Taibi Kahler

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D. (born June 30, 1943) is an award-winning, American clinical psychologist best known as the creator of the process models of therapy, personality, management and communication known as the Process Therapy Model and the Process Communication Model®.

Background and education

Kahler was born June 30, 1943 in Kewanna, Indiana. He was the only child of George Kahler, a farmer, and Madelyn Kahler.  His father died in combat in April, 1945 while serving in the United States Army in the European Theater, resulting in Kahler being raised by his single mother in Hammond, Indiana.  He has indicated that it was a financially poor, but loving upbringing.¹

Kahler attended Hope College, in Holland, Michigan, before transferring to Purdue University where he graduated with B.A. in English Literature, an M.S., and a Ph.D. in Child Development and Family Life (1972).²

Transactional Analysis

While working on his Ph.D. and interning at a private psychiatric hospital, Kahler was introduced to the field of Transactional Analysis (“TA”) by Dr. Edgar Stuntz, and read all he could about the field.³  He soon met and developed a strong friendship with Dr. Hedges Capers, a friend and colleague of Dr. Eric Berne, the originator of TA.⁴

During this internship, Kahler observed that irrespective of a patient’s diagnosis (psychosis, neurosis, personality disorder or “normal” maladapted behavior) there was evidence of very brief, defensive behaviors immediately prior to a distressed outburst.⁵  Through further observation, he discovered that there were five discrete sets of these behaviors (combinations of words, tones, gestures, postures and facial expressions) and that each was uniquely associated with a follow-on distressed behavior – attacking, vengeful or victim.  He termed these brief, defensive behavior sets “Drivers” and found that by identifying them, one could predict the distressed behavior that would follow.⁶      

Following on his discovery of Drivers, Kahler formulated the miniscript theory, which first identified the unique distress sequences that begin with Drivers, progress to a second, deeper level of distress and end with a third level, equating with depression, and explained how knowledge of these sequences could be used to enhance therapy.⁷  In each sequence, the behaviors evidenced at each level of distress are unique to the sequence and can be identified through observation.⁸ 

For his original article on this discovery, “The Miniscript,” Kahler received the 1977 Eric Berne Memorial Scientific Award, awarded by the membership of the International Transactional Analysis Association (“ITAA”) for the most important scientific discovery in that field of psychology.⁹ 

Kahler was both a Teaching Member and a Supervising Member of the ITAA and held the positions of Board of Trustees Member, Vice President, and Editorial Board Member with the ITAA in addition to being guest editor of the Transactional Analysis Journal (“TAJ”).  Kahler conducted a wide range of TA-related research, mostly during the 1970s, and authored 14 articles for the TAJ on a variety of topics, including “The Miniscript,” as well as numerous TA related articles in other publications.  In 1978, he authored the book “Transactional Analysis Revisited,” a comprehensive overview of field at that time.¹⁰

Work with NASA 

In 1977, Kahler was contacted by Dr. Terrence (Terry) McGuire, NASA’s Lead Psychiatrist for Manned Space Flight from 1959 to 1996, who had read about his research.  McGuire invited him to participate in the then-current astronaut selection cycle, by having Kahler observe McGuire’s initial interviews of candidates.  He had Kahler complete his notes on the candidate after the first ten minutes of the interview, which generally lasted one and a half to two hours, and then compared those notes to his own.  McGuire determined that Kahler had acquired more pertinent information on the candidate during the first ten minutes than he had during the entire interview.¹¹

This began an extended relationship between Kahler and NASA, during which Kahler, working with McGuire, incorporated his developing ideas on communication, motivation and behavior into the astronaut selection, evaluation, training and management processes.¹²   

The Process Models

While working with Dr. McGuire at NASA and thereafter, Kahler continued to research the sequences of distress behaviors he had discovered and began finding unique correlations between those sequences and other, neutral or positive sets of characteristics. He determined that each set of characteristics is a  unique personality type that includes a perception (a way of filtering the world), a perceptual language (a language style that reflects the associated perception), a communication channel (a preferred style of communicating with others), a currency (a characteristic that is most valued and used to navigate the world), a set of character strengths, one or two psychological needs that act as primary motivations, a preferred management style, an environmental preference, a distress sequence, and a failure pattern (a pattern of self-sabotaging behavior).¹³  He determined that each individual: has all six of the personality types within him or her; that in each person the types are in a defined and probably unchanging order¹⁴; that one type is strongest in each person; and that the strength and influence of the other types within the person is reflected in the order of the types within the individual personality structure.¹⁵  He also developed an inventory, the Personality Pattern Inventory (PPI) that can be used to determine an individual’s personality structure, including the order and relative strength of each type within it.¹⁶ Dr. Kahler turned these discoveries into two related methodologies, the Process Therapy Model for use in conjunction with other forms of psychological and psychiatric therapy, and the Process Communication Model® (“PCM”) for individually optimizing management and communication.

