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A systematic review (SR) of coaching psychology: Focusing on the attributes of effective coaching psychologists
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Objective: Whilst a number of narrative reviews on coaching exist, there is no Systematic Review (SR) yet summarising the evidence base in a transparent way. To this extent, we undertook a SR of Coaching Psychology evidence. Following the initial scoping and consultation phase, this focused on Coaching Psychologists’ attributes, such as the required knowledge, attitudes and behaviours, associated with a conducive coaching relationship and subsequent coaching results.
Design: The SR review process stipulates a priori protocol which specifies the review topic, questions/hypotheses, (refined through expert consultation and consultation of any existing reviews in the field, and replicable review methods including data extraction logs).
Methods: The initial search elicited 23,611 coaching papers using 58 search terms from eight electronic databases (e.g. PsyINFO). Following initial sifts, 140 studies were screened further using seven inclusion criteria. Study results from the how many included papers were integrated through Narrative Synthesis.
Conclusion: This SR highlighted that the coaching relationship is a key focus of coaching research and practice, where a professional psychological training / background is emphasised as an essential requirement to manage coachee’s emotional reactions and the rationales behind their behaviours. The review also highlighted that coaches’ attributes have a significant influence on the effectiveness of coaching process and results. The review concludes with a proposal for an initial Coaching Psychologist Competency Framework to underpin future studies, and noting the short comings of existing frameworks.
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... Furthermore, it has been asserted that the methodological quality of the studies that have been carried out to date is poor overall (Grover & Furnham, 2016;Lai & McDowall, 2014). Conducting further methodologically rigorous outcome studies will allow a more reliable determination of the extent to which coaching impacts work performance. ...
... Systematic reviews are defined as a systematic and critical review of available evidence, using explicit methods to identify and select studies relevant to a clearly stated research question (Moher, Liberati, Tetzlaff, Altman, & Prisma Group, 2009). In the last three years, three systematic reviews of coaching evidence have been published (Blackman, Moscardo, & Gray, 2016;Grover & Furnham, 2016;Lai & McDowall, 2014). Meta-analytic studies are a systematic review that generates integrated quantitative results from the included studies using statistical techniques (Moher, et al., 2009). ...
... The majority of coaching outcome studies reviewed did not design research in relation to a particular theoretical model or conceptual framework (Blackman et al., 2016) meaning there is little theoretically sound evidence available. Therefore, the current evidence base does not provide enough empirical research to examine any one specific theoretical framework, or to determine the processes of change in a particular coaching approach (Lai & McDowall, 2014). ...
This thesis presents a programme of research designed to examine the impact of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) informed performance and development coaching. A preliminary repeated measures study tested the impact of a brief ACT-informed coaching intervention on coachee general mental health, generalised self-efficacy, life satisfaction, intrinsic motivation, goal-directed thinking, goal attainment, and psychological flexibility with 53 UK adults. Data were collected at four time points over 5 weeks. Analyses revealed significant increases in general mental health, life satisfaction, goal-directed thinking, and goal attainment.
A randomised controlled trial (RCT) study tested the impact of a more substantial ACT-informed coaching intervention on coachee work performance, general mental health, generalised self-efficacy, job satisfaction, job motivation, goal- directed thinking, goal attainment, and psychological flexibility with 126 senior managers in the UK Civil Service. Participants were randomly allocated to either an ACT-informed coaching intervention (n = 65) or a waitlist control condition (n = 61). Data were collected at four time points over 13 weeks. Analyses showed significant increases in general mental health, generalised self-efficacy, goal-directed thinking, goal attainment, and psychological flexibility in the ACT group compared to the control condition. Consistent with ACT theory, analyses indicated that increases in psychological flexibility mediated improvements in general mental health, generalised self-efficacy, goal-directed thinking, and goal attainment.
A final parallel mediation study compared the effects of psychological flexibility and working alliance (a plausible alternative mediator) using data from the coaching arm of the RCT study. These analyses revealed that significant increases in psychological flexibility mediated increases in generalised self-efficacy, goal-directed thinking, and goal attainment. Despite significant increases in working alliance over time, no mediation effects for increases in study variables were found. Overall, findings suggest that ACT-informed coaching is an effective approach to performance and development coaching, and psychological flexibility mediates the beneficial impact of the ACT coaching intervention.
