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Teaching and learning intuition: Some implications for HRD and coaching practice
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine conceptual and theoretical links between intuition and coaching; investigate accomplished coaches' practical experiences of intuition; identify skill set of an intuitive coach; discuss implications of findings for coaches', HRD professionals', and line managers' learning and development.
Design/methodology/approach
In‐depth, semi‐structured, individual interviews with 14 accomplished experienced executive coaches (eight males and six females) averaging 14.5 years as a coach.
Findings
Outline of core attributes of an intuitive coach.
Originality/value
Immersion in experience, a reflective approach to practice, effective feedback and supervision, and attending to personal well‐being are likely to enable coaches, HRD practitioners and line managers to take a more informed and intelligent approach to “going with their gut” in coaching and other situations where inter‐ and intra‐personal awareness are important.
... Die Qualität intuitiver Entscheidungen wird wiederum durch eine Reihe verschiedener Faktoren beeinflusst, unter anderem (positiv) durch den Grad an Expertise und Erfahrung (u. a. Mavor et al. 2010;St. Pierre und Smith 2014;vgl. ...
... Pierre und Smith 2014;vgl. den Beitrag von Kohlmann in diesem Heft), (negativ) durch Stress (Dane und Pratt 2009;Mavor et al. 2010) sowie durch die Umgebungsbedingungen (McCutcheon und Pincombe 2001;Smith et al. 2004). ...
... Pierre und Smith 2014;Salas et al. 2010). Dies gilt insbesondere für zwischenmenschliche Situationen und damit auch für Coaching als ein prozessorientiertes, beziehungsbasiertes Beratungsformat (Mavor et al. 2010;Sheldon 2018). ...
Intuition is described as a central component of coaching, especially in the practitioner literature. Empirical findings on the benefit and role of intuition in coaching are, however, scarce. This article presents the results of two studies on the initial exploration in coaching, especially on the role of intuition during the initial exploration. On the basis of a qualitative interview study, five “intuition types” were identified as well as strategies coaches use to avoid that their intuition misleads them and to deploy their intuition as effectively as possible. Quantitative study findings show how frequently intuition is used during the initial exploration and with what other exploration practices the use of intuition is correlated. The results are discussed against the current state of research, and implications and reflective impulses for practice are derived.
... Enabling factors included trust, building shared values and getting to know employees on a personal level, mutual levels of participation in discussions about performance, managers demonstrating benevolence, authenticity, integrity and reliability, together with confidentiality. Building on this, Mavor et al. (2010) recognised that managerial coaching is a relational unstructured activity involving complex people judgements, and as such lends itself to the use of intuition. As a result of examining the conceptual and theoretical links between intuition and coaching, their study shared that HRD professionals and line managers need to develop their intuitive self-awareness to enable them to be the most effective coaches they can be. ...
... This secondary analysis also showed that the skills and approach managers used when informally coaching depended on the knowledge and experience of their team members, with some managers looking for regular opportunities to create coachable moments (Turner and McCarthy, 2015). None mentioned the use and development of their intuition (Mavor et al., 2010) but they did mention the value of getting to know their team on a more personal level (Ladyshewsky, 2009). ...
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore multiple perspectives on managerial coaching: why and how managers engage, employees and human resource development (HRD) professionals’ perspectives on the use and how HRD and managers can better support each other with it.
Design/methodology/approach
This study used secondary analysis of empirical data already collected through a transnational study from 20 different medium-size to large organisations in the Netherlands, the UK and the USA. For this study, 58 interviews referring to coaching were analysed from 18 of these organisations, from these 3 different countries and from 3 stakeholder groups: managers, employees and HRD professionals.
Findings
Findings show that managers perform a variety of “on the job” informal coaching roles and that HRD professionals lead the more formal aspects. Managers felt that HRD support was limited and hoped for more. A limited number of employees mentioned coaching, but those that did highlighted the different types of coaching they received in the workplace, referring to managers but with little recognition of HRD’s role. HRD professionals shared how they support managers through both informal and formal coaching approaches, but this was not fully acknowledged by neither managers nor employees.
Practical implications
The findings of this study contribute to the literature on devolved HRD practices, highlighting that managers are engaging more in managerial coaching with their teams, that potentially employees are not that aware of this and that managers and employees are not fully aware of HRD’s contribution to supporting coaching and feel they could do more. As a result, this study suggests that HRD professionals have a clear role to play in creating and leading the supportive organisational culture for coaching to thrive, not only in setting the “coaching scene” for managers to work within but also through offering support for long-term capacity building for all employees.
