The Psychology of Coaching, Mentoring and Learning

The Psychology of Coaching, Mentoring and Learning Ho Law Empsy Ltd Sara Ireland and Zulfi Hussain Morph Group Ltd T...

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The Psychology of Coaching, Mentoring and Learning

Ho Law Empsy Ltd Sara Ireland and Zulfi Hussain Morph Group Ltd



Ho Law Empsy Ltd Sara Ireland and Zulfi Hussain Morph Group Ltd

Copyright © 2007

John Wiley & Sons Ltd, The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex PO19 8SQ, England Telephone (+44) 1243 779777

Email (for orders and customer service enquiries): [email protected] Visit our Home Page on www.wiley.com All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except under the terms of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 or under the terms of a licence issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 4LP, UK, without the permission in writing of the Publisher. Requests to the Publisher should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons Ltd, The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex PO19 8SQ, England, or emailed to [email protected], or faxed to (+44) 1243 770620. Designations used by companies to distinguish their products are often claimed as trademarks. All brand names and product names used in this book are trade names, service marks, trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. The Publisher is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold on the understanding that the Publisher is not engaged in rendering professional services. If professional advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought. Other Wiley Editorial Offices John Wiley & Sons Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, USA Jossey-Bass, 989 Market Street, San Francisco, CA 94103-1741, USA Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH, Boschstr. 12, D-69469 Weinheim, Germany John Wiley & Sons Australia Ltd, 42 McDougall Street, Milton, Queensland 4064, Australia John Wiley & Sons (Asia) Pte Ltd, 2 Clementi Loop #02-01, Jin Xing Distripark, Singapore 129809 John Wiley & Sons Canada Ltd, 6045 Freemont Blvd, Mississauga, ONT, L5R 4J3 Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. Anniversary Logo Design: Richard J. Pacifico Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Law, Ho. The psychology of coaching, mentoring, and learning / Ho Law, Sara Ireland, and Zulfi Hussain. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-470-02844-5 1. Personal coaching. 2. Executive coaching. 3. Mentoring. 4. Learning, Psychology of. I. Ireland, Sara. II. Hussain, Zulfi. III. Title. BF637.P36L4 2007 158′.3 – dc22 2007006919 British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN 978-0-470-02844-5 Typeset in 10/12 pt Times by SNP Best-set Typesetter Ltd, Hong Kong Printed and bound in Great Britain by TJ International, Padstow, Cornwall This book is printed on acid-free paper responsibly manufactured from sustainable forestry in which at least two trees are planted for each one used for paper production.

Contents About the Authors

vii

Foreword

ix

Preface

xiii

Acknowledgements

xv

Chapter 1

Introduction

1

Chapter 2

The Coming of Age: Coaching, Mentoring and Positive Psychology

9

Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6

Philosophy and Theories of Psychology Applicable to Coaching and Mentoring: Learning Processes/ Theories

29

Definitions: Coaching Psychology, Coaching, Mentoring and Learning

50

Becoming a Learning Organisation and Learning Community through Coaching and Mentoring

56

Developing a Universal Framework for Diversity, Coaching and Mentoring

79

Chapter 7

Techniques and Tools

110

Chapter 8

Continuing Development, Learning Resources and Practical Exercises

144

Chapter 9

Case Studies

167

Chapter 10

Evaluation

189

Chapter 11

Conclusion, Discussion and Future Work

205

References

223

Index

235

About the Authors Ho Law, Chartered Occupational Psychologist, the Managing Director of Empsy Ltd and Research & Technical Director of Morph Group Ltd, is an international practitioner in psychology, coaching, mentoring and psychotherapy. He is a founder member of the British Psychological Society’s Special Group in Coaching Psychology (SGCP) with strategic responsibility for the ethics of coaching psychology, and a consulting editor of The Coaching Psychologist. He is currently an honorary lecturer at Liverpool John Moores University and an International Advisory Board member of the Coaching Psychology Unit, City University London. He has published over 40 papers and delivered over 100 workshops and conference seminars in the UK and abroad including Barcelona, Brussels, Hong Kong, Paris, Stockholm, and Zurich. He received numerous outstanding achievement awards including the Local Promoters for Cultural Diversity Project in 2003, the Positive Image (Business Category) in 2004, and Management Essentials Participating Company 2005. Sara Ireland, is a Chartered Occupational Psychologist with a background in HR. She is the Innovation and Applications Director of Morph Group Ltd. She is a founder member of SGCP and has UK and international management consultancy and organisation development experience, as well as working as an Executive coach and programme co-ordinator.

Zulfi Hussain, Business and Marketing Director of Morph Group Ltd, is also Chief Executive, board member and director of a range of businesses and charities in the UK and across the world. He is chair of the European Mentoring and Coaching Council (2006). Zulfi received the Directors of the Year (2005) Award from the Institute of Directors.

Foreword The psychology of coaching, mentoring and learning is an exciting and rapidly expanding area. However, psychology’s contribution to certain fields is often overlooked and the field of coaching and mentoring is no exception. For example, many coaching courses teach students how to coach by using a basic model or structure on how to hold a conversation with a client. One example is the GROW model, which is a useful acronym standing for Growth, Reality, Options and Will (or Wrap-up). In addition, courses usually include a range of listening and communication skills. Yet often the whole programme is taught within a psychological vacuum as little or no psychological theory or research is covered that underpins coaching practice. We could conclude that most coaching practice is belief-based. Brent Rushall at San Diego State University describes belief-based coaching as: a common and traditional form of coaching. Its guides for practices are usually a mix of personal experiences, some limited education about sport sciences, selected incomplete knowledge of current coaching practices, and self-belief that how coaching is conducted is right. Changes in coaching practices occur through self-selection of activities. The accumulated knowledge of belief-based coaching is subjective, biased, unstructured, and mostly lacking in accountability. Beliefbased coaching also includes pseudo-scientific coaching. Pseudo-scientists attempt to give the impression of scientific knowledge but invariably their knowledge is incomplete resulting in false/erroneous postulations. Belief-based coaching is normally the foundation of most coaching development schemes. Organizations are closed (isolated) systems resisting intrusions of contrary evidence that might alter the constancy of the beliefs and social structure. Logical (knowledge) entropy increases with time in these structures. (Rushall, 2003)

This excellent description of belief-based coaching highlights how often practitioners do not necessarily underpin their practice with psychological theory and academic research. Is there an alternative? Fortunately, there is. In academic institutions and within coaching-related professional bodies there is a gradual trend towards evidence-based practice. Rushall (2003) describes evidence-based coaching as: a restricted and relatively rare form of coaching. Its guides for practices are principles derived from replicated reputable studies reported by authoritative sources in a public manner. Often there is consideration of objective studies that do and do not support principles. Evidence-based coaches have fewer guides for practices, but what are included are highly predictive for accomplishing particular training effects. The accumulated knowledge of evidence-based coaching is

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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF COACHING, MENTORING AND LEARNING objectively verified and structured. However, evidence-based coaching principles are developed in a fragmented scientific world. It could be somewhat difficult to gather all the relevant knowledge into an educational scheme. Organizations are open systems structured to constantly accept new knowledge and concepts. Logical (knowledge) entropy decreases markedly as order is established.

Applying evidence-based practice is the challenge facing the profession of coaching and mentoring, as we need more research to inform our practice. However, in recent years with the launch of relevant coaching, coaching psychology and mentoring academic and practitioner journals, researchers and psychologists are in a better position to publish their research findings. These include the International Coaching Psychology Review, the Coaching Psychologist and the International Journal of Evidence-Based Coaching and Mentoring. What has been noticeable is the gradual increase in the number of published papers showing the effectiveness of using solution-focused and cognitive-behavioural coaching approaches with non-clinical populations. There are plenty of published research papers highlighting how effective these approaches are with clinical populations but the real challenge has been to prove that they are effective with non-clinical populations. But of course, it could all be down to the coaching relationship and not the approach to coaching. This has been the argument we have heard so often in the field of psychotherapy. Grbcic and Palmer (2006) decided in a research study to dispense with the coach (or therapist) and test the cognitive-behavioural methodology on managers by using a manualised, self-coaching approach to stress management and prevention at work. Did it work? If it was largely down to the practitioner–client relationship, then it should not have worked! In this randomised controlled trial statistically significant results were obtained indicating intervention effectiveness regardless of the frequency of work stressors and lack of organisational support remaining unchanged. The control group remained the same, unlike the selfcoaching group, who showed measurable improvement. Hence in the short period of about six years, researchers are already making substantial progress and building up data that can make a positive impact on evidence-based practice. It should not come as a surprise to learn that recent surveys have found that the most popular approaches being practised by UK-based coaching psychologists are the Facilitation, Solution-Focused and Cognitive-Behavioural approaches (Whybrow & Palmer, 2006). This is relevant as the meteoric rise in popularity of coaching psychology in the UK has led to more research being undertaken by postgraduate students on university courses or doctorate programmes. This exciting development parallels the creation of the Coaching Psychology Forum in 2002 and the subsequent launch of the British Psychological Society Special Group in Coaching Psychology in 2004. Ho Law, the principal author of this book, was one of the key figures in the setting up of both groups. Unlike this book, the early literature on the psychology of coaching and coaching psychology focused mainly on the psychology of sports coaching (e.g. Griffith, 1926; Lawther, 1951; Gaylord, 1967; Tutko & Richards, 1971; Wilt & Bosen, 1971; Llewellyn & Blucker, 1982). This book adds to evidence-based

FOREWORD

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practice by attempting to unify psychological theories that underpin coaching, mentoring and learning. The core element of the book is based on three years’ research and development in the psychology of coaching, mentoring and learning. The research and practice provided a foundation to develop a Universal Integrated Framework that should be applicable across cultures. This book is a welcome addition to the literature and will inform the fields of mentoring, evidence-based coaching and coaching psychology. Professor Stephen Palmer Director, Coaching Psychology Unit City University London

References Gaylord, C. (1967). Modern Coaching Psychology. Iowa: WMC Brown Book Co. Grbcic, S. & Palmer, S. (2006). A cognitive-behavioural self-help approach to stress management and prevention at work: a randomised controlled trial. Conference paper presented on 24 November 2006 at the joint Association for Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy and the Association for Multimodal Psychology National Conference in London. Griffith, C.R. (1926). Psychology of Coaching: A Study of Coaching Methods from the Point of View of Psychology. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons. Lawther, J.D. (1951). Psychology of Coaching. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Llewellyn, J.H. & Blucker, J.A (1982). Psychology of Coaching: Theory and Application. Minneapolis, MN: Burgess Publishing. Rushall, B.S. (2003). Coaching development and the second law of thermodynamics [or belief-based versus evidence-based coaching development]. Available at http://wwwrohan.sdsu.edu/dept/coachsci/csa/thermo/thermo.htm. Accessed 8 November 2006. Tutko, T.A. & Richards, J.W. (1971). Psychology of Coaching. Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon. Whybrow, A. & Palmer, S. (2006). Shifting perspectives: One year into the development of the British Psychological Society Special Group in Psychology in the UK. International Coaching Psychology Review, 1(2): 75–85. Wilt, F. & Bosen, K. (1971). Motivation and Coaching Psychology. Los Altos, CA: Tafnews Press.

Preface Simon Curtis, one of the top mentors in farriery in the UK, once described his profession as, ‘a scientific discipline, but there is a magic in its art’. His statement finds resonance with our own coaching and mentoring practice. In this book, we have advocated a vigorous scientific approach to coaching and mentoring processes, their theories and practices. We have demanded an evidence-based evaluation of their output and outcome as well as the stakeholders’ experience of the transformation. We use the concept of a ‘journey’ as a metaphor for coaching and mentoring. For many of us, it is a journey of discovery and rediscovery, one full of surprises. Most of all, the journey has been punctuated with magical moments in our coaching and mentoring engagements. We take pleasure in sharing some of those surprises and experiences in writing this book, which acquires another journey of its own. The core element of this book is based on three years’ research and development in the psychology of coaching, mentoring and learning. Our joint journey as colleagues started in the Health and Social Care system, where we implemented a twelve-month coaching and mentoring programme (2004/5). The programme aimed to support leadership improvements in a diverse and complex setting. The practice provided us with a foundation to develop a Universal Integrated Framework that was applicable across cultures in many applications. From this early work, we have developed core knowledge, a transparent process and pragmatic tools to support a systems approach to coaching and mentoring for all. The CrossCultural Coaching and Mentoring Intelligence tool is now available online at http://www.morphgroup.net/csi. Although the book is not an edited or contributed one, Ho Law assumed the overall role of putting together the contributions from Sara Ireland and Zulfi Hussain and ensured that they are coherent, consistent and easy to read. The writing itself has taken us nine months. In a way, this book represents a labour of love – the love of the human spirit, the love of what we do: coaching/mentoring that transforms life. Coaching/mentoring truly has a transpersonal dimension, as advocated by Sir John Whitmore. Indeed, it is the transpersonal quality of coaching/mentoring that makes it magical. The ‘writing journey’ was punctuated with further research and our own learning from diverse applications and continuous practices in various contexts. The search for cross-cultural diverse practices took us to new cultures and contexts, where we have tried to embed our practice in sound theory and similtaneously discover new

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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF COACHING, MENTORING AND LEARNING

applications for those psychological principles. We have all learnt from working with others who have an appreciation of their own environment and greater knowledge of their wider complex systems of operation. We have been humbled by the generosity of practitioners, both coachees/mentees and coaches/mentors, who we have met, who have shared their stories with us. We are delighted and appreciative that Professor Stephen Palmer, the founder of the Special Group in Coaching Psychology (British Psychological Society) has lent his support by writing the foreword to this book. We acknowledge Stephen’s leading role and the movement in the British Psychological Society that has endeavoured to extend the reach of coaching and mentoring. Finally, whatever your interest in this process, we hope this book takes another step forward in widening the access to the psychology of coach/mentoring. For aspiring individuals everywhere, who have experienced the benefits of coaching/mentoring directly, we hope that you might feel just a little closer to understanding some of the theories behind why it works. And for those still looking in from the outside, we hope our approach in this book encourages you to get involved. Ho Law, Sara Ireland and Zulfi Hussain

Acknowledgements There are inevitably many names to acknowledge, including those of family and friends of course, who have been taken for granted while this book was being written, and many unintentional omissions. So without mentioning every possible individual, we shall list (in alphabetical order) some of those who have inspired us as well as some of the contributors, the unsung heroes and organisations within the context of our journey in developing the concepts and practices described in this book. Thanks go to:

• Sheila Adams – for coaching/mentoring in Addenbrookes Hospital, Cambridge. • Snowy Aga, No Fear Ltd – who supported Ho Law in the community coaching and mentoring programme.

