Assessing the effectiveness of group based reflective practice for coaches

Abstract

Reflective practice, a well-established professional development approach, involves learners enhancing their capability through deliberate, systematic evaluation of their thinking and actions. This study used a client-generated outcome measure and a coaching relationship measure to assess the effectiveness of group-based coaching development. It provides preliminary evidence that sessions reduced the level of concern for issues where participants received coaching, while levels of concern for issues that were not coached remained static. Participants rated the coaching relationship very highly. The study presents some evidence for the value of group-based reflective practice sessions, however, further research is needed to assess the finding’s generalisability.

Keywords

• reflective practice
• coaching skills
• coach psychology
• group training
• developmental effectiveness