Interpersonal theory of personality was proposed by Harry Stack Sullivan. He believed that one’s personality involved more than individual characteristics, particularly how one interacted with others. He also explained about the importance of current life events to psychopathology. The theory further states that the purpose of all behavior is to get needs met through interpersonal interactions and decrease or avoid anxiety.

1. INTERPERSONAL
THEORY
JUHIN
1st Year Msc(N)
HARRY STACK SULLIVAN

3. Objectives
A t t h e e n d o f t h i s s e s s i o n , y o u w i l l b e a b l e t o
g e t c l e a r u n d e r s t a n d i n g a b o u t ;
• S u l l i v a n ’ s i n t e r p e r s o n a l t h e o r y –
I n t r o d u c t i o n .
• D e s c r i b e t h e m a j o r c o n c e p t o f S u l l i v a n .
• E n u m e r a t e t h e d e v e l o p m e n t a l c o g n i t i v e
m o d e s .
• E x p l a i n t h e r a p e u t i c c o m m u n i t y o r m i l i e u .
• L i s t d o w n t h e r e l e v a n c e o f i n t e r p e r s o n a l
t h e o r y t o n u r s i n g p r a c t i c e .
• L i s t d o w n t h e r o l e s o f p a t i e n t a n d n u r s e .

4. • Interpersonal theory of personality was
proposed by Harry Stack Sullivan.
• He believed that one’s personality involved
more than individual characteristics,
particularly how one interacted with
others.
• He also explained about the importance of
current life events to psychopathology.
• The theory further states that the purpose
of all behavior is to get needs met through
interpersonal interactions and decrease or
avoid anxiety.
INTRODUCTION

5. ● Born in February 21, 1892 at
Norwich, New York
● Received medical degree at
Chicago College of Medicine
and Surgery in 1917.
● Founder of the journal
Psychiatry in 1937
● Served as Psychiatric Advisor in
1940.
● Left the word in January 14,
1949 at Paris, France.
SULLIVAN - HISTORY

6. SULLIVAN’S
MAJOR
CONCEPT

7. SULLIVAN’S MAJOR CONCEPT
Anxiety Satisfaction of
Needs
Interpersonal
Security Self system
Good me
Bad me
Not me

8. Anxiety is the feeling of
emotional discomfort, toward
the relief or prevention of
which all behavior is aimed.
It arises out of one’s inability
to satisfy needs or to achieve
interpersonal security.
Anxiety

9. ● Satisfaction of needs is the
fulfilment of all
requirements associated
with an individual’s
physiochemical
environment.
● Examples of these
requirements are oxygen,
food, water, warmth,
tenderness, rest, activity,
sexual expression
Satisfaction of needs

10. ● Interpersonal Security is the
feeling associated with the
relief from anxiety.
● When all needs have been
met, one experiences a sense
of total well-being, which
Sullivan termed interpersonal
security.
● He believed individuals have
an innate need for
interpersonal security.
Interpersonal
Security

11. ● Self-system is a
collection of
experiences, or security
measures, adopted by the
individual to protect
against anxiety.
● Sullivan identified
three components of the
self-system, which are
based on interpersonal
experiences early in
life: “good me”, “bad
me” & “not me”.
Self System

12. “Good me”
Good me is the part of
personality that develop
in the response to
positive feedback from
the primary caregiver

13. “Bad me”
Bad me is the part of
personality that develops
in the response to
negative feedback from
the primary caregiver.

14. “Not me”
Not me is the part of the
personality that response
to situations that
produce intense anxiety
in the child.

15. SULLIVAN’S
LIFE STAGES

16. SULLIVAN’S LIFE STAGES
Infancy
PRE
ADOLESCENCE
JUVENILE
CHILDHOOD
EARLY
ADOLESCENCE
LATE
ADOLESCENCE

17. SULLIVAN’S LIFE STAGES
STAGES MAJOR DEVELOPMENTAL TASK FOCUS
Infancy
(Birth to 18 months)
• Relief from anxiety through gratification of needs • Mouth (crying, nourishing,
thumb sucking)
Childhood
(18 months to 6
years)
• Learning to experience a delay in personal gratification without
undue anxiety
• Mouth
• Anus
• Language
• Experimentation
• Manipulation
• Identification
Juvenile
(6 to 9 years)
• Learning to form satisfactory relationship with peer groups • Competition
• Cooperation
• Compromise
Preadolescence
(9 to 12 years)
• Learning to form satisfactory relationships with persons of same
gender
• Collaboration
• Love and affection
Early Adolescence
(12 to 14 years)
• Developing a sense of identity
• Learning to form satisfactory relationships with opposite gender
• Lust
Late Adolescence
(14 to 21 years)
• Establishing self-identity
• Experiencing satisfying relationships
• Working to develop a lasting, intimate opposite-gender relationship
• Genital organs