• Maisie Allen – National Health Service (NHS) coaching/mentoring champion and Mentfor Director.

• Shola Arewa – for her generosity in sharing her knowledge and giving feedback in the transatlantic coaching pilot project.

• Tosin Bex – for his inspiration in cross-cultural leadership and enterprise. • Jessica Bockler – for her initiation and facilitation of the Transpersonal Psychology Performance Workshop.

• Frank Bresser – for co-ordinating the transatlantic coaching pilot project. • Jacqui Campbell – who provided a coaching opportunity for the diverse communities.

• David Clutterbuck and David Megginson – for their inspiration, encouragement, advice and support over many years.

• David Criddle of Brunswick MCL – for his continued support and guidance. • Nikki Eastwood – community facilitator and meaningful conversationalist. • Vince Hagedorn – for his support to mentors/mentees/members of the Eastern Mentoring Forum.

• Liz Hall – for communicating our concept of coaching to wider professional communities via the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development’s Coaching at Work. • Trevor Hall – who inspired Ho Law in championing equality and diversity in his cross-cultural journal, career and life.

xvi


• Jemma Hill, a student from the University of Central Lancashire (who shadowed • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Ho Law for her summer work experience) – for providing comments and helping to edit some of the chapters. Les Lancaster – for his inspiring lecture at the tenth Annual Conference of Transpersonal Psychology Section, the British Psychological Society. Julienne McGeough and Jackie Singleton – psychology lecturers and teachers. Christine Padesky – for her inspiring training/workshop in cognitive behavioural therapy. Stephen Palmer – for his inspirational leadership in introducing the coaching psychology to the British Psychological Society. Rachel Price, Community Wildlife Officer, The Wildlife Trust – who embraced the camp fire metaphor and made it happen for the participants at the nature reserve. Jane Robinson – a manager of passion in the National Health Service (NHS). Anna Squires, chair of The Community Network – who made the camp fire metaphor happen for a diverse community. Geoff Tomlinson – who has never stopped questioning, challenging and doing things differently. Liz Villani – a business coach, who inspires and embeds life spirit in the Coaching Exchange. Michael White, Dulwich Centre – who inspired and trained Ho Law on narrative approaches from ‘down under’. Sir John Whitmore – for his personal and inspiring words in Coaching for Performance. Hilary Williams – psychologist and coach, who makes it look easy. Pauline Willis of Lauriate and Coaching and Mentoring Network – for her continuing support.

Organisations that have provided support in our coaching and mentoring journey include:

• • • • • •

Association for Coaching. British Psychological Society’s (BPS) Special Group in Coaching Psychology. BPS Transpersonal Psychology Section. Coaching Exchange. MentFor (former Eastern Mentoring Forum). Peterborough Race Equality Council and its partners.

We also salute those seasoned coaching/mentoring research contributors, who have coached/mentored us, in our own personal journeys, shared wisdom, challenged ideas and encouraged us when they probably didn’t have to. David Megginson, David Clutterbuck and the Sheffield Hallam team come to mind. Likewise the European Mentoring and Coaching Council (EMCC) has provided us with a platform for our development and a network to stimulate our thinking.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

xvii

Although our journies have taken us to many regions and countries, we acknowledge our own local communities. In the tradition of narrative therapy, Ho would like to thank his local community of Peterborough and honour their contribution to his journey. Zulfi has been heartened by the encouragement he has received in his region of Yorkshire and Sara credits her cappuccino-drinking friends and colleagues in Cambridge and Wirral. It is in these places that the Universal Integrated Framework was developed through our lived experience. It is our many conversations with people in workshops, networks and by email that have taken our ideas in unexpected ways. There are other places too, where colleagues and acquaintances, coaches and coachees, mentors and mentees have contributed to our learning and development – for example, the first Association for Coaching conference in London; the Special Group in Coaching Psychology National and International Conferences in City University, London; the Transpersonal Psychology Section’s annual conferences at Cober Hill, Scarborough; the European Mentoring and Coaching Council’s Annual Conference at Zurich; and further afield, the narrative therapy workshop and international festive conference in Adelaide, Australia, and Rice University, Houston, from where the virtual coachees contributed through the Internet coaching programme. There are many more of you out there who have contributed to our understanding. To you, perhaps the unacknowledged, we offer our thanks too. Ho Law, Sara Ireland and Zulfi Hussain

The views expressed in this book are those of the authors, and not those of the publisher, or Empsy Ltd, or Morph Group Ltd or anyone else. This is in no way affected by the right reserved by the authors to edit the cases published. Owing to the requirement for confidentiality within our code of ethics, the context/stories of some case studies may have been adapted and individual identities kept anonymous. If the case studies documented in this book have omitted any partners’ contribution, this is entirely unintentional. Any constructive comments and suggestions for future editions of this book are welcome. Please write to: Ho Law PhD CPsychol AFBPsS ACMI PO Box 696 Peterborough PE2 9YQ [email protected] http://www.empsy.com; http://www.morphgroup.net

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The authors and publishers would like to thank the following publishers for kind permission to reproduce the tables and figures listed below: Figure 3.1 from Kolb, D.A. (1984). Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Figure 3.2 adapted from Kolb, D.A. (1984). Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall and Gibb, G. (1988). Learning by Doing: A Guide to Teaching and Learning Methods. Oxford: Oxford Brookes University, Further Education Unit. Figure 3.4 adapted from Kolb, D.A. (1984). Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall Figure 3.5 from Kolb, D.A. (1984). Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall Figure 4.2 from Palmer, S. & Whybrow, A. (2004). Coaching psychology survey: taking stock. Paper at the BPS SGCP Inaugural Conference, 15 December, City University, London. Table 7.2 from White, M. (2006). Narrative Therapy Intensive Workshop. 20–24 February. Adelaide: Dulwich Centre. Figure 10.1 from http://greenbook.treasury.gov.uk/chapter02.htm. Figure 11.1 from Law, H.C. (2006b). Ethical principles in coaching psychology. The Coaching Psychologist, 2(1) May: 1–16. The British Psychological Society. Figure 11.2 from Law, H.C. (2006b). Ethical principles in coaching psychology. The Coaching Psychologist, 2(1) May: 1–16. The British Psychological Society.

CHAPTER 1

Introduction This book is about the psychology of coaching, mentoring and learning. There are many books about learning and mentoring; there are even more about coaching. However, we believe that there is no single book that brings together the intersection of these important, diverse and growing fields. The title of this book reflects our valuing of diversity in the emerging discipline of coaching, and how it can be enriched by continuously expanding, to include mentoring, while remaining grounded in the solid foundation of the psychology of learning.

AIMS The aim of this chapter is to help readers gain a rapid understanding of the nature of the book and find the information it offers easily. It provides a rationale for the book, together with a résumé of its overall structure and a brief description of each chapter. It also suggests how readers working at different levels can use the book to meet their interests, experience and professional competence.

WHO IS IT FOR? Our purpose is to show how individuals and organisations can apply the theories and principles of psychology in coaching, mentoring and learning. To this end, the book is written for the following groups:

• Coaches, mentors and trainers who would like to learn the general theories and principles of psychology that underpin coaching, mentoring and learning.

• Psychologists who want to apply their experience to coaching, mentoring and training individuals and organisations.

• Senior executives and managers responsible for training budgets who would like to realise the potential benefit and understand how to design for and evaluate effective training programmes in their organisations. • Students of psychology considering a career in coaching, mentoring and training.

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We are aware that the emerging field of coaching and mentoring, coupled with the popularity of psychology in the UK, will attract a very wide readership. Thus the intended readership is not limited to those described above. Readers may include teachers, instructors and anyone involved in coaching, mentoring, training or supervision. With the rapid development of coaching/mentoring as an industry, much confusion exists between the psychology of coaching/mentoring and the psychology of counselling and psychotherapy. In comparison to the development of psychotherapy as a discipline, we have found a lot more sharing of practices, promoted by various coaching and mentoring organisations (see Chapter 2).

HOW THIS BOOK DIFFERS FROM OTHERS There are many books on coaching and mentoring. However, this book differs from others in the following aspects:

• As far as we are aware, this is the first book on coaching psychology published

• • • • • •

in the UK that attempts to bring together the psychological theory that underpins coaching, mentoring and learning. It embodies a number of developments in coaching and mentoring as well as coaching psychology. It traces the development of the Special Group in Coaching Psychology within the British Psychological Society which addresses coaching psychology as a discipline. It reflects the latest thinking, research and development in coaching psychology with high-level theories, principles and practical applications. It applies psychology to both coaching/mentoring and learning (not either/or), thereby blurring the boundaries as well as addressing the differences between coaching, mentoring and learning. This book has cross-cultural elements that make the theories universal and applicable across different cultures. We apply the general psychology of learning rather than psychotherapy to coaching and mentoring (Chapter 3). It demonstrates know-how and presents exercises with step-by-step instructions as well as case studies within diverse organisational and community contexts (Chapters 7–9). It includes a chapter on evaluation, which demonstrates the effectiveness of applying the psychology of learning in coaching, mentoring and learning (Chapter 10).

Working Terminology Before we get going and for those with no knowledge of coaching, mentoring and learning, we are going to offer some broad, pragmatic working definitions which we

INTRODUCTION

3

will refine as we go along. Firstly we are talking in this book about processes and activities that support learning. By learning, we mean ‘the cognitive process of acquiring skill and knowledge’. Coaching is often described as a process of support offered to an individual, which is performance focused and goal centred and results in action. A mentor (in mentoring) is a critical friend overseeing the development of another. All these processes are learner centred and driven. A theme running through this book is the cross-cultural application of coaching and mentoring. As such we define culture broadly as ‘the predominating attitudes and behaviour that categorise the functioning of a group, community or organisation, which we typically apply to a range of contexts – to countries, ethnic categories, professions and work places. By ‘cross-cultural’, we refer to the interaction between peoples or entities from two or more cultures. We will test theories, concepts and techniques cross-culturally to see if they are transferable to other contexts beyond the original application setting.

Towards Integration of Terms The material provided represents the fertile ground of interaction between coaching, mentoring and psychology (in particular, learning). This triangular relationship can be represented in a simple Venn diagram (Figure 1.1). However, as our research and coaching/mentoring journey unfolded, we discovered that there are increasing overlaps between the three disciplines. Thus one can see the three circles of influence in Figure 1.1 gravitating towards each other

Coaching

Mentoring

Psychology of learning

Figure 1.1 The overlapping fertile ground between coaching, mentoring and psychology of learning

4


Coaching

Mentoring

Psychology of learning

Figure 1.2 Increasing overlapped area between coaching, mentoring and psychology of learning

(see Figure 1.2). The next question then becomes clear: ‘How much overlap is there between the three disciplines in practice?’ At the end of our discussion, we conclude that the three are in fact interwoven. In Chapter 2, we show that coaching and mentoring are coming of age. We consider market forces, the development of the coaching/mentoring industry and the global market place and their roles in shaping practice. In order to bring our model of coaching/mentoring and psychology of learning to life, the orientation of this book can be rearranged as a three-dimensional working model (see Figure 1.3). In this model, we view coaching and mentoring as an interchangeable continuum. Sometimes they may even be regarded as the same thing, depending on the context. That is why you will find the expressions coaching/mentoring, coaches/mentors and coachees/mentees. Whatever the context, we believe that at its centre due regard should be given to the diversity of all participants in this process. That understanding extends to an appreciation of sensitivity towards and respect for the values, beliefs, faith, gender (including transgender and different sexual orientation), social barriers/disability, and racial and cultural backgrounds of each other. To understand the universality and diversity of coachees/mentees within a diverse setting, it is important that coaches/mentors learn more about the principles and techniques grounded in the psychology of learning and applicable across cultures.