In 1982, Kahler started a business to commercialize PCM, now known as Kahler Communications, Inc. (KCI).  He developed a series of seminars and profiles for use in training others to use PCM and consulting and coaching using PCM techniques.  He also created a set of standards for the certification of PCM providers.  KCI licensed PCM for use in various applications and in exclusive geographic territories.  In 2014, Kahler sold KCI to Kahler Communication France SARL, the licensee of PCM for France and remains involved in the business as President Emeritus and as the person responsible for methodological determinations.¹⁷   

Relationship with the Clintons

In 1984, Dr. Kahler was asked by Hillary Clinton to give a private three day PCM seminar to then Governor Bill Clinton, her, and a few of their close friends.  Soon after, he was asked to assist in the identification of a person who had threatened their lives.¹⁸  He became a good friend of President Clinton and was hired as the psychodemographer for his Presidential campaigns, evaluating audiences, providing advice on how to best connect with them and editing speeches.  Following the election, the White House staff was trained in PCM.¹⁹

Personal life

Kahler lives outside of Jacksonville, Florida, with his wife Shirl (née Scifres).  He has two sons from a previous marriage.

Publications

In addition to versions of the PPI and dozens of seminar manuals and specialized profiles that are personalized using output from a person’s PPI, Dr. Kahler is the author of the following publications:

Books:

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., Le Grand Livre de la Process Therapie, Publisher: Eyrolles, Paris, France, 2010.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., The Process Therapy Model – The Six Personality Types With Adaptations, Taibi Kahler Associates, Inc., Little Rock, Arkansas, 2008.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., The Process Therapy Model – The Six Personality Types With Adaptations [German], Publisher: KC Germany, Welheim, Germany, 2008.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., Communiquer, Motiver, Manager en Person, Editor: Inter Editions, Paris, France, 2003 (2006).

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., Het Mysterie Van Het Management, Editor: Maklu-Uitgeveres., Apeldoorn, Netherlands, 2000.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., Transactional Analysis Script Profile Guide for the Therapist, Taibi Kahler Associates, Inc., Little Rock, Arkansas, 1997.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., The Mastery of Management [Japanese], Publisher: The English Agency (Japan) Ltd., Tokyo, Japan, 1993.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., Manager en Personne, Publisher: InterEditions. Paris, France, 1989 (1997, 1999, 2001).

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., The Mastery of Management, Kahler Communications, Inc., Little Rock, Arkansas, August 1988 (1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2006).

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., The Personality Attribute Index (a pre and post measure), Kahler Communications, Inc., Little Rock, Arkansas, June 1983.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., The Personality Pattern Inventory in Brief (Management and Model forms), Kahler Communications, Inc., Little Rock, Arkansas, June 1983.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., Managing with the Process Communication Model, Human Development Publications, Little Rock, Arkansas, July 1979 (1981).

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., Process Therapy in Brief, Human Development Publications, Little Rock, Arkansas, November 1979.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., Taking Charge, Human Development Publications, Little Rock Arkansas, September 1979.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., Process Communication Model (in Brief), Human Development Publications, Little Rock, Arkansas, July 1979.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., Transactional Analysis Revisited, Human Development Publications, Little Rock, Arkansas, November 1978.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D. and Michael Brown, Ph.D., NoTations: A Guide to Transactional Analysis Literature, Huron Valley Institute Press, Dexter, Michigan, April 1977.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “The Miniscript”, a chapter in Transactional Analysis after Eric Berne, Harper and Row, New York, NY, 1977.

