Games People Play: The Psychology of Human Relationships

Eric Berne

Jul 1973 · Penguin UK

About this ebook

'If you're going to read one psychology book in your lifetime... it should be his one' - Neil Hunter, Amazon Review

Fed up of feeling controlled at work?
Feel trapped in a toxic relationship but don't know how to escape?
Always feel like you lose the argument even if you know deep down you're right?

Widely recognised as the most original and influential psychology book of our time, Games People Play has helped millions of people better understand human basic social interactions and relationships.

We play games all the time; relationship games; power games with our bosses and competitive games with our friends. In this book, Berne reveals the secret ploys and manoeuvres that rule our lives and how to combat them.

Giving you the keys to unlock the psychology of others and yourself, this classic, entertaining and life-changing book will open up the door to honest communication and teach you how to get the most out of life.

Ratings and reviews

Just reading again since the 1960s and realized the examples and portrayals of women are definitely sexist. The dialogue about young men having to buy their brides and go into debt to buy a bride. I was raised in the 60s and women worked outside the home to help pay for the roof over their head and then after work came home to do "women's work".

The book clearly outlines in great depth the games people play as part of social interaction and the antithesis to destructive game playing and outlines what constructive game playing is and the social paradigms of human interaction, transactional analysis. Very informative, factual and concise.

I wish there was an update with the extra two transactional positions, but it still remains a must read and a classic. It'll only start making sense when you play with it and move passed the stylised language.

About the author

Dr Berne's other works include 'The Structure and Dynamics of Organisations and Groups' (1963), in which he discussed the application of transactional analysis to group dynamics; 'Principles of Group Treatment' (1966); 'A Layman's Guide to Psychiatry and Psychoanalysis' (1968); and 'What Do Yo Say After You Say Hello?', written shortly before his death in 1970.