CONTENT IN A NUTSHELL Coaching and mentoring are diverse disciplines. In the UK alone, organisations/ groups have been set up specialising in coaching and/or mentoring. These include the Association for Coaching, the British Psychological Society’s Special Group in Coaching Psychology, the European Mentoring and Coaching Council, the Eastern Mentoring Forum and the International Coaching Federation (see Chapter 2).

INTRODUCTION

5

Coaching/Mentoring

Diversity in coaching/mentoring

Race

Disability Faith

Gender

Age

Sexual orientation

Psychology of Learning

Figure 1.3 Working in a three-dimensional model of coaching, mentoring and psychology of learning

Coaches and mentors come from diverse backgrounds. While we do not need a degree in psychology in order to be a coach and mentor, we believe that for coaching and mentoring to be effective, we need to understand the psychological principles on which the practice is based. Without this understanding, coaches and mentors risk not achieving their intended outcome. Throughout this book, we focus on linking theory to practical application, drawing on the comprehensive literature in psychology of learning. The psychological theories of learning are described in Chapter 3. This chapter provides a literature review as well as highlighting the learning theories that are useful in our coaching and mentoring practice within the tradition of epistemology. (By epistemology, we mean we question the nature of what we know, fundamentally asking what knowledge is and how we distinguish it from our internal thoughts/beliefs.) Chapter 4 addresses key definitions of coaching, mentoring and learning, which are grounded in the psychology of learning from the previous chapter. From revising the psychology of learning and establishing our own key definitions within the intersecting domain of coaching, mentoring and learning, we set out on a journey of enquiry and proceed logically to guide the reader through the chapters that follow. Chapter 5 describes how coaching and mentoring can be used as a vehicle to help organisations become

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learning organisations. From our consolidation of theory into coaching and mentoring practice in diverse settings, we develop a Universal Integrated Framework (UIF) in Chapter 6. We describe the major classes of techniques and tools in Chapter 7; and supplement them with relevant practical exercises that we hope readers will find useful in Chapter 8. In particular, we provide information on a supervision approach and ideas for measuring receptiveness to coaching/mentoring, as well as a base-line assessment tool. Chapter 9 provides a number of case studies that we discuss in terms of the UIF and demonstrate that these theories and exercises work in the real world, in various organisations as well as in diverse communities. One of the major criticisms in the emerging coaching industry is that most theories and practices lack rigorous, evidence-based evaluation. Chapter 10 meets this challenge by providing an impact evaluation of the Universal Integrated Framework (UIF) linked to a case study. Finally, in Chapter 11, we describe our perceived future direction and work in terms of following key areas of our prior focus:

• • • • • • •

matching between coaching/mentoring pairs co-ordinator role emotional intelligence cross-cultural competency evidence-based research and impact assessment supervision training coaching/mentoring standards, codes of conduct and ethics

BOOK RESEARCH APPROACH Writing this book has been like riding two horses. We would like to ensure that it is easy to read and accessible to a diverse readership without compromising its academic rigour. Thus the writing style is straightforward wherever possible. Academic references are only noted at direct points in the text. They do reflect the wide range of literature we have reviewed, both from online sources and information obtained from attending international workshops and conferences, in the UK, Europe, Australia and Hong Kong. While we cast our research net very widely, we also focus on the deliverables that this book represents, that is, useful guidance for learners and practitioners in the field of coaching, mentoring and training. The UIF we have developed through our research and practice is grounded in both established psychological theories of learning and evidence-based evaluation for its effectiveness and efficacies.

WHY COACHING, MENTORING AND LEARNING? As globalisation leads to more intense competition, organisations need to continue to recruit, develop and deploy the best people in order to stay ahead and survive.

INTRODUCTION

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We have seen rapid and unprecedented change in our organisations and communities across the globe. This has taken place in the fast-growing communications industry as well as in public organisations. Repeated reconfigurations in search of service improvements have meant that leaders are required to work at the leading edge of their capability. Corporate leaders have begun to realise that traditional training methods may not be able to cope with the pace of change. Hence organisations have turned to coaching and mentoring to help develop their people, deepen their talent pool and enhance their organisational learning capability. Mentoring and coaching go beyond industry. Individuals from vulnerable communities need channelled effective routes to learning in trusted partnerships; isolated groups need a mechanism to break down barriers to mainstream communities and any one who wants to learn more about them selves, increase their knowledge in targeted areas and their wider environment can benefit.

How to Read this Book Owing to the philosophy that underpins this book, the following terms are used interchangeably throughout this book:

• • • •

you and readers coaches and mentors coachees and mentees learners, trainers and supervisors

Each chapter is intended to be independent in terms of its topic and content. You may pick and choose which chapters are relevant to you. Nevertheless, throughout this book you will find that the chapters are interwoven, and some are clustered more closely around a topic than others at a certain juncture of the coaching/mentoring journey. We recommend that the chapters be read consecutively in pairs. For example, if you are a learner or student who would like to know more about coaching and mentoring and how they link to the psychology of learning, you should read Chapters 2 and 3. If you are a busy chief executive or training manager who wants to find out the relevance of coaching and mentoring to organisations, you may like to read Chapter 5. For experienced coaches/mentors wishing to refer directly to the techniques and exercises, Chapters 7 and 8 can be read together. Chapter 8 provides a things-to-do list for coaching; in addition the exercises are organised in a systematic way so that readers can refer back to the principles described in Chapter 7. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced coach/mentor, you will find these two chapters useful as they provide pointers to begin your continuous development or fine-tune what you already know. Readers who are interested in concrete examples, case studies and evidence-based evaluation of coaching and mentoring programme can go directly to Chapters 9 and 10. Throughout the book, we highlight concepts and ideas that are interwoven by cross-referencing. In this way, we hope that our

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‘conversation’ with the reader will provide a sense of continuity as the story unfolds and encourages a dramatic re-engagement with many of your experiences that may fill some of the gaps in this book. To help readers apply the theories to reflective practice, each chapter is written to a standard format. It begins with an Introduction to outline its content, and ends with a Chapter Summary and Reflection, which summarises the key concepts and reflects on the implications in practice.

CHAPTER 2

The Coming of Age: Coaching, Mentoring and Positive Psychology INTRODUCTION This chapter describes current developments in coaching and mentoring. First, we look at the influence of the market on the development of coaching and mentoring and its structuring. The discrete elements within coaching and mentoring programmes have become a micro-science in themselves such as in e-mentoring and matching coaching and mentoring pairs. We will review the literature on these elements. We address the emergent world stage for coaching and mentoring as the context for a universal paradigm. We consider the shift away from psychotherapeutic approaches in our focus on one traditional and one new theory, evidenced in our learning and coaching and mentoring practice. The GROW model (a traditional model underpinned by psychological theory) and positive psychology represent very popular and growing approaches and they will be revisited in Chapter 7.

THE COACHING, MENTORING AND TRAINING MARKET From the individual’s perspective, we all want things faster, work/life balance, access to self-improvement, and the opportunity to discover our strengths. These consumer trends drive the expanding coaching and mentoring market. Within the UK alone, there are thousands of suppliers in coaching, mentoring and training, ranging from small, sole traders to large, international training corporations. Their average turnover in 2004 was £8 million with £500,000 pre-tax profit. Every month, in journal articles and coaching magazines, we are bombarded with news about companies and organisations using coaching and/or mentoring to leverage their business performance. For example, the Medical Research Council applied coaching to develop its organisational strategy (Whiteley, 2006); the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) coached 130 employees in their leadership programme; Armagh College, Northern Ireland, developed a coaching culture by

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undertaking the Centre for Excellence Learning’s ‘Leaders as Coaches’ programme; and Greater Manchester Police has developed internal coaches to strengthen its leadership (CIPD, 2006a). Mentoring has also enjoyed financial backing from business tycoons – for example, a £200 million ‘mentor fund’ was set up in 2001 in West Coast Capital, Scotland, to invest in high-growth businesses across the UK. A survey of 109 coaches in 2004 showed that many practitioners offer more than one area of coaching, with the majority of respondents from business applications (over 60%), followed by career, executive and leadership coaching. All scored 50% or more (Palmer & Whybrow, 2004). Within the business sector, there is a diversity of services, ranging from technology to education, with some suppliers operating in just one sector, while others offer coaching and training across a broad spectrum. The majority of providers who specialise in coaching and mentoring are very small, employing no more than six people. Despite its diversity, we attempt to categorise the industry into four types: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Academic and professional institutions. Business and management consultancies. Independent practitioners. Internal coaches and mentors.

Academic and Professional Institutions This category includes colleges of further education, higher education and business schools, as well as professional institutes, such as the British Psychological Society (BPS), the Institute of Directors (IoD), the Chartered Institute of Management (CIM) and the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD). The BPS has a formal process to accredit psychologists through its chartership process (Law & Grimley, 2003). The CIPD has a membership of more than 120,000 and runs a wide range of training courses, covering coaching, the psychology of management, and learning and development. Furthermore, course participants have access to its webbased learner’s support site, which is designed to provide additional resources and enhance and extend learning. The coaching/mentoring programme in these organisations is typically run by inhouse staff or members. Some academic and professional institutes also offer external training programmes and courses. These may range from tailor-made, short vocational courses to formal academic studies leading to a diploma, Master’s or doctoral qualification. In recent years, in the UK alone, a number of professional organisations have emerged which specialise in coaching and/or mentoring. These include:

• Association in Coaching (AC) • Association for Professional Executive Coaching and Supervision

COACHING, MENTORING AND POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY

• • • •

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European Mentoring and Coaching Council (EMCC) East Mentoring Forum (EMF) International Coach Federation (ICF) Special Group in Coaching Psychology (SGCP) within the BPS

The professional group most relevant to the psychology of coaching is the BPS SGCP. It started as an informal Coaching Psychology Forum in 2002. Following its call for membership at the BPS Counselling Psychology Annual Conference and an article published in the Occupational Psychologist (Law, 2002) its membership grew exponentially. It achieved Special Group status within the BPS and held its inaugural meeting on 15 December 2004. In 2005, it became the third largest BPS subsystem with almost 2000 members (Palmer & Whybrow, 2006).

Business and Management Consultancies More and more business and management consultancies offer coaching services as well as training for coaches as part of an overall consultancy package or separately. In general, business and management consultancies use coaching as part of personal and management development. Their aim is to help organisations to improve:

• • • • • • •

return on investment (ROI) bottom-line profit human capital relationships conflict resolution work/life balance career development

Independent Practitioners These are large companies as well as sole traders who offer coaching or mentoring as their principal activity. There is a significantly large number of independent practitioners in coaching and mentoring whose background ranges from training or personnel to business and management consultancy or marketing. Although many sole traders who work part-time have a low profile, they do provide a quite competitive market, as their costs and fees are relatively low. However, their presence in an unregulated industry raises concerns in terms of ethics and standards.

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Internal Coaches and Mentors Internal coaches and mentors provide similar services to their employer’s staff. For example, many colleges and universities have developed internal mentoring procedures, and each new member of staff may be assigned a mentor who may also be the mentee’s line manager. (The issues arising from whether the mentor should be the mentee’s line manager are discussed later.) Internal coaches/mentors are also competing in the market, as their rates tend to be much lower than those of external consultants. They also have distinct advantages in that they understand their clients and the context of the organisation. To summarise, the types of coaching and mentoring providers described above can be classified as shown in Table 2.1. There are some overlaps between categories in the matrix. For example, larger corporate companies and institutions may employ internal coaches/mentors as well as external consultants who operate as independent practitioners. Technology is another factor that adds to the complexity of the matrix. For example, coaching and mentoring programmes and training packages may be available on the Internet. These offer a lot of information and knowledge at a fraction of the cost. They can be stand-alone or tailor-made and integrated into the internal corporate coaching and mentoring programme. Coaching and mentoring play a large role in developing human potential and improving performance in both individuals and organisations. There are varieties of types of organisations as well as styles of coaching and mentoring, which have developed to meet the needs of different people in different sectors, communities and places. Some coaching and mentoring is only one indistinguishable element in a bigger integrated process and so there is less research to indicate its discrete benefits. Likewise research priorities, criteria of success and methods do not always enable cross-cultural comparisons. Even in Europe where coaching and mentoring are discrete processes in a prospering supplier market, reports on involvement and benefits are sometimes confusing and myths abound.

