This refers to Harris’ acclaimed book “I’m OK, You’re OK” (psychology, self help to help people grow out of childhood into adulthood: It discusses the psychology of a child as it grows up to become an adult. The mental state of a person can be explained using these four states: (1) I’m OK, You’re OK, (2) I’m OK, You’re not OK, (3) I’m not OK, You’re OK, and (4) I’m not OK, You’re not OK.
Analysis of IK’s tabdeeli govt indicates that it is exactly replaying and repeating the script of 1990s and early 2000s politics where the governments in power spent all their energies to prove that opposition is corrupt, while any turncoat from opposition joining the government is clean. They have also used all the institutions of state and government agencies like NAB, FIA, courts, FBR, IB, ISI etc in trying to prove that their opposition is corrupt, and also imprisoned and incarcerated opposition in false cases. Whether it was the NS or BB government in 1990s or Musharraf in 2000s, each tried to prove that the opposition is corrupt. NS1 (1991-92) tried to prove BB1 (1988-90) is corrupt. BB2 (1994-96) tried to prove NS1 is corrupt. NS2 (1997-99) tried to prove BB2 is corrupt. Gen Musharraf (1999-2008) tried to prove NS and BB are corrupt. Surprisingly anyone joining the government would be miraculously laundered to be clean. We see exactly the same happening today. If it did not work then, how will it work today?
[From goodreads review]
Harris’ book “I’m OK, You’re OK” is an enormously popular (7-million copies sold) and insightful classic of popular psychology based on Eric Berne’s theory of Transactional Analysis that has helped millions of people who never before felt OK about themselves find the freedom to change, to liberate their ADULT effectiveness, and to achieve joyful intimacy with the people in their lives.
Transactional analysis delineates three ego-states (parent, adult and child) as the basis for the content and quality of interpersonal communication. “Happy childhood” notwithstanding, says Harris, most of us are living out the not ok feelings of a defenseless child wholly dependent on ok others (parents) for stroking and caring. At some stage early in our lives we adopt a “position” about ourselves which very significantly determines how we feel about ourselves, particularly in relation to other people. And for a huge portion of the population, that position is that I’m Not OK-You’re OK. This negative Life Position, shared by successful and unsuccessful people alike, contaminates our rational adult potential, leaving us vulnerable to the inappropriate, emotional reactions of our child and the uncritically learned behavior programmed into our parent. By exploring the four basic “life positions,” we can radically change our lives.
If we really want change and “tabdeeli”, we need to change the psychology of our leaders using the Transactional Analysis paradigm of Eric Berne extended by Anthony Harris:
This will only happen when we grow up and discuss our differences like adults (I’m OK, You’re OK). Not, as long we remain childishly antagonistic (I’m OK, You’re not OK) like Mush and pre-Mush NS1, NS2 and BB1 and BB2 (my government is OK, your government is not OK) and hound the opposition, imprison them in convoluted cases, slander them, and push them to the limits where the erstwhile allies and patriots eventually become traitors like Mujeeb of Bhutto!
This post is for psychology enthusiasts
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