International Journal of Evidence Based Coaching and Mentoring (Aug 2024)

What do coaches actually do to learn and develop? A qualitative exploration of the development narratives of experienced coaches

  • Stephen Burt,
  • Duminda Rajasinghe,
  • Bob Garvey,
  • Alexandra Barosa-Pereira,
  • David Clutterbuck

DOI
https://doi.org/10.24384/a16t-f341
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 22, no. 2
pp. 80 – 97

Abstract

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Coach development is an under-researched phenomenon and our understanding of how coaches learn and develop is therefore limited. The current discourse of coach development is largely framed by professional bodies who have a stake, to varying degrees, in the dominant paradigm. That paradigm is informed by linear stage models of learning and development which, we argue, do not fully address the diversity of coaches, their different developmental needs nor the range of paths they follow to become experienced coaches. To access that diversity, we explore coaches’ experience of their development journey using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. We found no universal set of development activities with which coaches engage, but considerable commonality. Our study revealed that how coaches resource and support themselves, influences, and grounds their development. Life events impact professional growth and becoming a coach affects personal identity. Rather than the transmission and mastery of a pre-determined set of skills and knowledge, facility and investment in reflexive learning emerges as the key motor of coaching excellence.