Table 2.1 Coaching and mentoring marketing matrix

Corporate Private

Internal

External

Academic and professional institutions Internal coaches and mentors Private arrangements

Business and management consultancies Independent practitioners


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REPORT ON COACHING From our observations we have concluded that most people believe that coaching is beneficial for them and good for their business: for example, 35 out of 36 executives who received coaching in South Africa reported that it delivered return on investment (ROI) to their organisation (Hall, 2006). The perceived average benefit of ROI from 43 respondents was reported to be 5.7 times the initial investment in a UK study (McGovern, 2001). Sue Holland reported that executive coaches from around the world had found it useful in assessing what was a cultural norm and what was individually unique at Unilever (Whiteley, 2006). Coaching enables people to create space to think about and reflect on their learning.

REPORT ON MENTORING There is a lot of misunderstanding about what mentoring is. For example, with recent media coverage and the emerging development of various associations/ groups of coaching and coaching psychology, many people think that the mentoring market is not as high-profile as coaching. This is apparently not the case. Articles about mentoring are published in various magazines and journals. For example, the Institute of Directors, in its magazine Director for Business Leaders (Magee, 2006), reported that ‘from Tom Hunter to James Dyson, British business tycoons are opening their minds to the next generation of entrepreneurs as mentoring programmes flourish . . .’. There are a number of associations, new and established – for example, Eastern Mentoring Forum and the Prince’s Trust – which regard mentoring either as their core business or as part of their embedded approach for their services. The European Mentoring and Coaching Council, as its name suggests, regards mentoring and coaching as its core organisational activities. Another myth about mentoring is that it takes place only in the world of business and that mentors are usually more experienced employees who help protégés up the corporate ladder. This is not necessarily the case. Many mentoring programmes are set up in the public sector, including in education institutions as well as large organisation such as the NHS (see Chapter 9 for case studies). In this book we use the metaphor of a journey. The context of the journey between coaching and mentoring may be very different, yet in reality they are very close together. Viewed from this perspective, mentors are regarded as trusted guides who understand the theory of personal development and are experienced in translating it into practice (see Daloz, 1999). Mentors do not simply provide mentees with a road map and travel tips, but also walk some of the journey with them. The collaboration (co-journeying) enables mentors and mentees to develop and experience a new journey that is full of surprises.

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E-COACHING AND MENTORING E-mentoring generally has been well received. This was highlighted at the EMCC Conference in November 2005: E-mentoring is a recent development in the field of mentoring and one which is already showing significant advantages over more traditional forms. E-communication can be very liberating for both participants and some of the traditional difficulties in face-to-face mentoring such as power differences, gender and race issues are simply not present in a virtual environment. It is also clear that the strong benefits of mentoring are present in an e-format. The time factor in e-mentoring can also play an important developmental role, allowing both real time for communication and time lags for reflection. Another great advantage of e-mentoring is geography is no barrier to participation. (Hunt, [2004], 2005)

The convenience and flexibility of e-mentoring allows for regular, informal communication between individuals or groups enabling asynchronous (email) or synchronous (messenger or text) exchanges. David Clutterbuck (2004) proposed that a mix of methods and technologies could improve the mentoring process: As technology becomes more sophisticated it is reasonable to assume that there will be much broader and more intelligent use of technologies. There will in particular be more use of video conferencing through desktop PCs and web cameras. In the future it seems likely that the majority of relationships will be hybrids of face-to-face remote and asynchronous textual exchanges. The evidence suggests that this has great potential to enrich the dialogue between mentors and mentees. Mentoring scheme co-ordinators will have to include the effective use of these technologies as an integral part of mentor and mentee training.

With the development of the Internet and e-messaging, we have also found some companies offer e-coaching or e-mentoring, either as a stand-alone or as part of their training programmes. Much of the research has compared face-to-face with computer-mediated communication. Some of the results highlighted the danger of depending exclusively on technology. For example, people were found to be more aggressive and hostile in emails than they were face-to-face (Kiesler, Siegel & McGuire, 1984). This led to concerns about the potential impact of loss of accountability in online communication, where individuals feel more distant from the addressee and thus less careful and sensitive about how the communication will be received. By the 1990s such concerns had waned, as evidence of hostility was low. Several theories have come to the fore in developing our understanding of how online differs from face-to-face communication. There has been a range of studies indicating that trust may take longer to establish in online relationships, but that over time trust ratings are the same as face-to-face. Tidwell and Walther (2002) asked whether face-to-face was actually more personal and productive than communicating electronically. However, synchronicity might


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need more time to ‘cover the ground’ and that has been rarely factored in to studies where researchers have been looking at the same time controls in both comparison sets – face-to-face versus online. Other researchers have found that online relationships were moderately interdependent, deep and committed (Parks & Floyd, 1996) and gave a sense of predictability and understanding (Swann, 1990). It has also been shown that those who already network socially are more likely to add the Internet to the media they use to socialise with, rather than replace it. Shy people find it easier to open up on the Internet and initial disclosure is increased compared with face-to-face situations (Bargh, McKenna & Fitzsimons, 2002). More recent developments in online chats have the benefit of immediacy. Many corporate teams working internationally engage in online meetings throughout the day. They may even be in more than one meeting at a time so their rate of communication can be very productive. Many teams now describe these simultaneous meetings as highly effective but different from face-to-face meetings. For example, SGCP carried out most of their committee meetings via teleconferences and achieved significant cost savings. The practice was recommended by the Council of the BPS, which encouraged other committees to conduct teleconferencing more often.

Inflated Expectations Theory Recent research on the Internet on liking people, including studies in online working collaboration and dating, has been instructive, leading to the development of the Inflated Expectations Theory (Walther, 1996). In short, people who meet and communicate on the Internet like one another more than people who meet face to face (McKenna, Green & Gleeson, 2002). People who liked each other most were in online groups and had no photographs of each another (hyper-personal); liking was less in individuals working in online groups who had photographs of the other group members; less still for individuals working in online groups in short-term situations with photographs; and least liking was expressed by those in short-term relationships without photographs. Whilst photographs present a visual cue of the person, requests for more information about the person contributed negatively to overall ratings of liking in other studies. The expectation that getting to know others through photographs or personal information will lead to more liking, coupled with the fact that more information will lead to less liking, means individuals are more likely to be disappointed with increased exposure to their online partner. In other words, when the person is revealed visually, disappointment is likely to result. It may be that if the Inflated Expectancy Theory is to be believed, we might limit channels of communication to either email, text, online chat or face to face and telephone back-up or email back-up so that the processing of new or counter-to-assumption information does not retard the progression of the relationship. So if online communication is different rather than second best, how can we play to its strengths? First, we can stop thinking that the realisation of completeness is a

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face-to-face meeting – the cherry on the cake. Secondly, the timing of that first meeting is crucial. If it is not at the start of the relationship, then it is more likely to reduce satisfaction levels and outcomes than improve them. As for video conferencing, the contribution of a face-to-face or picture-simulated situation probably offers little to the satisfaction rate of the players. For speed overall, an Internet relationship needs to develop in its own way, but e-type symbols, such as smiley faces, can be used effectively to convey more social cues and social presence. The effort of making a phone call may convey caring and ‘going the extra mile’ (called positive reinforcement in behavioural psychology). However, this may be no greater than an unexpected communication by email beyond the contracted relationship to convey follow-up on promised action (key to the demonstration of commitment to the relationship) or personal greetings.

MATCHING COACHES/COACHEES AND MENTORS/MENTEES IN DIVERSITY Another area where the Internet has developed our thinking is in matching pairs of people for collaboration – something that is very relevant to coaching and mentoring. One of the biggest challenges is in matching learners at a distance and across cultures. The interpersonal relationship between mentees and mentors in which a safe place exists for the mentee to grow is important (Stokes, 2003). In so far as coaches and coachees/mentors and mentees work together, establishing a good relationship is the key to success. Without that relationship there is nothing. Initial matching is therefore extremely important, as the first impression counts. People can form judgements of others at 22–80 feet (Festinger, Schachter & Back, 1950). In social psychology various fields contribute to our knowledge. For example, it is well known that positive emotional reactions increase liking (Veitch & Griffitt, 1976). Generally, research into interpersonal attraction has shown that similarity in attitudes, political orientation and religious belief predicts attraction (Byrne & Nelson, 1965; Fischer, 1992; Brehm et al., 2002; Buss, 2003). The ideal self that we might portray for matching and our actual self may be different in interpersonal attraction. Studies have found a tendency to select someone who is similar to oneself (based on one’s ideal self) rather than actual objective information (Buss & Barnes 1986). People prefer similarity in traits that they dislike in themselves – more precisely those traits that do not match their conception of their ideal self (Klohnen & Mendelsohn, 1998). Some studies suggest that characteristics that predict initial attraction may not predict long-term satisfaction. It may well be that while similar attitudes do not increase attraction, dissimilar attitudes may decrease attraction (Rosenbaum, 1986). Some studies have shown that mentoring relationships can be inhibited if employees perceive their benefits to be low. This may explain some of the mixed findings on the impact of e-mentoring (Expectancy Valence Theory); time and again, being listened to and receiving the positive attention, or ‘presence’, of another have been


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identified as the most significant factors in success. Raised expectations and belief in the process also affect results, which goes beyond differences between individual, method and context. Online communication analysis and system generation have produced some useful studies on electronic matching. Some of these address the effectiveness of social recommendation systems, which advise users on the basis of similarity between pairs to facilitate social interaction or collaboration. These studies commonly note the tension between giving a lot of information to facilitate choice and decision-making (in response to the request from users for more information) and the requirements for privacy of those individuals submitting their details to be paired. Geographical proximity is a useful predictor of effective matches (Ludford et al., 2004). Liking is linked to similar demographic information (Swearingham & Sinha, 2002). Factors that affect how recommendations are made, including the importance of a range of options and the continued selling of the benefits, are also significant in affecting adoption of recommendations for linkages between people (Herlocker, 2000). E-mentoring pairs are aligned successfully with goals and values (Bennett, 1997). Mentoring and coaching research and studies have contended that formalised mentoring programmes are rated as less successful and less beneficial than naturally occurring mentoring relationships (Chao, Walz & Gardner, 1992). Monsour (1998) suggests that mentors and mentees should be based near each other and have similar interests and learning styles. Research with head teachers concurred that proximity enables mentors to demonstrate local insights as well as national ones, unless competition is likely to arise. A study of nurse leaders in 2003 undertaken by the Modernisation Agency found that there were mentoring concerns when the relationships were too close and that nearly half the mentees knew their mentor before the mentoring took place. Interestingly, common goals and values have been shown to be more important as conditions for success than other criteria in some studies. Sutherland (2003) reported that more mentees than coachees found the matching process potentially problematic and attributed this to the increased emphasis on the quality of the relationship in mentoring. On outcomes of satisfaction, core helper skills, attributes and qualities underpinned an effective process and she found no difference between mentoring and coaching. Cross-cultural studies and anthropology add to this area of our understanding through a focus on the matchmaker’s role in marriages as well as brokering for developmental pairings and collaborative working. Partnership at every level of being, working and learning has never been more important. Our need for an increasingly integrated system in the environment is required to keep pace with its increasing complexity. Matchmakers or brokers act as catalysts or go-betweens, whose objective is to mediate between different parties for mutual gain. They work across boundaries and they bridge gaps. A partnership broker brings together potential partners and works to build and maintain a successful working relationship before exiting. There has been very little research on coaches/coachees or mentors/mentees

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matching. Whilst the research is increasing in this area, the leverage from other broker situations in other cultures has not been capitalised upon. One of the best examples of brokering is in marriage matching, as described below.

China In China, the matchmaker’s work concerns co-operation and working together for the common good. The role and its qualities were described in a variety of ways, such as ‘to check for mutual approval’. Among the Halibas, the matchmaker look at marks on the heads of the bride and groom to see if they tallied; some Tibetan matchmakers look at horoscopes.

India One Indian matchmaker stated, ‘The success of arranged marriage relies on the middleman or woman.’ Among Hindus the matchmaker is a Brahman, a member of the highest caste. Some matchmakers look at omens. The matchmakers is described as ‘having sufficient standing to have respect from both parties that they are likely to approve his or her recommendation’.

Korea In Korea, 41% of marriages are match-made. One matchmaker said, ‘These days young people are more active in voicing the specific qualities they seek in future spouses. They want to be involved.’ He looked for similar backgrounds, education and status, and qualities that were similar or complementary. Folk wisdom in many Eastern cultures acknowledges that certain matches are meant to be. The couple are right, the time is right and the matchmaker is right. When these factors come into alignment, the marriage is right. In summary, Eastern cultures tend to depend on the respected third person to act as a guiding light. This relates to the notion of ‘fate’, which links to the community spirit and the cultural belief system. Our case studies have shown that the role of the matchmaker or co-ordinator as a trusted party is more important than anything else in ensuring the take-up of coaching and mentoring opportunities, and the importance of other criteria diminished in direct relation to the trust in the matchmaker’s ability to get the match right. The matchmaker is usually the co-ordinator of the process and such findings further emphasise the importance of selection and training of co-ordinators to perform their roles. We describe in Chapter 6 how these cultural dimensions can be addressed when developing a coaching and mentoring framework and programme.