... Many coaching meta-research papers have noted that more rigorous, well-conducted studies are required to constitute a true evidence base for coaching (Blackman, Moscardo, & Gray, 2016;De Meuse, Dai, & Lee, 2009;Grover & Furnham, 2016;Jones, Woods, & Guillaume, 2016;Lai & McDowall, 2014;Sonesh et al., 2015;Theeboom, Beersma, & van Vianen, 2014). The majority of published coaching studies are qualitative (Lai & McDowall, 2014), so reviewers have called specifically for more replicable randomised controlled trials (e.g., Grover & Furnham, 2016;Lai & McDowall, 2014). ...
... Many coaching meta-research papers have noted that more rigorous, well-conducted studies are required to constitute a true evidence base for coaching (Blackman, Moscardo, & Gray, 2016;De Meuse, Dai, & Lee, 2009;Grover & Furnham, 2016;Jones, Woods, & Guillaume, 2016;Lai & McDowall, 2014;Sonesh et al., 2015;Theeboom, Beersma, & van Vianen, 2014). The majority of published coaching studies are qualitative (Lai & McDowall, 2014), so reviewers have called specifically for more replicable randomised controlled trials (e.g., Grover & Furnham, 2016;Lai & McDowall, 2014). RCT's facilitate coaching researchers and practitioners in answering questions such as: Is coaching effective, and how effective is it?; ...
... Many coaching meta-research papers have noted that more rigorous, well-conducted studies are required to constitute a true evidence base for coaching (Blackman, Moscardo, & Gray, 2016;De Meuse, Dai, & Lee, 2009;Grover & Furnham, 2016;Jones, Woods, & Guillaume, 2016;Lai & McDowall, 2014;Sonesh et al., 2015;Theeboom, Beersma, & van Vianen, 2014). The majority of published coaching studies are qualitative (Lai & McDowall, 2014), so reviewers have called specifically for more replicable randomised controlled trials (e.g., Grover & Furnham, 2016;Lai & McDowall, 2014). RCT's facilitate coaching researchers and practitioners in answering questions such as: Is coaching effective, and how effective is it?; ...
For the coaching research agenda to support evidence-based practitioners, coaching research needs to provide the best possible external research evidence to support practitioners in answering particular questions of interest. Quantitative coaching research has an important role to play in supporting evidence-based practitioners to answer questions around the efficacy and generalisability of coaching interventions. This paper outlines three key criteria for designing and conducting rigorous quantitative coaching intervention studies: (i) methodological rigour in the study design; (ii) rigour in outcome measurement in coaching intervention studies; and (iii) investigating processes of change in coaching interventions. The intention is that coaching psychology researchers can use these methodological recommendations to design quantitative coaching intervention studies that meet criteria for quality and rigour in the future.
... In this paper, we define c-psychologists as coaches who have an academic degree and/or subsequent postgraduate qualifications in psychology (or who can demonstrate the equivalent in the absence of formal qualifications), and are formally affiliated with a professional psychology body or association to maintain ongoing development and standards of practice. The limited research that has been completed in this area suggests that having an academic background in psychology relates positively to perceived credibility as a coach and coaching effectiveness (Bozer et al., 2014) and supports the development of essential psychological skills and core coach attributes including the ability to rigorously assess and evaluate their practice (Lai & McDowall, 2014). ...
