Applied Coaching Research Journal Research Journal 5 | Page 24

APPLIED COACHING RESEARCH JOURNAL 2020, Vol. 5
The PhD is in the second year of study, and this
paper presents some of the preliminary results that
were presented at the 2020 UK Coaching Applied
Research Conference.
Method
A realist evaluation approach is being used (North,
2016, 2017; Pawson and Tilley, 1997) and involves
two stages:
1. Through document review and stakeholder
discussion, an initial ‘programme theory’ was
developed. The programme theory captures
how the programme is understood to work: the
resources and processes through which it will
generate its intended outcomes in context. This
stage of the research is complete and comprised
five, three-hour interviews with programme
design and delivery teams.
2. Observation and interview data are being
collected to capture emerging outcomes (such
as improved reflective practices or better
professional networks) and the resources and
processes involved in generating them. The
programme theory then acts as a reference point
for evaluating the programme implementation
as data is analysed to test and refine the theory.
Nine group event observations and 14 interviews
have been completed to date. Further interviews
and observations will be completed over the
duration of the research.
Preliminary results
In this study, the programme theory is found to be
heavily informed by ‘modern principles of adult
learning’. Such principles adopt a constructivist
approach, which place the learner at the centre
of the learning experience as they construct their
meaning by making sense of events in context (Muir,
2018). Each coach brings their own biography to a
programme that offers the space to explore ideas,
building upon and disrupting existing knowledge
to stimulate deeper reflection (Jarvis, 2004, Moon,
2013). The skills of the coach developer are critical
in adapting to individualised situations and contexts.
The current fieldwork involves continual testing
and refinement of the initial programme theory.
Early findings from observation and interview data
confirm the highly complex and integrated nature of
the programme.
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Surface level data often obscures what it is that
may lead to a particular outcome in a given context
and this introduces complexity and difficulty in
attribution of causal influences (North, 2017). For
example, when a highly-motivated coach participates
in a stimulating peer discussion about a coaching
topic introduced by an expert speaker, exactly
how the coach is influenced is not explicitly clear.
Ongoing fieldwork seeks to better understand this
interplay of multiple factors for coach development.
Tentative implications of research for coaching
By critically evaluating a complex coach
development programme, this research intends
to contribute to the evidence base to inform and
enhance practical design and delivery of coach
learning and development programmes. While the
research is at an early stage there are some tentative
implications for coaching.
The initial programme theory suggests that the
appropriateness of design, facilitation and delivery
of coach education seems to have developed
significantly since the more critical empirical
studies of a decade earlier. In this case, learning
and development practitioners exhibit an improved
understanding of learning practices and alignment of
appropriate development support.
The constructivist underpinning to ‘modern
principles of adult learning’ upon which this
programme is based, not only allows for a
learner-centred approach, but perhaps also places
greater expectations of engagement on the learner.
In fact, this is deemed of such importance that
the objectives of the programme are couched as:
“for an engaged learner the programme aims to...”
The implications of this are that the selection and
recruitment of coaches for development programmes
appear to be an important element influencing
programme outcomes.
However, placing high expectations of engagement
upon coaches requires consideration of their roles,
resources and contexts. Even at the performance
development level, there is a significant voluntary
aspect to the coaching role and wide variation in the
responsibilities, demands and opportunities offered
within those roles.