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COACHING, MENTORING AND PSYCHOLOGY In the West, the development of sports coaching was based on the psychology of sports and exercises. From this path, Sir John Whitmore, a former international racing driver and now a well-known coach, said, ‘I think [coaching] principles are universal and it will eventually be common in all aspects of life – such as parenting’ (Hilpern, 2006). However, the developments in coaching and mentoring, and the psychology that underpin them, are culturally bound and dependent on the wider environmental influences. For instance in the West, predominating factors have steered coaching and mentoring towards formalised programmes. This evidence-based approach was originally developed to ensure a consistent approach to the diagnosis and treatment of disease. This approach, particularly in America and Europe, transgressed medical boundaries and has influenced the development of therapeutic and helping professional practice in those same cultures. There are also hybrid cross-cultural coaching and mentoring programmes in place. These often stem from multinational companies taking their American or European practice to Asia or Africa. The coaches/mentors in these international companies usually work to a single approach. Such schemes have impact on the local community, trigger interest in coaching and mentoring and the development of networks of support. As Whitmore comments in Coaching for Performance, ‘even the most pragmatic of coaching interventions, such as daily task performance, are enhanced if the coach holds a transpersonal perspective’ (Hilpern, 2006). More importantly, he links transpersonal coaching to the value of the corporate social responsibility – the so-called triple bottom line (profit, people and environment) that chief executives and managing directors should take on board, coach and be coached throughout their organisations. A key question is: Can coaching be transpersonal without being transcultural? Diverse coaching approaches exist, ranging from neurolinguistic programming (NLP) and accelerated learning to the GROW model. Transactional analysis experiences partial credibility as a psychologically driven approach but remains popular and has its roots in psycho-social development through Erikson and later Levinson’s Seasons of Life (Levinson, 1978). The universality of these approaches mean that we will revisit them in Chapter seven on techniques and tools. A popular approach is the GROW model, so we shall describe it briefly here (and revisit it in Chapter seven). GROW is an acronym made up of the following elements: G – Goals R – Reality O – Options W – Will, or as some coaches prefer it, Wrap-up

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Goal-setting The primary objective of this model is goal-setting. Coachees should set a long-term goal, short-term goal, a goal for the session, a goal for their issues, etc. For instance, coaches may ask, ‘What would you like to get out of this coaching session?’ The goal should be optimal and challenging. Coaches also need to facilitate coachees to take ownership of the goal – ‘Whose goal is this?’

Reality The goal needs to be realistic and objective so that coachees do not suffer from early failure as a result of unrealistic expectations. Coaches need to get feedback from coachees about their performance – ‘What worked? What didn’t?’

Options The coaching task involves guiding coachees to make a list of specific tasks to achieve their goal, and write an action plan. Generating a list of options enables coachees to maximise their choices. To avoid negative assumptions and a limit on possible options, the exercise should be non-critical and non-judgemental. Questions include: ‘What options would help you move towards your goal?’ A useful question at the end of the session is, ‘Can you come up with one more option?’ After a list of options has been compiled, coaches and coachees work together to sort them according to priority and feasibility.

Will As a typical coaching practice, the GROW model is future-looking. At the end of the session, coaches may ask coachees, ‘What will you do now?’ A list of questions may include: ‘When by? How will this action meet your goal? What barriers might you encounter? What will you do about them? Who will be able to help you overcome those barriers?’ Although the GROW model was made popular by Sir John Whitmore with the publication of his book Coaching for Work (regarded by many coaches as a core text) we feel that the psychological theories and principles that underpin it are relatively elementary. For example, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs model is well known among undergraduate psychology students, though its application in


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coaching may be new to many business coaches (Whitmore, 1992, 2002). In this book, we aim to develop further the rich and diverse psychological principles that are relevant to coaching and mentoring. We shall revisit the GROW model and show how it can be refined by linking it to the psychology of learning (see Chapters 7 and 8).

Adaptation of Psychological Approaches in Coaching and Mentoring Throughout this book, you will note that we emphasise the importance of valuing diversity and applying the psychology of learning to coaching and mentoring. As Whitmore (1992, 2002) points out, ‘without the understanding of psychological principles on which coaching is based . . . [coaches will] fail to achieve intended results . . . you don’t need a degree in psychology in order to practise [coaching].’ We hope that this book will demonstrate that it is not difficult to adapt psychological approaches to coaching and mentoring as many practitioners have done. Most of them are based on counselling and therapeutic techniques (e.g. Richards, 1999; Neenan & Palmer, 2001; Peltier, 2001; Greene & Grant, 2003; Law, 2003; Lee, 2003; Palmer, Cooper & Thomas, 2003). These include:

• • • •

Solution-focused brief therapy Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) Rational emotional behavioural therapy Multi-modal therapy

The most common approaches adopted, according to the SGCP survey, are cognitive and behavioural, with a well over 60% majority (Palmer & Whybrow, 2004). While NLP has gained popularity in life coaching, it is the least used technique among professional psychologists. The theoretical underpinnings of NLP will not be covered here as it is well covered elsewhere and has only tenuous connection to psychological theory. CBT was developed by Aaron Temkin Beck, a psychiatrist working in the United States in the 1960s and 1970s (for examples of its clinical application, see Beck et al., 1979). The link between emotion, cognition and behavioural intervention (hence its name) is based on his observations that individuals preoccupied with their emotional thoughts tend to talk to themselves (the so-called internal dialogue). They may not be aware of the origin of their thoughts but usually find them disturbing as they pop up in their mind without any conscious control (Beck called it ‘automatic thought’). If individuals can become more aware of their emotions – by, say, reporting them to the counsellor or psychologist, or writing them down in diary form – they can overcome them by working out strategies, usually working collaboratively with their counsellor or psychologist. Greenberger and Padesky (1995) call this ‘mind over mood’ (not mind over matter).

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CBT has certainly been the most popular technique and regarded as the treatment of choice by the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) and is widely practised in the NHS. We have adopted it as one of the relevant techniques in coaching and mentoring. (See Chapter 7 for a more detailed model of its application.) CBT belongs to the facilitative style of coaching (see Chapter 4) in that coaches do not provide coachees with direct solutions to their problems. It is also congruent with the psychology of learning approaches advocated in this book (see Chapters 3, 7 and 8). In this context, coaching is regarded as a ‘collaborative process’ (so-called ‘guided recovery’ in CBT terms). Coaches build scaffolding to guide and support coachees to rediscover their signature strengths or devise a strategy for the future – for example, in a form of a narrative theme or CBT structure. In common with many coaching techniques, CBT is goal-driven and solutionfocused; it emphasises the present and future. A typical CBT programme is timelimited, which partly explains its popularity in the NHS. More importantly, its explicit nature makes its outcome amenable to evidence-based evaluation (see Chapter 10), which is recommended as good practice in both the public and private sectors in the Western world. CBT is also consistent with the philosophy of Socrates as well as with modern positive psychology. In the next section, we examine some of the latest developments in this field of psychology, and how it can contribute to coaching and mentoring practice.

POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGY Following his introduction to the millennial issue of the American Psychologist, Martin Seligman, with his colleague Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, published 16 articles on positive psychology (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000). The issues described ranged from what makes people happy, the effects of autonomy and self-regulation, how optimism and hope affect health, what constitutes wisdom to how talent and creativity come to fruition. For example, Csikszentmihalyi (1991) introduced the concept of flow to describe the optimal experience – that people could improve the quality of their life by focusing on improving their experience. This conscious attempt can be applied to all areas of life – about work, everyday experience or searching for meaning. The authors outline a framework for ‘a science of positive psychology’. They have an optimistic view that this paradigm shift enables us to understand and build the factors that allow individuals, communities and societies to flourish in this new century. An exploratory workshop entitled ‘A Positive Agenda for Occupational Psychology’, hosted by Pearn Kandola, in Oxford on 28 April 2005, described the emergence of positive psychology as ‘the scientific study of well-being and fulfilment’ and claimed that it ‘opens up new perspectives for occupational psychology. Bringing together theory, research and practice from disparate fields, it offers the possibility


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of an integrated and well-founded approach to enhancing the quality of working life and organisational effectiveness.’ From our review of modern literature in psychology, not limited to learning theories, we note that positive psychology is directly relevant to coaching and mentoring. Positive psychology is also concerned with improving performance and well-being (Linley & Harrington, 2006) and shares a similar paradigm shift from a pathologyoriented understanding to a perspective of growth and positive development. The shift is exemplified by Christopher Peterson and Martin Seligman in the introduction to their book Character Strengths and Virtues – A Handbook and Classification (2004), described as a ‘Manual of the Sanities’ in direct contrast to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders sponsored by the American Psychiatric Association (1994). So we see positive psychology providing us with a possible foundation to improve our quality of life as well as coaching and mentoring practice. Applied in the clinical setting, it offers to prevent illnesses and a sense of hopelessness and meaninglessness in a way that is different from the practice of traditional psychotherapy and clinical psychology. More specifically, the European psychotherapeutic approach has been criticised as being ‘culturally blind’, non-universal and overemphasising the pathological model (Law, 2004a and b). As a result, we are steeped in a culture that lacks positive features such as aspirations, wisdom, creativity, futuremindedness, courage, spirituality, responsibility, perseverance, hopes and dreams that make our life meaningful and worthwhile. Although positive psychology has been perceived as a new movement in modern psychology, its lineage is traced back through European psychology in Maslow (1968), Roger (1963), Allport (1961), Jahoda (1958) and Jung (1933), and as far back as James (1902) (see Linley & Joseph, 2004). Philosophically and culturally, it has resonance with Platonism and Aristotelianism, which are common in all Western philosophies. There are three pillars of positive psychology in relation to a more positive fulfilling life: 1. Positive emotion – the pleasant life. 2. Positive character – the engaged life. 3. Positive institutions – the meaningful life. A positive emotion such as happiness can be classified into three domains: 1. The past (satisfaction, contentment, fulfilment, pride and serenity). 2. The present (joy, ecstasy, calm, zest, ebullience, pleasure and flow). 3. The future (optimism, hope faith, trust). Coaching (and mentoring) can be understood from the perspective of positive psychology (Kauffman & Scoular, 2004; Linley, 2004). Positive psychology enquires

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into the human condition, including happiness, wisdom, creativity and human strengths. Linley and Harrington (2006) argue that the notion of human strengths provides ‘significant potential for development and benefit’ to coaching, so in this section we provide a detailed outline of this area. Sponsored by the Values in Action Institute, Peterson and Seligman (2004) conducted research by means of a survey to measure human strengths and found that there were 24 signature strengths, clustered into six dimensions: 1. Wisdom and knowledge (creativity, curiosity, open-mindedness, love of learning, perspective) – cognitive strengths that consists of knowledge acquisition and its application. 2. Courage (bravery, persistence, integrity, vitality) – emotional strengths that involve the exercise of will to accomplish goals in the face of challenges, dangers, difficulties, fears, obstacles, pains or threats. 3. Humanity (love, kindness, social intelligence) – interpersonal strengths that involve ‘tending’ and ‘befriending’ others. 4. Justice (citizenship, fairness, leadership) – civic strengths that underlie healthy community life. 5. Temperance (forgiveness and mercy, humility and modesty, prudence, selfregulation) – strengths that protect against excess. 6. Transcendence (appreciation of beauty and excellence, gratitude, hope, humour, spirituality) – strengths that forge connections to the larger universe and provide meaning. The 24 elements of strengths (with their synonyms and associations in parenthesis) include: 1. Creativity (originality, ingenuity) – produces adaptive and original ideas or behaviour that make a positive contribution to the person’s or the other’s life. Thinks of novel and productive ways to do things; includes artistic achievement but is not limited to it. We extend this contribution to the organisation, community and society. 2. Curiosity (interest, novelty-seeking, openness to experience) – explore and pursue novelty, variety and challenge in one’s ongoing experience for its own sake (intrinsic interest). 3. Open-mindedness (judgment, critical thinking) – search for evidence against one’s favoured beliefs, plans, goals, and weigh such evidence fairly when it is available. Think the situations through and examine them from all sides without jumping to conclusions. 4. Love of learning – be positively motivated to acquire new skills and knowledge or enhance existing skills and knowledge. This is also associated with the strength of curiosity, but goes beyond it to describe the tendency to learn systematically and improve what one already knows.