18. DEVELOPMENTAL
COGNITIVE
MODES

19. DEVELOPMENTAL COGNITIVE MODES
Prototaxic
mode
Parataxic
mode
Syntaxic
mode

20. • Experiences that are
impossible to put into words
or to communicate to others
are called prototaxic.
• In prototaxic mode,
characteristic of infancy and
childhood involves brief
unconnected experiences that
have no relationship to one
another.
• Adults with schizophrenia
exhibit persistent prototaxic
experiences.
Prototaxic
mode

21. • Experiences that are pre-logical and
nearly impossible to accurately
communicate to others are called
parataxic.
• Eg: When I see black cat I feel it as a bad
sign.
• Parataxic mode begins in early
childhood as the child begins to
connect experiences in sequence.
• The child may not make logical sense of
the experiences and may see them as
coincidence or chance events. The child
seeks to relieve anxiety by repeating
familiar experiences, although he or she
may not understand what he or she is
doing.
• Sullivan explained paranoid ideas and
slips of the tongue as a person
operating in the parataxic mode.
Parataxic mode

22. • Experiences that can be accurately
communicated to others are called
syntaxic.
• In the syntaxic mode, which begins to
appear in school-aged children and
becomes more predominant in
preadolescence, the person begins to
perceive himself or herself and the
world within the context of the
environment and can analyze
experiences in a variety of settings.
• Maturity may be defined as
predominance of the syntaxic mode
Syntaxic mode

23. THERAPEUTIC
COMMUNITY OR
MILEU

24. THERAPEUTIC COMMUNITY OR MILEU
• The concept of mileu therapy, involves clients interaction with one
another; i.e., practicing interpersonal relationship skills, giving one
another feedback about behaviour and working cooperatively as a
group to solve day-to-day problems.
• The first therapeutic community or mileu was developed by Sullivan
in 1929.
• In the concept of mileu, the interaction among client is seen as
beneficial and treatment emphasizes the role of this client-to-client
interaction.
• Today, inpatient hospital stays are often too short for clients to
develop meaningful relationship with one another. Therefore the
concept of mileu therapy requires little attention.

25. RELEVANCE OF INTERPERSONAL THEORY TO
NURSING PRACTICE
• Sullivan’s interpersonal theory has a significance relevance to
nursing practice.
• Nurses develop therapeutic relationships with clients in an effort to
help them generalize this ability to interact successfully with others.
• Nurses use the concepts of sullivan’s theory to help clients achieve
a higher degree of independent and interpersonal functioning.
• Nurses use sullivan’s techniques and approaches on psychiatric
interview.
• Sullivan's interpersonal theory provides the theoretical basis for
interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) for depression and schizophrenia.

26. ROLES OF PATIENT & NURSE
• Patient and nurse should be in dyad partnership.
• Nurse should provide the patient an atmosphere of uncritical
acceptance and the patient speaks out openly.
• Nurses should interact as a person who has beliefs, values,
thoughts and feelings.
• Patient should share his concerns with the nurse and participate in
the relationship to the best of his ability.
• Nurse should provide safety and protection for all clients and
promoting social interaction.

27. LIMITATIONS

28. ANY DOUBTS?

29. SUMMARY

30. Book:
• C. L. Subash Indra Kumar.(2014). Psychiatry and
Mental Health Nursing. P.88-90
• Dr. K. Lalitha.(2015). Mental Health and Psychiatric
Nursing. P. 107-109
• Mary C. Towsend.(2015). Psychiatric Mental Health
Nursing (8th ed.). P. 32-33
• Sheila L. Videbeck.(2011). Psychiatric - Mental
Health Nursing (5th ed.). P. 48-50
Journals:
• The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, Vol 120,
Issue 1, P. 140
Reference

32. THANK YOU