... We acknowledge that psychology is one of several disciplines (including management and adult learning) that contributes to coaching as a practice. There is insufficient evidence to claim that psychology alone accounts for the effectiveness of coaching, however, evidence supports that psychological theories and models have a meaningful impact on coaching outcomes (Wang et al., 2021, Palmer and, that effective coach attributes mirror those of psychologists (Lai & McDowall, 2014) and that having a psychology background and qualifications enhances the perceived credibility and effectiveness of coaches (Bozer et al., 2014). ...
https://explore.bps.org.uk/content/bpstcp
As the British Psychological Society establishes a new Division of Coaching Psychology and routes to chartered membership for coaching psychologists, we revisit the ongoing dialogue into the professionalisation of coaching psychology, with a specific focus on practice in the United Kingdom (U.K.). We attempt to make distinctions between the practice of a coaching psychologist and a professionally qualified coach. First, we offer an overview of the development of coaching psychology over recent years, contemplating the need to regulate it as a profession. Following that, we consider some of the main coaching and coaching psychology definitions in an attempt to delineate the practice of coaching psychologists from that of non-psychologist coaches. Next, we compare approaches to training and some of the differences between coaching and coaching psychology, as well as the need for an ethical framework and supervision for coaching psychologists. Finally, we conclude by offering a final thought about who is a coaching psychologist.
Keywords: coaching, coaching psychology, ethical practice, reflective practice, regulation, accreditation, BPS
... For example, Kotte (2017) claimed that coaching establishes itself as a consulting format of professionals and not of managers. Lai and McDowall (2014) suggested that a professional psychological training background is an essential requirement for coaches to manage a coachee's emotions. Therefore, some scholars question the existence and benefits gained from coaching by MACs, and there are different perspectives as to what the success of coaching means. ...
Manager as Coach (MAC) is a concept that relates to managers who actively coach their subordinates to improve their skills, competence, and performance. The MAC practice is a popular tool for managers in organizations; however, there is a debate about the benefits gained from coaching by MACs and a theoretical gap regarding the effectiveness of this process. The purpose of this study is to examine the different perceptions of managers who coach their subordinates and subordinates coached by their managers of the coaching process and to estimate the perceived success of this process. In‐depth interviews were conducted with 13 MACs and 9 coachees from various organizations in Israel. Qualitative content analysis was used to analyze and interpret the data. Basic analysis indicates that the perceptions of the MACs toward the coaching process were positive, whereas the coachees held mixed perceptions. The different perceptions point to the unequal power relations between the MACs and the coachees. In the interpretive analysis, it was found that the perceptions toward the MAC process affect coachee feelings toward the organization but not the coach's feelings. Relying on Leader‐Member Exchange (LMX) theory, the MAC process will be successful only if managers significantly reduce power distances. Therefore, organizations must offer their MACs significant coaching training to decrease the negative consequences of the MAC practice and to diminish the power distance between MAC and coachee.
This chapter will focus upon the move from education to practice. It will explore the position of those law students who are unable to secure employment within the law, reflecting on the need for law students to be equipped to deal with rejection and will discuss the possibilities offered by self-coaching. It will also seek to identify common features in those who rebound more effectively from rejection. The chapter suggests a self-coaching approach based upon a pilot involving academic staff. The pilot found that those individuals with higher levels of self-belief and self-efficacy will tend to respond to rejection by accepting that rejection as a challenge. It has a lesser effect upon their sense of their own identity. These individuals are less likely to take the rejection personally and their personal sense of being part of their social/work community is less likely to be impacted.In the pilot, academic staff identified the importance of a space to share feelings with peers in order to realise that they were not alone in their response to rejection. Therefore, it is possible that, as with the academic staff participants, students would find the creation of space to mutually consider their personal strengths, values and motivations beneficial. Furthermore, increasing a sense of belonging and reducing competitiveness in law students may be supported by formally encouraging peer support groups within a self-coaching intervention.KeywordsPsychological well-beingPositive psychologyResilience
The current article presents a three-stage approach to teaching time in an applied psychology setting. The approach focuses on nurturing temporal reflexivity by having students reflect on their time-use and draw attention to their subjective experiences of time. Activities, discussions, and practical demonstrations are used to guide students through personal, collective, theoretical, and practical lenses of engaging with time. This case sample is taught to postgraduate students and practitioners in coaching psychology and positive psychology. Teaching within this context is discussed, along with the pedagogical practices employed to create a reflective and interactive learning environment. One primary activity, a reflective time journal, is presented as a tool for other educators to consider in their teaching of temporal reflexivity. Further consideration is given to the general challenges of teaching time, including limited temporal resources, and acknowledgements of disciplinary, pedagogical, and personal positionalities. This case sample of teaching time may be of particular interest (1) for those looking to facilitate awareness of subjective experiences of time within the classroom (something we might refer to as temporal reflexivity), and (2) for those who teach in an applied setting where students are often practitioners or future practitioners looking for strategies that will practically inform their work.
