegames,seconddegreegames,andthirddegreegames: sociallyacceptable, undesirablebutnotirreversiblydamaging mayresultindrasticharm.[11] TheKarpmantrianglewasanadaptationofamodelthatwasoriginallyconceivedtoanalyzetheplay-actionpassandthedrawplayinAmericanfootballandlateradaptedasawaytoanalyzemoviescripts.Karpmanisreportedtohavedoodledthirtyormorediagramtypesbeforesettlingonthetriangle.KarpmancreditsthemovieValleyoftheDollsasbeingatestbedforrefiningthemodelintowhatBernecoinedastheKarpmanDramaTriangle.[2] KarpmannowhasmanyvariablesoftheKarpmantriangleinhisfullydevelopedtheory,besidesroleswitches.Theseincludespaceswitches(private-public,open-closed,near-far)whichprecede,cause,orfollowroleswitches,andscriptvelocity(numberofroleswitchesinagivenunitoftime).[4]TheseincludetheQuestionMarktriangle,FalsePerceptiontriangle,DoubleBindtriangle,TheIndecisiontriangle,theViciousCycletriangle,Trappingtriangle,Escapetriangle,TrianglesofOppression,andTrianglesofLiberation,Switchinginthetriangle,andtheAlcoholicFamilytriangle.[12] Whiletransactionalanalysisisthemethodforstudyinginteractionsbetweenindividuals,[13]oneresearcherpostulatesthatdrama-basedleaderscaninstillanorganizationalcultureofdrama.Persecutorsaremorelikelytobeinleadershippositionsandapersecutorculturegoeshandinhandwithcutthroatcompetition,fear,blaming,manipulation,highturnoverandanincreasedriskoflawsuits.Therearealsovictimcultureswhichcanleadtolowmoraleandlowengagementaswellasanavoidanceofconflict,andrescuercultureswhichcanbecharacterizedashavingahighdependenceontheleader,lowinitiativeandlowinnovation.[14] Therapeuticmodels[edit] TheWinner'sTrianglewaspublishedbyAceyChoyin1990asatherapeuticmodelforshowingpatientshowtoaltersocialtransactionswhenenteringatriangleatanyofthethreeentrypoints.Choyrecommendsthatanyonefeelinglikeavictimthinkmoreintermsofbeingvulnerableandcaring,thatanyonecastasapersecutoradoptanassertiveposture,andanyonerecruitedtobearescuershouldreactbybeing"caring".[15] Vulnerable–avictimshouldbeencouragedtoaccepttheirvulnerability,problemsolve,andbemoreself-aware. Assertive–apersecutorshouldbeencouragedtoaskforwhattheywant,beassertive,butnotbepunishing. Caring–arescuershouldbeencouragedtoshowconcernandbecaring,butnotover-reachandproblemsolveforothers. ThePowerofTED*,firstpublishedin2009,recommendsthatthe"victim"adoptthealternativeroleofcreator,viewthepersecutorasachallenger,andenlistacoachinsteadofarescuer.[16] Creator–victimsareencouragedtobeoutcome-orientedasopposedtoproblem-orientedandtakeresponsibilityforchoosingtheirresponsetolifechallenges.Theyshouldfocusonresolving"dynamictension"(thedifferencebetweencurrentrealityandtheenvisionedgoaloroutcome)bytakingincrementalstepstowardtheoutcomestheyaretryingtoachieve. Challenger–avictimisencouragedtoseeapersecutorasaperson(orsituation)thatforcesthecreatortoclarifytheirneeds,andfocusontheirlearningandgrowth. Coach–arescuershouldbeencouragedtoaskquestionsthatareintendedtohelptheindividualtomakeinformedchoices.Thekeydifferencebetweenarescuerandacoachisthatthecoachseesthecreatorascapableofmakingchoicesandofsolvingtheirownproblems.Acoachasksquestionsthatenablethecreatortoseethepossibilitiesforpositiveaction,andtofocusonwhattheydowantinsteadofwhattheydon'twant.