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5. Perspective (wisdom) – take a long-term view based on knowledge and experience. Provide wise counsel to others; look at the world that makes sense to oneself and to other people. 6. Bravery (valour) – do what needs to be done voluntarily, despite fear in a dangerous situation. Speak up for what is right even if there is opposition; act on convictions even if unpopular. 7. Persistence – finish a task despite obstacles and take pleasure in completing it. ‘Get it out the door.’ 8. Integrity (authenticity, honesty) – tell the truth and present oneself genuinely, but take responsibility for one’s feeling and action without pretence. 9. Vitality (zest, enthusiasm, vigour, energy) – feel alive, have enthusiasm in what one does, even in difficult circumstances. Approach life with excitement and energy. Live life as an adventure. 10. Love – reciprocate, develop and value emotional relationships between family members, friends, colleagues, coachees and mentees. 11. Kindness (generosity, nurture, care, compassion, altruistic love, niceness) – be compassionate, helpful, nice to others. Do favours and good deeds for others; help them; take care of them. 12. Social intelligence (emotional intelligence, personal intelligence) – be aware of the emotion of others and of oneself. Process emotion (so-called hot information). Know what to do to fit in to different social situations, and what makes other people tick. (See Chapter 6 for more discussion about this element within our universal integrated framework.) 13. Citizenship (social responsibility, loyalty, teamwork) – identify with a common goal that is beyond one’s personal interests to include the groups of which one is a member. Do one’s share and work well as a member of a group or team. Be loyal to the group. 14. Fairness – treat all people equally, without bias. Give everyone a fair chance. 15. Leadership – inspire group members to do what they are supposed to do and, at the same time, keep a good relationship and high morale (so-called transformational leadership) (Tichy & Devanna, 1986). 16. Forgiveness and mercy – let bygones be bygones without being negative. Forgive those who have done wrong. Give people a second chance without being vengeful. 17. Humility and modesty – let one’s accomplishments speak for themselves. Acknowledge one’s mistakes and imperfections. 18. Prudence – consider carefully the consequences of one’s actions in order to achieve long-term goals effectively. 19. Self-regulation (self-control) – exert control over one’s emotion and responses in order to achieve a desirable outcome. 20. Appreciation of beauty and excellence (awe, wonder, elevation, transcendence) – appreciate and enjoy the experience of beautiful things, such as art, music, food and drink, etc.

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21. Gratitude – have a sense of thankfulness in response to gifts. Be aware of and grateful for good things that happen. Take time to express thanks. 22. Hope (optimism, future-mindedness, future orientation) – think about and work towards the future outcomes positively. Expect the best in the future and work to achieve it. Believe that a good future is something that can be brought about. 23. Humour (playfulness) – laugh and tease; bring smiles to the faces of others skilfully. See the light side. Make (not necessarily tell) jokes. 24. Spirituality (religiousness, faith, purpose) – have a coherent belief about the higher purpose and meaning of the universe and one’s place in it. Have beliefs about the meaning of life that shape conduct and provide comfort. The above satisfied the following ten criteria to assess the individual’s strengths (Peterson & Seligman, 2004): 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

Fulfilling. Morally valued. Does not diminish others. Non-felicitous opposite. Trait-like. Distinctiveness. Paragons. Prodigies. Selective absence. Institutions and rituals.

The optimism of positive psychology represents an attitudinal shift in psychology from its focus on individuals as asocial to individuals as socially, culturally and ethically responsible beings. Positive psychologists regard this as a fundamental cornerstone for meeting the challenge of change in multicultural societies and globalisation. The cross-cultural transfer of the Western concepts described above (including evidence-based practice) has not been smooth and sustainable. For instance, in parts of Africa, funded development initiatives from the West have sometimes failed to adapt to local needs. This is due to rigidity about priorities, perceived imposed and inappropriate standards and ways of working. Definitions, relative values of evidence and their measures have been inconsistent and culturally specific. Some practitioners have taken on the concept but have not had sufficient access to research and theory to build their own practice and transfer that practice to different contexts and cultures. In other parts of the world, approaches to practice are often initiated by a shared need for learning, which is general, holistic, informal and integrated into current and future mainstreamed activity. This has advantages of establishing flexibility, sustainability and applicability across cultures. We shall attempt to transport some of these workable solutions in this book.


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CHAPTER SUMMARY AND REFLECTION Coaching and mentoring industries have enjoyed a relatively high profile in recent business development. Developments in e-coaching are rapid as they are increasingly amenable to technological solutions. Research in understanding psychological profiles of mentors/mentees is being developed. Some models such as the CBT and GROW have been considered in this chapter for their psychological underpinning and popularity. Although most news and articles that we sampled reported a perceived positive outcome and business benefits, there has been very little objective evidence in every aspect of coaching and mentoring. The multinational company experience of transferring coaching/mentoring in a Western format is limited in its sustainability across cultures. The development of China as an international investor in Asia and Africa will lead a cultural change in business behaviour. In short, the psychology of coaching/mentoring has become a cross-cultural learning process. This requires flexibility in how it is defined and implemented. We shall consider some of these possibilities in Chapters 4, 6 and 9 respectively. We argue that in order to develop a coherent generic framework, the approaches have to be grounded in the psychology of learning. This forms the core of Chapter 3. When coaching/mentoring is grounded in psychology, it is perceived as cutting edge and there is a string of business cases for our model (see Chapters 5 and 6). Having read this chapter, we hope that readers will now understand, not only the relationships between coaching, mentoring and psychology, but also their benefits as a commodity and as social responsibility. Coaching and mentoring can be understood from the perspective of positive psychology in terms of one’s positive emotion within the present and future domains (see Figure 2.1) Using the ‘journey’ metaphor for coaching/mentoring, one focuses on the present (here and now) as a primacy and regards the future (aspiration) as if it were real.

Future is REAL

Here & Now

End-game

Middle – Many options

Start Figure 2.1

Coaching and mentoring paradigm

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Another metaphor is like playing chess. There exist many options (say, within the GROW model) in the middle game. We aim to equip readers with some useful techniques/strategies for playing the middle game in coaching and mentoring (in Chapters 7 and 8). Our discussion of the positive psychology framework in coaching, mentoring and learning has also highlighted its departure from psychotherapy. As we move to incorporate the ‘walking well, the running and aspiring’ consumer model into our practice, readers will understand the reasons why certain psychotherapeutic approaches may not be applicable in coaching, mentoring and learning arenas and the risk of inappropriate application of psychotherapeutic approaches in particular within the context of cross-culture and diversity. A multicultural perspective has become an increasingly dominant and ethical imperative for individual behaviours and organisational practice. Multiculturalism is a moral movement with its agenda to enhance the dignity, human rights and recognition of marginalised groups (Fowers & Richardson, 1996, p. 609). Coaches and mentors must decide how to deal with the influence of culture and socio-historical aspects of our time. The concept of positive development must therefore be defined along five dimensions (Jørgensen & Nafstad, 2004): 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Motivation. Action. Goals. Context. Socio-temporal elements.

These dimensions offer some direction to further our research and development in developing a universal framework that is cross-cultural. While translating the positive psychology of optimal experience into coaching practice to enable everyone to enjoy a flow experience may be Csikszentmihalyi’s dream, there are some key practical questions that require our attention. These include:

• How do we guide coachees/mentees to achieve their optimal experience (the experience of flow)?

• What are the techniques? • What are the measurements? We shall explore some possible answers in our coaching/mentoring journey during the course of this book.

CHAPTER 3

Philosophy and Theories of Psychology Applicable to Coaching and Mentoring: Learning Processes/Theories INTRODUCTION This chapter describes the learning theories in psychology that are applicable to coaching, mentoring and training, and the philosophy that underpins them. We attempt to link learning to coaching and mentoring. In doing so, we first present an overall discussion based on a general review of the literature on the psychology of learning. We then single out some of the more generic learning theories that can be readily applied across contexts, which form a building block in our development of a dynamic coaching/mentoring model and a universal framework applicable across cultures.

Linking Learning to Coaching and Mentoring Many coaches and mentors argue that coaching and mentoring function as a powerful lever to promote learning and change. In this book, we argue that while coaching and mentoring offer such an opportunity for learning, the outcome cannot be guaranteed as a given. For learning to take place, coaches and coachees, mentors and mentees must actively engage in the learning process during the coaching and mentoring journey. So this epistemological position provides a starting point to ask more questions:

• What is the ‘right condition’ for learning? What are the conditions that lead to an ‘A-ha!’ experience?

• How do coaching and mentoring sessions provide the condition for learning? • What factors does this condition consist of – for example, assumption, belief, ideas and values – and how do we establish them?

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Coaching and Mentoring as a Learning Process Coaches/coachees and mentors/mentees are all learners. We thus regard coaching and mentoring as a learning process. In this, there are likely to be many barriers, most of which are psychological – a so-called ‘inner game’ (Gallwey, 2000). These inner barriers may be developed from individuals’ negative experiences in their past. Many people have had negative experiences with learning, and this may stand in the way of their learning new materials. This in turn forms a negative feedback loop, which impedes future learning. On the other hand, positive learning experiences can help coachees develop their capacity for further learning. This in turn forms a positive feedback loop. For example, when we asked participants in coaching programmes to list: 1. The negative experiences they have had in the past that may stand in the way of change. 2. The attributes of the poor coach/mentor. 3. The attributes of the good coach/mentor. Many of the participants responded with memories of their own teachers and lecturers. From the above descriptions, we learn that the essence of learning, whether in a teaching, training, coaching or mentoring context, seems to be universal. To learn, one must embrace (internalise) a new set of values, attitudes, skills or knowledge that one did not have before (cf. child developmental learning; see Kegan, 1982, 1994). In this context, the learner’s task is to internalise the ‘socio-cultural-temporal surround’ of the new situation (Jarvis, 1987). The coach’s/mentor’s task is to help learners bring to their conscious awareness what was internalised in the past – the context in which we developed our history of learning, beliefs and patterns of behaviour. With this contextual knowledge learners can develop fluidity, curiosity and the ability to move across contexts and cultures. Clients tend to focus on learning that connects to the context of their workplace, in particular in executive coaching. It is therefore helpful to provide a number of case studies that may help readers to identify their own context.

PSYCHOLOGY OF LEARNING In the past, the study of learning was divided into two ways of thinking:

• Epistemology – questions the nature of what we know, fundamentally asking what knowledge is and how we distinguish knowledge from our internal thoughts/beliefs. • Experimental approaches – derive theories by conducting scientific experiments.

PHILOSOPHY AND THEORIES OF PSYCHOLOGY

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There are three kinds of learning theories within the epistemological tradition. These are:

• Objectivism – reality is external and independent of the learner. Knowledge is acquired through sensory experience.

• Pragmatism – reality is both external and internal. Although reality exists, it is provisional, as it cannot be known directly. Knowledge is interpreted through signs and negotiated from experience and reason. • Interpretivism – reality is internal, relative to individuals’ frames of reference. Knowledge is constructed by the learner through thinking. Experimental approaches have generated four major learning theories:

• Principle of association – one learns ideas by direct association. This was demonstrated by Ebbinghaus (1850–1909), with the famous verbal learning experiments of nonsense syllables, which produced the classic forgetting curve (Ebbinghaus, [1885] 1913). Ebbinghaus argued that meaning did not influence learning, and that the prior knowledge we store has no effect on what we continue to learn. • Law of effect – one learns by associating sensation/impulse to action (Thorndike, 1874–1949). • Classical conditioning – one naturally generates a response (unconditioned response) to a stimulus (unconditioned stimulus). For example, the secretion of saliva when food is presented. The same response can be produced by pairing the unconditioned stimulus with a neutral stimulus. Over time, the neutral stimulus alone can elicit the same response. The stimulus and response are now called conditioned stimulus and conditioned response respectively (Pavlov, 1849–1936). • Gestalt theory – originated from the perception of motion from flashing light (phi phenomenon). Gestalt psychologists propose that knowledge acquisition requires the learner to actively impose organisation (gestalt) on sensory data to derive insight (insightful learning). According to the gestalt theory of insightful learning, there are five stages of learning: 1. A period of trial and error. 2. The learner completely grasps the solution. This seems to occur suddenly (an ‘A-ha!’ moment). 3. The learner produces a smooth, error-free performance. 4. The knowledge is long-lasting. 5. The learner can apply the same principle to solve a similar problem in a different context.