As the British Psychological Society establishes a new Division of Coaching Psychology and routes to chartered membership for coaching psychologists, we revisit the ongoing dialogue into the professionalisation of coaching psychology, with a specific focus on practice in the United Kingdom (UK). We attempt to make distinctions between the practice of a coaching psychologist and a professionally qualified coach. First, we offer an overview of the development of coaching psychology over recent years, contemplating the need to regulate it as a profession. Following that, we consider some of the main coaching and coaching psychology definitions in an attempt to delineate the practice of coaching psychologists from that of non-psychologist coaches. Next, we compare approaches to training and some of the differences between coaching and coaching psychology, as well as the need for an ethical framework and supervision for coaching psychologists. Finally, we conclude by offering a final thought about who is a coaching psychologist.
This thesis explores the relationship between applying gestalt therapy and the effectiveness of executives in business using an integrative literature review methodology. The existing literature is explored and analysed to conclude what is known about the envisaged link between gestalt therapy and its business-focused application. The thesis discusses the prominent themes across the literature and indicates the potential the gestalt therapy method could have in such a context. At the same time, the thesis puts forward a critical assessment to achieve a realistic perspective on the content and extent of knowledge current literature provides, together with a realistic assessment of what this means for future research. Overall, generalised business literature indicates that practitioners already use GT to work with their clients on EE, but no empirical research confirms that. It is shown how the literature can be interpreted to formulate the context specifics of GT in business and the overarching themes identified across the literature. The overall contribution is to provide the first-ever clarification and review of the topic.
Objectives: There is a lack of research on the coaching relationship (O’Broin & Palmer, 2006a). The current paper will present the findings from a qualitative study that explored experiences of workplace coaching including the coaching relationship.
Design: The study adopted a qualitative design and the data was analysed by Interpretative
Phenomenological Analysis (Smith, Jaraman, & Osborn, 1999).
Methods: Nine participants, from two large organisations, were interviewed about their experiences of coaching.
Results: ‘The coaching relationship’ was identified as a main theme which, in turn, comprised of three subthemes; valuable coaching relationship; trust; and transparency. These themes highlighted that the coaching relationship was very valuable for the participants and that this relationship was dependent on trust and improved by transparency.
Conclusions: It was concluded that it is important that coaches are aware of, and are working with, the coaching relationship. Nevertheless, the participants also highlighted that the relationship was not the only factor that made coaching useful. Working towards goals and improving performance were also valuable components of the coaching. It was, therefore, suggested that coaching may be most beneficial if it incorporates a number of components, including a focus on the relationship.
Keywords: the coaching relationship, coaching, Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis;
valuable coaching relationship; trust; and transparency.
Citation: Gyllensten, K., & Palmer, S. (2007). The coaching relationship: An interpretative phenomenological analysis. International Coaching Psychology Review, 2, 2, 168-177.
The objective of this report is to propose comprehensive guidelines for systematic literature reviews appropriate for software engineering researchers, including PhD students. A systematic literature review is a means of evaluating and interpreting all available research relevant to a particular research question, topic area, or phenomenon of interest.
Systematic reviews aim to present a fair evaluation of a research topic by using a trustworthy, rigorous, and auditable methodology. The guidelines presented in this report were derived from three existing guidelines used by medical researchers, two books produced by researchers with social science backgrounds and discussions with researchers from other disciplines who are involved
in evidence-based practice. The guidelines have been adapted to reflect the specific problems of software engineering research.
The guidelines cover three phases of a systematic literature review: planning the review, conducting the review and reporting the review. They provide a relatively high level description. They do not consider the impact of the research questions on the review procedures, nor do they specify in detail the mechanisms needed to perform meta-analysis.