Originality/value
Through the diffusion of key HRD activities into managerial roles, and while internal coaching is gaining more momentum, managers now step up when coaching their teams. This study extends the limited prior research on managers’ and others’ (employees and HRD) beliefs about the coaching role in the workplace. This study highlights the changing role of the manager, the need for HRD to offer more support for the joint role that managers are taking (manager and coach) and the partnership potential for HRD professionals to include all stakeholders including employees.
... Intuition is closely linked to the implicit knowledge acquired through experience and is suggested as being a vital skill for coaches (Mavor et al., 2010), in particular if one considers coaches themselves the key 'instrument' in coaching (Bachkirova, 2016;Orenstein, 2002). However, relying on intuition is associated with potential drawbacks. ...
... Therefore, incorporating psychometric assessmentsor other objective datacould attenuate subjectivity (Batey et al., 2012). Additionally, in light of the predominant pattern of handling the initial exploration flexibly and intuitively, self-reflection, continued professional development, and the use of coaching supervision appear crucial as a means of quality assurance (Bachkirova, 2016;Mavor et al., 2010;Orenstein, 2002). ...
Coaching is increasingly used as an HRD intervention. Initial research suggests the importance of coaching behaviour, especially at the beginning of a coaching engagement, for coaching success. However, findings are scarce as to how coaches proceed during the initial phase in coaching and recent reviews therefore call for research that investigates how coaches determine the focus of the coaching intervention. Therefore, our study aimed to answer the questions of what and how regarding coaches’ approach to the ‘initial exploration’. We conducted 20 semi-structured interviews with workplace coaches. Qualitative content analysis revealed a broad range of contents addressed, methods applied, and principles that guide coaches during the initial exploration. Moreover, we identified specific patterns for categorising coaches’ approaches. Concerning the content coaches address, we identified three dimensions: coachees’ areas of life (private vs. professional, with the latter including individual vs. social vs. organisational aspects), temporal focus (past, present, future), and perspective (solution- vs. problem-orientation). We integrate our findings into a taxonomy of the initial exploration in coaching and thereby provide a basis for future research as well as a guide for reflection and decision-making for coaches, coachees, and organisational sponsors.
... It would seem that by being intuitive, we can be courageous; similarly, it takes courage to listen and express our intuition. (Maver et al., 2010, p. 831) ...
Utilizing autoethnography methodology blended with Moustakas’ (1990) heuristic research data collection and analysis elements of intuition and immersion, the study explored my experience of intuition and immersions within the Holotropic Breathwork® community. Holotropic Breathwork® was developed by Stanislav Grof and Christina Grof (2010) as a technique for self-exploration and experiential psychotherapy. I was the researcher and only participant in this study. This involved my engagement in the practice of Holotropic Breathwork®, in enhanced states of awareness, from 2016 to 2019 at eight Holotropic Breathwork® immersions, each five-and-a-half days long, with a total of 16 breathwork sessions as a breather. Relevant literature and personal experience on intuition and Holotropic Breathwork® were critically reviewed to engage the topic and research questions.
Data collection, analysis, and interpretation was conducted over a two year experiential
and immersive autoethnographic writing process. Data collected for analysis included journal entries, reflexive notes, cultural texts and books, pictures, collages, vision boards, videos, artifacts, and personal secrets and stories. Data analysis followed a synthesis of Chang’s (2008) suggested cyclical process of data collection, analysis, and interpretation, the use of intuition as defined by Moustakas (1990) and the simple strategy as highlighted by Adams et al. (2014) by analyzing and interpreting through the process of making sense through story to identify themes. Specifically, I incorporated intuition to access emotionally charged memories and material from my past for examination. I applied self-care strategies and sought trusted support to cope and process emotional pain due to anxiety, depression, fear, insecurities, distress, and self-distrust.
The study revealed the courage to ask for what I need, immersive self-care, trusted
support with lived experience, and trusting myself in the present moment from my experience of intuition and immersions in the Holotropic Breathwork® community. The findings of this autoethnography support the use of intuition in research and the integration of Holotropic Breathwork® experiences derived from further self-exploration and the therapeutic writing of autoethnography. Future research on intuition and Holotropic Breathwork® may benefit from utilizing intuition to investigate links between Holotropic Breathwork® experiences, intuition, immersion, self-care, support networks, and self-trust.
... Auch in der wissenschaftlichen Literatur gibt es viel Uneinigkeit, was genau unter Intuition zu verstehen sei, gerade weil das Forschungsfeld interdisziplinär ausgerichtet ist. Herauskristallisiert hat sich als gemeinsamer Nenner jedoch, dass unter Intuition in der Regel eine nicht bewusste, ganzheitliche, assoziative, affektiv geladene, oft schnelle Art und Weise, Informationen zu verarbeiten und zu Schlussfolgerungen zu kommen, verstanden wird (Dane und Pratt 2009;Hodgkinson et al. 2008;Mavor et al. 2010). Angesichts der mit der Intuition verbundenen Chancen und Risiken kommt zunehmend in den Blick, wovon die Qualität intuitiver Entscheidungen abhängt: Der Komplexitätsgrad der Entscheidung etwa spielt eine Rolle, genauso wie der Grad an Expertise und Erfahrung der Entscheider/innen, ihr Stresslevel und die Umgebungsbedingungen. ...