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For a learner exchanging in purposeful relationships to bring about new knowledge and skills, psychological research has indicated there is a lot we can do to optimise our chance of achieving effective outcomes. Self-determination, autonomy, participation and choice underpin many studies about learning participation (Spreitzer, 1995). Social learning theories, particularly the reinforcement– affect model, continue to influence our understanding of learning in collaborative settings (Clore & Byrne, 1974). In short, this model proposes that we like anyone or anything that makes us feel good, and dislike anyone or anything that makes us feel bad. Rewards in relationships can include attention or being attended to, praise and positive interaction. As learners, we do better when we are in a receptive environment where we feel attended to and affirmed. In a diverse setting the transferability of these theories is limited. Self-determination, autonomy and choice are often the preferred values of certain cultures for a range of behaviour and positive interaction may vary in its interpretation from setting to setting. For example, autonomy may be highly valued in one company but considered counter to team working and compliance with a procedural framework in another. Another commonly cited element in learning success in developmental relationships is goal-setting for learners (Locke et al., 1981). Goal-setting has been a Western preoccupation but may not be meaningful across all cultures and situations. Even in European studies where coaches have been asked to work in coaching relationships without clear goal boundaries, coaching participants have evidenced no negative outcomes (Law, Ireland & Hussain, 2005). Increasingly over the years, practitioners have started to talk more about emergent learning, unstructured learning, informal learning and the connotation that this may be more exploratory and less rigidly goal-restrained than previously thought. Likewise our fixation with linking evaluation with development has meant that we have used traditional goal-based structures to facilitate evaluation processes, which have credence with the hard data scientific lobby of research. Developments and wider acceptance of looser structures for evaluation in social science, such as appreciative enquiry, have liberated some of those constraints. Appreciative enquiry is better able to address relative and individualised progress within the context of operation rather than progress against pre-set targets. Based on positive psychology (see Chapter 2) we can identify what we are already able to do, but which we need to do more of. We can also identify areas where our capabilities are weak and where we need to update our skills and knowledge. We can check our motivation to achieve our goals and our levels of self-efficacy (Bandura, 1982). The self-efficacy concept comes from social cognitive theory. One’s perceived self-efficacy is defined as ‘belief in one’s capacities to organise and execute the course of action required to produce given attainments’ (Bandura, 1997). Selfefficacy also links expectation to action/behaviour and outcome. Walter Mischel (1969) developed the concept of cognitive personality traits, such as Intelligence Quotient (IQ), field dependence and delay in gratification. The field


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dependence work is congruent with some of the gestalt approaches in enabling more seamless boundary crossing across the compartments in our lives. Delay in gratification is a concept that can be used to understand and improve issues of self control stemming from individual personality traits, which may be relatively fixed. Another concept builds on the notion of multiple intelligences (Goleman, 1996) and emotional intelligence in particular. This is based on Thorndyke’s social intelligence notion, where emotional intelligence (EI) could predict success in life and was ‘an ability, capability or skill to perceive, manage the emotions of ones self or others and groups’. EI has received a mixed review in the literature. It has been criticised, as unlike IQ, there is no natural benchmark to compare it with. Some have claimed that it is more of a personality trait than a form of intelligence, with no evidenced brain emphasis. Others indicate that there is little differentiation of terms, tenuous links between the self and other modes and limitations to describe the impact of mood and context. However, as a pragmatic framework for self-development, it has much to offer. We shall refer to this approach again, when we adapt this model to apply to our coaching and mentoring practice. There are three possible types of outcome (Bandura, 1986, 1997):

1. Physical effect as a consequence of one’s direct action (e.g. pain or pleasure). 2. Social (e.g. approval, recognition, etc.). 3. Self-evaluative (reflective). Although outcome expectancies refer to perception of possible consequences of one’s action, self-efficacy expectancy refers to personal action, control or agency. A person who believes in being able to produce a desired effect can conduct a more active and self-determined life-course. This ‘can-do’ thinking represents a sense of control over the environment. It reflects the belief that you can control challenging environmental demands by taking adaptive action. Individuals with high selfefficacy choose to perform more challenging tasks and anticipate optimistic scenarios and are active in identifying knowledge and skill sets that can help them overcome barriers and achieve their learning goals. According to Bandura (1977, 1982, 1997) there are four ways to influence self-efficacy:

• Provide feedback on learners’ own capabilities (enactive mastery experiences) • Provide comparative information about the attainments of others (vicarious experiences)

• Tell learners what others believe them capable of achieving (verbal persuasion) • Learners judge their own ability to engage in the task at hand (physiological states) Keller (1984) proposes four conditions for continuous motivation and self-regulation (known as the ARCS model of motivational design):

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• • • •


Gain and sustain attention Enhance relevance Build confidence Generate satisfaction

To summarise: designing a coaching and mentoring process may involve the following steps: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Analyse the coachees/mentees. Define motivational objectives. Design a motivational strategy. Implement the plan of action. Evaluate and review.

There are a lot of theories that can be applied to the study of learners’ motivation. Maslow (1954, 1968) proposed a hierarchy of needs based on psychological, safety, belonging, self-esteem and self-actualisation needs being met. These represent conditions that learning partners can seek to establish to maximise learning outcomes. Psychology has traditionally recognised the power and role of beliefs in shaping reality. Theories have been put forward with belief systems in the mix or where beliefs alone are central to understanding behaviour. Merton (1948), in line with the latter tradition, introduced the term ‘self-fulfilling prophecy’ to refer to a false belief that leads to its own fulfilment. Such beliefs are associated with underachievement, social stereotyping and discriminatory behaviour. In learning situations individuals with low expectations and beliefs about themselves, perhaps as a result of what others have communicated to them (e.g. ‘you won’t do well’), tend to deliver the expectation, and as a result do not perform well. When this is extended to the stereotyping of groups in a negative or limiting way, underachievement can follow. This individualised self-fulfilling prophecy approach has been criticised because recent studies show that the impact of a self-fulfilling prophecy is low, with other factors more significant in determining behaviour and outcomes. The self-fulfilling prophecy has been used to explain the underachievement of minority groups. It conveniently attributes the problem of underachievement to the minorities themselves and suggests that they have a real deficit in their belief systems, which results in their underachievement and indirectly limits their successful engagement in processes that will help them be successful. Extensions to an inter-group perspective recognise that such false beliefs may be communicated and maintained by the majority culture. However, there is less financial sponsorship to realign the beliefs of majority cultures. Second, individual minority success (which defies predictions using this model) is rarely celebrated in ways that are likely to shift majority opinion. Vroom (1964) has been credited with creating the Expectancy Valence Theory which proposes a positive correlation between effort and performance, favourable performance results and desirable rewards. Rewards satisfy important needs and the desire to satisfy the need is strong enough to make it worthwhile. This approach has


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been criticised for an absence of inclusion of normalised and routine behaviour, which is particularly culturally embedded. Many Western psychological concepts are seen as the absolute ‘truth’, but they are limited in their scope to describe and predict behaviour across the diverse communities in which we engage to learn. Learning goes beyond these concepts of individual difference and particularly our fascination with self-management. Learning may stem more from the interplay between individual learners and the environment in which they operate. Even the nurture/nature debate takes on a different perspective in a diverse world where science and technology are interacting at the core of our nature before we are born. The standardisation of the core educational curriculum, wrap around care and national standards have ensured greater homogenisation of nurture in institutional settings. Conceptually, the whole debate is limited by the primary assumption that nature and nurture are discrete elements and can be judged in terms of their independent and distinctive influences on the subject learner. There are many counter-assumptions that we are indistinguishable from our environment and that nature and nurture are so fundamentally entwined that no valid measurement can be used to derive the contribution of each without the other. Second, this debate has often failed to recognise that we are changed by our environment as well as an agent for its change, and that learning comes from the experience of the interplay between the two. The context of operation and an appreciation of other players are key to our learning success. At times the context in which we operate has fixed elements, which may limit our learning goals or the methods we employ; at other times it is something we can shape entirely. However, it is rarely as fixed as we assume it to be and learning starts when we ensure that we are able to accurately construe our environment, define the culture and its players, and be clear about what is fixed and what is fluid. The environment is constantly changing and we are also always changing adaptively in light of our emerging learning and insights. We therefore need to integrate our own learning into new goals (if applicable) at the same time as keeping up with the contextual and cultural changes affecting our relationships and purpose. Our perception of fixed and fluid elements in the culture of operation is also affected by such things as perceived locus of control (Rotter, 1956). In the locus of control model (part of social learning theory) there is a general expectation that one’s behaviour is or is not directly related to the outcome. Individuals perceive the source of power to change particular life-events attributed to internal factors, external factors or chance. As such, one person may see more elements in their environment as fixed and beyond their control than another. This notion may impact on our learning strategies and styles. Locus of control theory is also problematic in terms of how it explains crosscultural differences. Control tends to be a higher-order priority in the West, but this may not be true globally. Destiny and fatalism, reticence, putting others’ needs before one’s own and reflection may have a lower value than a ‘think-do-quickly approach’ in this context.

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LEARNING THEORIES REVISITED This section combines the pragmatic and interpretive approaches (described in an earlier section) and aims to re-examine the key learning theories within such a tradition, both past and present, which inform coaching and mentoring practice. From the literature review, we find a family of theories that are relevant in this context (e.g. Perry, 1970; Loevinger & Blasi, 1976; Kegan, 1982, 1994; Kolb, 1984; Belenky et al., 1986; Mezirow, 1991, 2000; Freire, 1992). These include:

• The learning process • Reflective learning • Constructive-developmental theories The Learning Process We have developed a learning process, which we call the learning wheel (Figure 3.1). It is based on Kolb’s (1984) learning cycle, although we have modified some of the positions of the elements. The modification is based on our practice in coaching and mentoring, where we have learned that, as a starting point, learning is grounded in concrete experience when learners and coach/mentor interact (the point of engagement). The learning wheel consists of four stages:

• Concrete experience • Reflection Abstract Conception

Internal transformation: consciousness emerges

Reflection

Action External transformation: toward behaviour

Concrete experience

Figure 3.1

The learning wheel (modified from Kolb’s (1984) learning cycle)


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• Abstract conception • Action Concrete Experience For learning to take place, learners first need to experience an event. This provides them with a starting point to understand how they experience the situation and handle any problems or challenges in relation to the world.

Reflection The value of reflective practice is well recognised as a framework for our professional learning and development in coaching and psychology (e.g. coaching in sports psychology; see Anderson, Knowles & Gilbourne, 2004). After experiencing the event, learners need to appreciate the nature of their experience and take time to reflect on it (Merriam, 1994). It would be desirable to think about the lessons learnt: the how and the what. This involves comparing the present event with past experience and thinking about the future possibilities (pattern-matching within the schema structure). It is also important for learners to reflect on themselves as learners. Learning is ‘a way of being’ (Vaill, 1996). Reflection is viewed by many practitioners in education as an important part of learning. It is also an essential element in leadership development as well as developing coaches and mentors, so we shall devote the next section to explore this stage in greater detail.

Abstract Conception Through reflection, this is a process to translate the experience into a meaningful concept (see the section on Meaning discussed below).

Action We define the term ‘action’ quite broadly (in contrast to Kolb, who narrowly refers to the end-stage of the learning cycle as an active experimentation). Action may include decisions arrived at as a result of reflection and evaluation of an event. Thus it can include the option not to act. For the wheel to roll in the learning process, it requires two forms of transformation: upward and forward. The upward movement reflects an internal transformation from concrete experience to the formation of new consciousness (abstract conception); the forward movement indicates a behavioural shift from internal reflection to external action.

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Table 3.1 Learning styles

Internal cognition External perception

Internal transformation

External transformation

Thinker Sensor

Evaluator Actor

Knowledge resulting from this process is a combination of grasping the everyday experience and transforming it into an abstract concept. From our experience, we have found that there are considerable individual differences among coachees and mentees in terms of their strengths and weaknesses in the learning process. Some are good at producing knowledge (thinkers), while others are quick to act (actors). Some enjoy engaging in actual events and learning from experience (sensors), while others prefer to reflect on their experience (evaluators). The four modes of learning define the individual’s learning styles and are set out in Table 3.1. Learners who are internally focused in their locus of control are more likely to focus on goal-setting for themselves and the development of self-efficacy (evaluators and thinkers), whereas externally focused individuals are more likely to be receptive to external feedback and sensitive to the environment around them (actors and sensors). People who attribute causality to chance or fate may be more passive in their engagement with causality. Those who have achieved the mastery of all four learning styles are known as reflective practitioners. Reflective practitioners are able to grasp concrete experience and transform it into action through reflection and conceptualisation. In coaching and mentoring – as well as in many learning professions such as education and psychology – we aim to develop learners’ competence so that they can become reflective practitioners. As the term suggests, reflection is an important element in this learning process. We explore this further in the next section.

Reflective Learning Learning in its simplest form can be viewed as having the potential to transform. This may be achieved through reflection and action ( praxis) so that a new consciousness emerges: ‘conscientisation’ (Freire, 1992). Through this learning process, individuals are freed from their limiting beliefs and arrive at an informed and reflective decision: ‘emancipatory learning’ (Mezirow, 1996). As we have seen, reflection is an important driver for transformation in the learning process according to Kolb’s (1984) learning cycle, for without reflection, people cannot learn from experience; they continue to experience the world in which the same emotion and perception occur in a ‘self-confirming loop’ (Jarvis, 1992; Brookfield 1998). From the above assertions, we can see that reflection is a cognitive function that may occur even when the individual is away from the situation where the event has taken place. It may derive from memory, by remembering the experience. We thus define reflection as:


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A cognitive process that involves both thinking and feeling about an experience (past or present) thereby a new consciousness emerges with a new appreciation, understanding and insight about that experience.

Our definition finds resonance with many other scholars in the field (e.g. Boud, Keogh & Walker, 1985, p. 19; Brookfield, 1998). The definition implies that reflection is a meta-level of information-processing where individuals interpret their thinking, learning and understanding, paying attention to their own assumptions, beliefs and values that might shape their conclusion. It is effectively a form of internal self-assessment, which can be made explicit by disclosing it to others verbally in a coaching/mentoring session or through writing an essay, letter or diary (see Chapter 7). Such disclosure, known as a reflective account, helps learners and coaches/mentors understand their experience and draw conclusions or a plan of action from it. The reflection stage in the learning wheel can further be expanded into a sub-loop with six finer stages, as shown in Figure 3.2 (e.g. Gibb, 1988): 1. Description – describe what happened during the concrete experience. 2. Cognition and emotion – reflect on your thoughts and feeling. What were you thinking/feeling during the engagement/incident? 3. Analysis – try to understand what happened and derive meaning from the experience. What sense can you make of the experience? 4. Evaluation – assess the pros and cons, benefit(s) and cost(s) of the outcome of the experience.