Articles – Other

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “45 Years and Counting . . . on You”, The Journal of Process Communication, 1:1, July, 2013.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “A Brief: Passing Through”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 25:1, January 1995.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “Integrity By Any Other Name”, The Performance Edge, 4:2, 1994.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “Six Basic Personality Types”, Bottom Line Personal, September 1992.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “Stress as Enemy, or Stress as Ally?”, Canadian Manager, Summer 1987.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “Assessment and Intervention”, National Careers, February 1985.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “La Process Communication Management ou grand La Communication devient magie”, Inthefield – Brussels, Belgium, 2:1, January 1982.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “Stress et Communication”, Psychologie, Paris, France, 143, January 1982.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “Managing the Loner”, Boardroom Reports, 10:2, January 1981.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “The Too-Eager-to-Please-Employee”, Boardroom Reports, 9:18, September 1980.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “How to Manage the Try Hard Employee”, Boardroom Reports, 9:17, August 1980.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “How to Manage the Perfect Employee”, Boardroom Reports, 9:7, August 1980.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “Units of Recognition – Part II: The Survival Level Profile”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 2:1, March 1980.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “Units of recognition – Part I: Functional Strokes and Discounts”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 9:4, December 1979.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “Existential and Behavioral Life Positions”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 1:3, September 1979.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “The Annual Eric Berne Memorial Scientific Award Acceptance Speech”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 8:1, January 1978.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “Separation an Autonomous or Script Decision”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 6:3, July 1976.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “Drivers – The Key to the Process Script”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 5:3, July 1975.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “Scripts: Process vs. Content”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 5:3, July 1975.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “Structural Analysis”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 5:3, July 1975.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “The Upright Winner’s Clasp”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 5:2, April 1975.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D. and Terry Cooper, Ph.D., “An Eightfold Classification System for Strokes and Discounts”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 4:3, July 1974.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “Between Parent and Child Revisited”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 4:2, pp. 46-47, April 1974.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “The Miniscript”, Marriage and Family Quarterly, April 1974.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D. with Hedges Capers, Div. M., LHD., “The Miniscript”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 4:1, pp. 26-42, January 1974.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., and Edgar C. Stuntz, M.D., “Treating Stupid Players”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 3:2, pp. 33-34, April 1973.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “Let’s You and Him Make Love”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 3:3, pp. 35-37, July 1972.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “Treating NIGYSOB’s”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 2:2, pp.81, April 1972.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., RESEARCH DISSERTATION: Predicting Underachievement in Ninth and Twelfth Grade Males Using the Kahler Transactional Analysis Checklist, Purdue University, 1972.

Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., MASTER THESIS: The Effects of the Teacher Management Process Code via Video Tape Feedback on the Verbal Behavior of Student Teachers, Purdue University, 1971. 

Notes

¹ Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “A Brief: Passing Through”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 25:1, January 1995.

² Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., RESEARCH DISSERTATION: Predicting Underachievement In Ninth Grade and Twelfth Grade Males With The Kahler Transactional Analysis Script Checklist, Purdue University, 1972, 67 pages; 7306052, retrieved from https://www.dissexpress.umi.com.

³ Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “A Brief: Passing Through”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 25:1, January 1995.

⁴ Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “A Brief: Passing Through”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 25:1, January 1995.

⁵ Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., The Process Therapy Model – The Six Personality Types With Adaptations, Taibi Kahler Associates, Inc., Little Rock, Arkansas, 2008, p. 3.

⁶ Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., The Process Therapy Model – The Six Personality Types With Adaptations, Taibi Kahler Associates, Inc., Little Rock, Arkansas, 2008, p. 4.

⁷ Taibi Kahler, Ph.D. with Hedges Capers, Div. M., LHD., “The Miniscript”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 4:1, pp. 26-42, January 1974.

⁸ Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., The Process Therapy Model – The Six Personality Types With Adaptations, Taibi Kahler Associates, Inc., Little Rock, Arkansas, 2008, pp. 270-271.

⁹ “Winners of the ITAA Eric Berne Memorial Scientific Award 1971 – 1987 and Eric Berne Memorial Award 1994 – 2014”,retrieved from: https://www.itaaworld.org/sites/default/files/itaa-pdfs/award-procedures/ITAA%20Eric%20Berne%20Memorial%20Award%20Winners%20v.2014.09.pdf

¹⁰ Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., Transactional Analysis Revisited, Human Development Publications, Little Rock, Arkansas, November 1978.

¹¹ Terence F. McGuire, M.D, “PCM, Under Cover”, The Journal of Process Communication, 1:1, July, 2013, p. 86.

¹² Terence F. McGuire, M.D, “PCM, Under Cover”, The Journal of Process Communication, 1:1, July, 2013, 87-89.

¹³ Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., The Process Therapy Model – The Six Personality Types With Adaptations, Taibi Kahler Associates, Inc., little Rock, Arkansas, 2008, pp. 20-21.

¹⁴  Pat Stansbury, “Report Of Adherence To Theory Discovered When The Personality Pattern Inventory Was Administered To Subjects Twice”[1990], The Process Therapy Model – The Six Personality Types With Adaptations, Taibi Kahler Associates, Inc., Little Rock, Arkansas, 2008, p. 37, 276.

¹⁵ Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., The Process Therapy Model – The Six Personality Types With Adaptations, Taibi Kahler Associates, Inc., Little Rock, Arkansas, 2008, p. 38.

¹⁶ Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., Personality pattern inventory (revised). Little Rock: Kahler Communication, Inc., 1996

¹⁷“Historic Event”, retrieved from: http://www.kahlercommunications.com/news.php

¹⁸ Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “A Brief: Passing Through”, Transactional Analysis Journal, 25:1, January 1995.

¹⁹ Taibi Kahler, Ph.D., “45 Years and Counting . . . on You”, The Journal of Process Communication, 1:1, July, 2013, p. 14.