This stream of the 14th annual intuition symposium at AoM showcases new empirical research into the use of intuition in decision making and problem solving. All five contributions are based on findings from recent studies and draw conclusions relevant for intuition training. Bas and Dörfler explore whether knowledge workers in a crisis situation resort to intuition, how it is manifested when they do, and what kind of support they need to improve their performance in this respect. Yeung and Sinclair report a piloted training program for entrepreneurs, applying the body-based focusing method to help them surface intuitive insights and boost their confidence in intuition when making difficult decisions. Govender et al. outline how the reflective practice of pausing can influence strategy making through generation of intuitive metaphors and stimulation of other intuition-related processes. Fellnhofer examines in a study of risky decision making whether intuition can be triggered and measured by visual means, through the use of hidden images. Finally, Vincent and Vincent investigate conditions under which decision makers have the tendency to rely on their intuition or be swayed by data provided by artificial intelligence when dealing with an ill-structured problem.
Objectives
Experienced coaches profess using intuition in their work. Practitioner literature positions it as a critical coaching tool. Yet minimal empirical data supports using intuition in evidence based coaching practice. This study looked to: add detail to the map of how experienced coaches work with their intuition in their practice, and to the interplay between ‘gut’ and ‘reason’; and to co-create a language, theory or model to support and legitimise discussion about intuition in coaching.
Design
A qualitative approach rooted in social constructionism was chosen to accommodate the enquiry, grounded theory to provide structure.
Methods
An abbreviated form of grounded theory method (GTM) was developed to explore how four experienced executive coaches talked about intuition and worked at the boundary between intuitive and rational ways of knowing. Data was generated during the iterations of focus group, online discussion and follow-up conversations. Purposive sampling was used.
Results
Findings suggested that: dialogue sharpens and extends individual understandings of intuition in coaching; and expertise and developmental maturity facilitate more choiceful and effective decisions about using intuitions. A model, ‘Working at the boundary’, symbolises the potential in the moment between a coach noticing and responding to an intuition. It captures four ways of working with intuition, mapping the impact of these interventions on the coaching relationship.
Conclusions
Expertise and maturing as a coach have an impact on the quality of interventions at the intuitive/rational boundary, and dialogue extends understandings of intuition. More research is needed – and ‘Working at the boundary’ kick-starts conversations about intuition and provides a tool for coaching psychologists and their supervisors.
The coaching industry has grown to become a multi-billion dollar business, yet there remain few barriers to entry and an absence of national governing bodies. Wide variation in quality of practice undermines the credibility of a field that has been found to be effective (Grover, S., & Furnham, A. (2016). Coaching as a developmental intervention in organisations: A systematic review of its effectiveness and the mechanisms underlying it. PLoS One, 11(7), e0159137. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0159137; Theeboom, T., Beersma, B., & van Vianen, A. E. (2014). Does coaching work? A meta-analysis on the effects of coaching on individual level outcomes in an organizational context. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 9(1), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2013.837499). Coaching stakeholders should therefore be motivated to understand what ‘good coaching’ looks like. However, it remains unclear what it means to be an outstanding, or expert, practitioner, or even whether the construct of expertise applies to the field of coaching. Within this paper, I critique literature that discusses coach expertise, and suggest the philosophical constraints embedded within current thinking imply the need for an alternative conceptualisation of expertise; adaptive expertise. Adaptive expertise is compatible with the complexity that characterises coaching, and prioritises coach decision-making (judgment and reasoning) over coaching outcomes. Many coaching texts largely ignore the construct of decision-making, with the exception of intuitive decision-making. Further research that seeks to understand coach judgment and decision-making will help coaches’ develop their practice, and may be a key to demystifying the central role of intuition in coaching.
In this paper we reflect upon the significance of instructors' tacit knowledge, and ultimately their intuition, in effective classroom performance. Our aim is to help educators understand their intuition and ultimately enhance their instructional effectiveness by making better classroom decisions on the basis of intuitive judgments. We outline the limits of technical-rationalist approaches and then call upon relevant constructs and processes from the intuitive domain, including tacit knowledge and implicit learning, in order to formulate a working definition of instructor intuition. We also present various types of instructional situations that are suited for intuition, along with the benefits for teaching and learning and the potential limitations. Suggestions are offered such that instructors may learn to capitalize on the advantages of using their intuition, yet minimize the disadvantages, and also on how they may educate the intuitive awareness of their students. In this way, the accumulation of learned knowledge and distilled experience within an educational setting can be more effectively leveraged to enhance the performance of individual students, the instructors themselves, and the educational institutions of which they are a part.