[1] Seealso[edit] Psychologyportal DARVO –Acronymusedtodescribeacommonstrategyofabusers Familyestrangement –Lossofapreviouslyexistingrelationshipbetweenfamilymembers Scriptanalysis –Transactionalanalysismethod Victimplaying –Fabricationorexaggerationofvictimhood Furtherreading[edit] Books[edit] Emerald,David(2016).ThePowerofTED*(*TheEmpowermentDynamic).BainbridgeIsland:PolarisPublishingGroup.ISBN 978-0996871808 Emerald,David(2019).3VitalQuestions:TransformingWorkplaceDrama.BainbridgeIsland:PolarisPublishingGroup.ISBN 978-0996871839 Karpman,Stephen(2014).AGameFreeLife.Selfpublished.ISBN 978-0990586708 Zimberoff,Diane(1989).BreakingFreefromtheVictimTrap.Nazareth:WellnessPress.ISBN 978-0962272806 Harris,Thomas(1969).I'mOK,You'reOK.NewYork:GalahadBooks.ISBN 978-1578660759 Berne,Eric(1966).GamesPeoplePlay.NewYork:BallantineBooks.ISBN 978-0345410030 West,Chris(2020).TheKarpmanDramaTriangleExplained.London:CWTKPublishing.ISBN 978-0993023361 Articles[edit] Johnson,R.Skip(2015).EscapingConflictandtheKarpmanDramaTriangle.BPDFamily Forrest,Lynne(2008).TheThreeFacesofVictim—AnOverviewoftheDramaTriangle.TransformingVictimConsciousness Choy,Acey(1990).TheWinner'sTriangleTransactionalAnalysisJournal20(1):40 Gurowitz,Edward(1978).EnergyConsiderationsinTreatmentoftheDramaTriangle.TransactionalAnalysisJournalJanuary1978vol.8no.1:16-18 References[edit] ^abcdefghijJohnson,R.Skip."EscapingConflictandtheDramaTriangle".BPDFamily.com.RetrievedJune10,2015. ^abKarpman,MD,Stephen."EricBerneMemorialScientificAward"(PDF).karpmandramatriangle.com.RetrievedJune10,2015. ^Murdoch,B.Ed.,Edna."TheKarpmanDramaTriangle".CoachingSupervisionAcademy.ArchivedfromtheoriginalonJune11,2015.RetrievedJune10,2015. ^abcBerne,MD,Eric(1973).WhatDoYouSayAfterYouSayHello?.BantamBooks.pp. 186,188,307,346.ISBN 9780553232677. ^Forrest,SW,Lynne(26June2008)."TheThreeFacesofVictim—AnOverviewoftheDramaTriangle".lynneforrest.com.RetrievedJune11,2015. ^EricBerneFamily."TransactionalAnalysis".EricBerne,M.D.RetrievedJune10,2015. ^abRabstejnek,P.E.,M.B.A.,Ph.D.,CarlV."FamilySystems&MurrayBowenTheory"(PDF).houd.info.RetrievedJune10,2015.{{citeweb}}:CS1maint:multiplenames:authorslist(link) ^Weeks,PhD,GeraldR.;L'Abate,PhD,Luciano(August15,2014).ParadoxicalPsychotherapy:Theory&PracticeWithIndividualsCouples&Families.Taylor&Francis.p. 47.ISBN 9781138009400. ^KarpmanMD,Stephen(1968)."Fairytalesandscriptdramaanalysis".TransactionalAnalysisBulletin.26(7):39–43. ^"TransactionalAnalysis".disorders.org.RetrievedSeptember1,2011. ^abcdBerne,M.D.,Eric(1996).GamesPeoplePlay.NewYork:BallantineBooks.pp. 45,57.ISBN 978-0345410030. ^Karpman,M.D.,StephenB."TheNewDramaTrianglesUSATAA/ITAAConferenceLecture"(PDF).karpmandramatriangle.com.RetrievedAugust11,2007. ^SolomonPh.D.,Carol."TransactionalAnalysis".EricBerne,MD.UniversityofCaliforniaatSanFrancisco.Retrieved3January2018. ^NateRegier(24April2017).ConflictwithoutCasualties:AFieldGuideforLeadingwithCompassionateAccountability.Berrett-KoehlerPublishers.pp. 32–33.ISBN 978-1-5230-8262-9. ^Choy,Acey(1990)."TheWinner'sTriangle".TransactionalAnalysisJournal.20(1):40.doi:10.1177/036215379002000105. ^Emerald,David(2016).ThePowerofTED*(3rd ed.).PolarisPublishing.pp. 1–138.ISBN 978-09968718-0-8. 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