Psychology in executive coaching: an integrated literature review

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify essential psychological-informed executive coaching approaches that enhance the organisational learning and development process and outcomes through integrating existing research evidence. Since coaching has been widely used in leadership development related areas and previous studies confirmed that this generates positive effects on individual-level learning in the organisational setting. The identified frameworks and influential factors outlined in this paper can serve as explicit guidelines for the organisation and management team when setting selection and evaluation benchmarks for employing executive coaches. Design/methodology/approach An integrated review approach was applied to narratively synthesise 234 (k=234) identified peer-review articles between 1995 and 2018. This review followed a rigorous protocol that the authors consulted ten (n=10) experts in the field. Both qualitative and quantitative psychological-focused research evidence was included in this study. Findings First, certain psychological approaches, such as cognitive behavioural, solution-focused, GROW and strength-based approaches, were highlighted in current research evidence. Second, the essential factors and skills, for instance, building trust, transparency and rapport, and facilitating learning were identified. Third, the main organisational learning and development outcome evaluation methods were outlined in this review, such as the self-efficacy scale, organisational commitment, workplace psychological well-being, 360-degree feedback and the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire. Research limitations/implications It is always challenging to integrate research evidence on coaching because of the diversity of theoretical disciplines upon which coaching interventions draw. Therefore, it is difficult to generate a meta-analytic review which can generate statistical results. This review also reveals room for improvement in the quality of existing coaching evidence in accordance with the criteria for evidence-based management or practice (Briner et al., 2009), such as research methodology and evaluation design. Moreover, there is a lack of evidence on this reflective process which helps professional coaches to ensure the quality of their practice and organisational support. Practical implications This review offers a new perspective on the role psychology plays in the organisational learning and development practices. The identified coaching approaches, influential interpersonal skills and outcome evaluation methods can serve as practical guidelines when applying external coaching to facilitate a better organisational learning and development process and outcome. Originality/value This is the first literature review to focus on contemporary psychological-informed coaching evidence (between 1995 and 2018) in the workplace setting. Despite the rapid growth in demand for professional coaching practitioners (International Coach Federation, 2016), there is a lack of research-informed evidence to overcome the challenges faced by organisations when employing external coaches, such as what selection criteria or evaluation benchmarks to use. This review takes a practical perspective to identify essential body of knowledge and behavioural indicators required for an executive coach to facilitate an effective learning and development outcome.

The effectiveness of workplace coaching: a meta-analysis of contemporary psychologically informed coaching approaches

“…Outcome criteria for workplace coaching Outcome criteria in contemporary coaching research have been criticized due to the lack of consistency and validity (Lai and Palmer, 2019); hence, we drew on established criterion models from similar interventions, such as training and learning for coaching evaluations. To build on previous meta-analyses, we combined multi-level training evaluation (Kraiger et al, 1993) with the Engagement and Well-being Matrix® (Grant, 2014) in the present analysis.…”

“…Considering that CBC has been the most documented psychologically informed coaching approach in contemporary empirical studies (Lai and Palmer, 2019), we further compared the effect size between CBC and other coaching methods. The results indicated that the average effect size of other methods (g 5 0.55, 95% CI, 0.40-0.70 and p < 0.01) was higher than CBC (g 5 0.39, 95% CI, À0.03-0.82 and p 5 0.07), but the difference was not significant, F (1, 11.80) 5 0.88 and p 5 0.37.…”

“…Given the central importance of psychological theories in previous reviews, we revisit these in the context of contemporary coaching literature. Several theoretical frameworks originating from psychotherapy and positive psychology have been frequently applied in extant coaching practice regardless of concrete empirical evidence for their effectiveness (Palmer and Lai, 2019). Grant (2001) carried out a pioneering literature review of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), addressing identifying negative cognitive patterns and solution-focused therapy (SFT), emphasizing self-developed and future focused plans for behavior change, as L&D interventions for nonclinical population coaching.…”

Coaching: liderazgo y desarrollo profesional

“…Esta metodología promueve la interacción estrecha entre el gerente y sus colaboradores para lo cual se puede incluir evaluaciones estructuradas, retroalimentación de 360 grados, entrevista conductual, y otras técnicas orientadas a la administración del recurso humano. Métodos complementarios de evaluación de resultados de aprendizaje y desarrollo de la organización considera la escala de autoeficacia, el compromiso organizativo, el bienestar psicológico en el lugar de trabajo y el cuestionario de liderazgo de varios factores (Lai & Palmer, 2019).…”

Prospective associations between working alliance, basic psychological need satisfaction, and coaching outcome indicators: a two-wave survey study among 181 Dutch coaching clients

“…Among the latter factors, the relationship between coach and client (hereafter: coachee), and the motivation of the coachee, have been repeatedly forwarded as key "common" factors for positive coaching outcomes [6,[15][16][17], sparking interest in the study of underlying psychological mechanisms. Several authors (e.g., [18][19][20][21][22]) have suggested that self-determination theory (SDT; [23])-a macro theory of human motivation, development, and health [23]-may be a particularly useful framework from which to understand the linkage between the coach-coachee relationship and coachee motivation, and how these factors relate to coaching outcomes. However, empirical studies are so far scarce, and the current study therefore aims to add to the empirical literature on the link between the coachcoachee relationship and coaching outcomes, viewed from a SDT perspective on coachee motivation.…”