The traditional paradigm of business schools is not well suited to handle the ambiguity and high rate of change facing many industries today. The typical MBA program is focused on analytic and cognitive skills, stylized treatment of real business problems, and self-centered careerism with a limited recognition that management is as much art as science. These new challenges that managers now face call for a shift in emphasis toward topics not well covered in academia, from the role of intuition to how to navigate uncertainty (in contrast to risk) or balance focal and peripheral vision. This article examines the teaching, research, and governance issues these new learning imperatives pose for business schools and offers some constructive suggestions for fixing them, based in part on the experience of Wharton's Mack Center for Technological Innovation.
Executive coaching has become increasingly popular despite limited empirical evidence about its impact and wide disagreement about necessary or desired professional qualifications. This article examines the practice of executive coaching, investigating the useful underlying theories by reviewing previous research. It also provides a conceptual framework of executive coaching, integrating the literature on executive coaching and related areas such as mentoring, career success, 360-degree feedback, and training and development. The significance of this article lies in its inte-gration of the extant literature on executive coaching and the development of a conceptual framework of executive coaching and related propositions derived from the literature. The article discusses the implications for future research and for human resource development.
In business, there is little doubt that managers use their intuitions when making decisions. But in spite of the fact that intuition and rationality are two parallel systems of knowing, intuition is often considered the antithesis of rationality and is overlooked, disregarded, or acted on covertly by managers. What is also clear is that intuition is not typically a part of the traditional management education curriculum. The risk therefore exists that business school programs may be producing managers of the future who are unprepared with respect to the more intuitive aspects of management practice. In this article, the authors define intuition and explore various ways management educators can incorporate intuition in business curricula, along with specific teaching ideas that can be utilized in the classroom.
Making decisions by intuition is increasingly viewed as a viable approach in today's business environment. Intuition may be beneficial in certain scenarios, and at times may be the primary decision approach available. To investigate the use of intuition in decision making, we interviewed 60 experienced professionals holding significant positions in major organizations across various industries in the U.S. The executives provided rich descriptive insights about intuitive decision making. They discussed the nature of intuition and how it is developed, how often they use intuition and how they are prompted to do so, and the types of workplace situations in which intuition is used. The interviews were used to develop a descriptive profile of those using intuition in the workplace and to document the perceived quality and benefits of intuitive decisions.
In spite of the fact that researchers suggest that managers use intuition when making decisions and solving problems, management education and development has largely ignored or shied away from including intuition in its curriculum. There are few. if any, reported or reported-and-evaluated attempts at the development of managers' intuitive awareness either in business school or in-company programs. We offer a justification for the inclusion of intuition in management education and go on to report the design, implementation, and evaluation of a program for the development of managers' intuitive awareness. The program used a combination of training and extended practice employing a variety of innovative experiential techniques. The program was evaluated by means of content analyses of the logs that participants compiled during the practice phase. Participants reported positively on the program and documented effects in a number of areas related to the context for intuition (inner-outer), the intuitive process (time, place, and pace), and its outcomes (sense of perspective; self-confidence; inter- and intrapersonal sensitivity; metacognition). The implications for the further application of these approaches in management education and development, and some personal reflections on their use are discussed.
Recent years have seen the rapid growth of an emergent 'coaching industry' in many countries with some scholars calling for the development of a 'coaching profession' replete with its own clear identity, clear boundaries and unique body of knowledge. Yet, at the same time, coaching has also been conceived as a necessary area of expertise and skill set among contemporary HRD professionals. Therefore, this article reports the results of a comparative study of the different conceptualizations and definitions of 'coaching' and contemporary HRD as reported in the literature. Results suggest that the intended purposes and processes associated with both fields of practice are virtually the same. The challenge and dilemma posed by these results are described from both a coaching and HRD perspective, and are discussed in terms of seeing the findings of this comparative study as a wake-up call for HRD professionals.
Intuition usually is defined as the capability to act or decide appropriately without deliberately and consciously balancing alternatives, without following a certain rule or routine, and possibly without awareness (Gigerenzer, 2007; Hogarth, 2001; Klein, 2003; Myers, 2002). It allows action which is quick (e.g. reaction to a challenging situation) and surprising, in the sense that it is extraordinary in performance level or shape. This paper reports theories of intuition and their empirical evidence in the field of professional work. It aims at reporting the state of research on intuition, discussing the relevance of different approaches for analyzing work performance, and describing challenges for future empirical research in the domain of professional working life.