Efforts to conceptualise and design facilitative models that support coaching practice have been prevalent in both the peer-reviewed and industry-based literature since the popularisation of coaching as a human development methodology. A myriad of models claim to provide robust and efficacious methodologies that produce effective and targeted change and growth for clients. Whilst some of these models have gained greater popular acceptance from practitioners than others, many make erroneous and unfounded claims within the industry literature of relative superiority over other proprietary models. In apparent contradiction to the popular discourse, the current paper suggests that all coaching psychology interventions occur within a broad androgogy (or in the case of minors, pedagogy) or specifically, within a generic experiential learning process. With this assumption established it is proposed that future exploration and research into coaching intervention efficacy may be more valuably focussed on understanding and examining the techniques, methods or strategies that are utilised within this generic experiential coaching process in an effort to build a unique evidence base for coaching psychology practice.
Objectives: Human resources (HR) professionals responsible for purchasing executive coaching services represent a unique research resource as independent and invested observers of coaching practices. The research objective was to explore this group’s knowledge to better understand what differentiates the work of exceptional coaches.
Design: The study was a survey design.
Methods: Twenty experienced executive coaching purchasers completed 90-minute structured interviews based around a 40-item questionnaire regarding their experiences of locating and working with exceptional coaches. Saturation testing and a post-analysis survey provided support for the emergent themes.
Results: Purchasers defined a ‘great outcome’ from coaching as ‘behaviour change.’ Descriptions of executive-coachees’ experiences grouped around themes of engagement, deeper conversations, insight and responsibility, and positive growth. The exceptional coaching capabilities that facilitated these experiences were: credibility, empathy and respect, holding the professional self, diagnostic skill and insight, approach flexibility and range, working to the business context, a philosophy of personal responsibility, and skilful challenging.
Conclusions: Themes resolved into a process model of exceptional executive coaching that incorporated environmental, executive, and task characteristics as other influential factors. Discussion focused on the remedial implications of using behaviour change as the outcome definition. Despite this implication, executives nevertheless seemed to experience executive coaching as positive and, at times, transformational. The work of exceptional coaches may be at its most distinctive when the required behaviour change is particularly demanding, and when outcomes are based on transformational change.
The Coaching Relationship discusses how we can integrate process perspectives such as the quality of the coach-coachee relationship, and professional perspectives including the influences of training and supervision, for more effective outcomes.
Stephen Palmer and Almuth McDowall bring together experts from the field of coaching to discuss different aspects of the coach-coachee relationship, topics covered include:
the interpersonal perspective
the role of assessment
ethical issues
cultural influences
issues of power.
The book also includes a chapter on the interpersonal relationship in the training and supervision of coaches to provide a complete overview of how the coaching relationship can contribute to successful coaching
Illustrated throughout with case studies and client dialogue, The Coaching Relationship is essential reading for practicing coaches and coaching psychologists wishing to learn more about the interpersonal aspects of coaching.
Executive Coaching: A Generation ChangeThe Pragmatics: What is Executive Coaching?Toward a New Synthesis: Positive Psychology and CoachingCoaching Techniques and Interventions and their Underlying TheoryHow Small Differences in Perspective can have a Huge ImpactThe Research Conundrum
Such diverse thinkers as Lao-Tze, Confucius, and U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld have all pointed out that we need to be able to tell the difference between real and assumed knowledge. The systematic review is a scientific tool that can help with this difficult task. It can help, for example, with appraising, summarising, and communicating the results and implications of otherwise unmanageable quantities of data. This book, written by two highly-respected social scientists, provides an overview of systematic literature review methods: Outlining the rationale and methods of systematic reviews; Giving worked examples from social science and other fields; Applying the practice to all social science disciplines; It requires no previous knowledge, but takes the reader through the process stage by stage; Drawing on examples from such diverse fields as psychology, criminology, education, transport, social welfare, public health, and housing and urban policy, among others. Including detailed sections on assessing the quality of both quantitative, and qualitative research; searching for evidence in the social sciences; meta-analytic and other methods of evidence synthesis; publication bias; heterogeneity; and approaches to dissemination.