5. Conclusion

6. Action Plan

4. Evaluation Internal transformation: consciousness emerges

3. Analysis

2. Cognition and emotion

Action

External transformation: toward behaviour

1. Description Concrete experience

Figure 3.2 Six sub-stages of reflection (combined models from Kolb, 1984 and Gibb, 1988)

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5. Conclusion – summarise the meaning and lessons learned; look for improvement. In the light of what happened, would you have done anything differently? What else could you have done? 6. Recommendation/action plan – recommend a future plan of action for further learning and improvement. If a similar situation were to arise, what would you do? What are you going to do to further improve and develop yourself/performance? We have modified Gibb’s six-stage model of reflection, as we feel that whereas analysis is closely linked to conclusion, it should precede it. As the saying goes, ‘don’t jump to conclusions’ without an analysis and making sense of the experience. Conclusions should follow from evaluation with possible recommendations for future action. This framework also fits well within our dynamic coaching/mentoring/learning model, with meaning as an intervening variable (see below). In making a critical evaluation of the coaching process itself, coaches/mentors experience a dialectic tension in the sense that, on the one hand, the experience in coaching and mentoring is usually rich in physical motion and emotion, while, on the other, a reflective account is always anchored in ‘levels of cognitive engagement’. These may be aligned with Haberman’s (1971) three levels of cognitive interest as follows (Gilbourne, 2006): 1. Technical cognitive interest – relates to a limited form of reflection such as accountability, effectiveness and efficiency. 2. Practical cognition – evaluates and reviews the consequences of actions and underlying meaning for practice. 3. Intuition – associates with emancipatory processes and ethics (in this case transpersonal spirit). In practice, the three levels overlap. Level 3 may act as overarching reflective scaffolding from which one may choose to climb up and down. The above form of self-assessment is part of critical reflection that involves individuals making authentic, objective judgements about themselves (Boud, 1995; Marienau, 1999). In the process, learners gain a greater appreciation of the influences they have on their own learning and future possibilities. Self-development becomes a natural outcome of the reflective process.

Constructive-Developmental Theories Constructive-developmental theories link developmental growth to meaning construction (Perry, 1970; Loevinger & Blasi, 1976; Kegan, 1982, 1994; Belenky et al., 1986). As the name suggests, many advocates of this approach link the theory of learning to child development (Piaget, 1954; Loevinger & Blasi, 1976; Kohlberg, 1981). However, we argue that development does not stop in adulthood. Given the right conditions, most adults continue to learn throughout their life.


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Constructive-developmental theories are essentially cognitive development theories within the paradigm of constructivism. Constructivism assumes that knowledge is constructed from our experience of the world with many signs and symbols (hypermedia) through a critical discourse. Within the constructive paradigm, there are two forerunners in the cognitive developmental theories that are relevant to learning, coaching and mentoring: Jerome Bruner (1915– ) and Lev S. Vygotsky (1896–1934). Both regarded culture as instrumental to cognitive growth and the ‘amplification of human intellectual power’. Central to Bruner’s theory is the idea of knowledge representation, and how this is used by children and adults to help them understand the world. Bruner (1964) regards the process of learning as consisting of three specific stages of knowledge representation: 1. Enactive representation – knowledge is represented in physical action. Although one may not be able to describe the knowledge, one is able to explain it in action as if the muscle has its own memory (motor response) – for example, pointing out direction. 2. Iconic representation – spatial-temporal image representation from the perceptual input based on the experience of the events in the world. 3. Symbolic representation – the learning of using signs and symbols (e.g. language) to describe the experience of the world. Through a number of experiments in which children were introduced to a number of problem-solving tasks of progressive difficulty, Vygotsky ([1926] 1962, 1978) revealed a learning gap between an ‘actual developmental level’ and the higher level of ‘potential development’ under guidance or in collaboration with more sophisticated peers. He called this the ‘zone of proximal development’. This is relevant to our discussion on coaching definition, as exemplified by Tony Grant (see Chapter 4). People consult coaches and mentors when they are facing barriers in improving their performance at work or raising aspiration in their lives. In other words, they ‘are stuck’. In these situations, people tend to reproduce the solutions to the problem (or behaviours) that are familiar to them, based on past experience. Adopting Vygotsky’s developmental method, the gap between the known and familiar and what is possible to know and do can be understood in terms of the ‘zone of proximal development’. Although Vygotsky’s research focused on child development and childhood learning, the ‘zone of proximal development’ is relevant to adult learning in our coaching and mentoring context. We can regard coaching and mentoring as forms of social collaboration. In this collaboration, the skilled coach/mentor provides supported learning tasks that are within the reach of the coachees/mentees, but that require the investment of significant effort. Through this social collaboration (with a set of goals, challenges and actions), coachees/mentees have the opportunity to distance themselves from their immediate experience of the world and move towards what might be possible to know.

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During the coaching/mentoring session, learners experience a shift from amassing information into ‘heaps’, to developing complex chains of association (scaffolding). The zone of proximal development can be transversed via a conversational partnership (‘social collaboration’) between coach and coachee and mentor and mentee. The coach provides a platform-like scaffolding to help coachees to proceed across the zone of proximal development in manageable steps from the ‘known and familiar’ towards what might be ‘possible to know’. Whilst Vygotsky’s idea of constructing scaffolding to help the learner bridge the gaps between zones of proximal development has been embedded in narrative therapy (White, 1997, 2000, 2006), the narrative approach used in coaching and mentoring is a relatively novel application (Law, Aga & Hill, 2006; see also the case study in Chapter 9). This development of complex thinking provides a foundation for the development of ‘concepts’. This presupposes more than unification. To form such a concept it is necessary to abstract, to single out elements and to view the abstracted elements as separate from the totality of the concrete experience in which they are embedded. This conceptual development provides a foundation for the learner to intervene in the shaping of their own actions and the shaping of their lives. The learner is now able to operate with these concepts independently according to the demands of the task, and with a consciousness of these operations, understanding them to be processes of a certain kind. It is this development that leads to self-mastery. This concept of development is the foundation of ‘deliberate attention, logical memory, abstraction, and the ability to compare and to differentiate’ (Vygotsky, [1926] 1962). This development is the foundation of personal agency. It is through the concept development (personal agency) that learners begin to inhabit their own lives. In this scaffolding of proximal development, coaches are supported in performing manageable learning tasks called ‘distancing tasks’ as they incrementally and progressively ‘travel’ from one zone to another. According to Vygotsky, there are five levels of distancing tasks: 1. Low level – tasks that encourage people to characterise specific objects/events of their world (characterisation of initiative) (description). 2. Medium level – the development of chains of association (‘complexes’) through establishing relations between these objects and events (relation: initiative in relationship) (analyses/pattern-matching). 3. Medium–high level – reflection, draw realisation and learning about specific phenomena from the chains of association (evaluation). 4. High level – abstract the realisation and learning from their concrete and specific circumstances in formation of concepts about life and identity (judge). 5. Very high level – formulate the planning for and initiation of actions. Predict outcome of specific actions founded upon this concept development (conclusion/recommendation). The coaching and mentoring process can be regarded as collaborative learning in the form of a narrative conversation. Through these engagements, all the participants


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develop the account of what they give value to and what they intend for their lives. This account can be regarded as concepts about their life and identity. The concept of development provides a foundation for people to develop a sense of personal agency, regulate their lives and relationships, proceed with their lives, address their predicaments, overcome barriers to their aspirations and shape their existence in alternative ways. The coaching and mentoring task is to contribute to the scaffolding of the proximal zone of development. In the narrative practice, dialogue between coach and coachee is an essential vehicle to help the coachee construct knowledge and meaning. According to Hounsell (1984), there are two kinds of dialogue:

• Surface approach – direct interpretation from dialogue into ‘text’, for example, learning by rote

• Deep approach – further processes the textual information and extract meaning from it

Meaning-making Meaning is an important element in constructive-developmental theories. Against Ebbinghaus’s assumptions (described earlier), we argue that meaning plays an important role in learning. Kegan (1982) regarded meaning as the irreducible ‘primary human motion’, its activities taking place at three levels of interaction:

• Physical – perceptual and cognitive level, grasping the concrete experience in the internal transformation

• Social – it requires others in the social interaction • Survival – it is something one lives for At the cognitive level, meaning perception and processing are essential components in learning. David Ausbel (1968; Ausbel and Youssef 1963) proposed that ‘cognitive organisation’ and ‘processes of meaning’ are key elements in his ‘meaningful reception learning theory’. According to this theory, the information we hold in our memories (cognitive structure) is stored hierarchically, where knowledge that is more general (i.e. common knowledge) is at the top and therefore can be remembered more easily, whereas specific knowledge is at the bottom and is difficult to remember. This structure forms the basis for learning, and new ideas are integrated within it. The specific and relevant ideas that the learner already has (Ausbel calls these ‘anchoring ideas’) help the learner to interpret meaning from their new experiences/information by providing it with a point of entry within the existing cognitive structure. The new knowledge can be added to the existing structure at three levels (assimilation theory of meaning processing):

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1. Subordinate (subsumption) – new ideas are integrated below the learner’s existing cognitive structures. One learns a new example of a concept either by adding it to an existing structure (derivative) or by modifying/extending the existing structure (correlative). 2. Coordinate (combinatorial learning) – the learning of information that does not relate specifically to pre-existing knowledge, but aids the learning of other general areas. 3. Superordinate – new information is integrated above the learner’s existing cognitive structures. For example, knowing many examples of a phenomenon, then learning its name which accounts for all its occurrences. Our understanding of Ausbel’s meaningful reception learning theory can be improved by incorporating Bartlett’s (1932) notion of schema (‘packet of knowledge’) and understanding how knowledge is represented (the so-called schema theory; see Anderson, Spiro & Anderson, 1978). A schema is ‘a data structure for representing the generic concepts stored in memory’ (Rumelhart, 1980). Schemata, like a set of variables, theories or procedures, form our mental model about a particular situation, place, person or event (e.g. in terms of formal logic: Z ← X + Y with an instance: c = a + b). We access these schemata when trying to make sense of a situation by filling in the gaps of what we are experiencing (instantiating the missing variables with the default values, for example c ← a + ? where ? = b). Therefore our mental model directs our learning and affects our performance (Norman, 1983). Formal logic can explain why one can infer the fact that a canary has wings and therefore can fly from the higher schema stored with the instance that a canary is a bird and that birds have wings and fly (Collins & Quillian, 1969). Knowledge acquisition and representation are updated flexibly in order to accommodate new facts and exceptions – for example, ‘an ostrich is a bird, but cannot fly’. The adaptive updating of the schemata is referred to in Anderson’s Adaptive Control of Thought (ACT) model (Anderson et al., 1978). Learning must permanently alter our schemata so that they continuously guide us to manage new situations in the light of new experience. This is done through the following processes (Rumelhart & Norman, 1978; Rumelhart, 1980; Vosniadou & Brewer, 1987):

• Accretion – when new information is added (instantiated) into a schema, ‘filling gaps’ in our existing knowledge (e.g. Y ← c).

• Tuning – a process of refinement; prior knowledge is modified with new information, and the schemata evolve to become more consistent with experience (Rumelhart & Norman, 1978). • Restructuring – new schemata are created to replace or modify existing ones (Rumelhart & Norman, 1981). This involves a degree of trial-and-error in that we use the existing schema to help interpret the new situation. If it is correct (i.e. fits in with the new experience), we are likely to incorporate it in our newly created schema. Conversely, if it is incorrect, we will replace it with our more up-to-date experience – what we have learnt.


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To make meaning, one first needs to make sense of an experience (Mezirow, 1990). According to the above discussion, this is essentially a reflective process, which is influenced by the individuals’ assumptions, beliefs and values as well as their culture (Cranton, 1996).

APPLYING THE PSYCHOLOGY OF LEARNING TO COACHING AND MENTORING As we have seen from the review of some key learning theories in psychology, the learning process is developmental and coach/coachee interaction is crucial in the transformation. Three essential elements emerge from the literature review:

• Experience • Reflection • Meaning Reflective learning overlaps with constructive development theories in terms of knowing how learners understand. Both theories emphasise the contribution of past experiences to present and future engagement. The self-agency for change anchors in an internal discourse – seeing the world through one’s reflective lens. It shapes the future direction with the intention of reframing one’s understanding. The paradigm of coaching and mentoring, as reviewed in Chapter 2, focuses mainly on the future (see Figure 2.1). However, psychological barriers often exist that prevent coaches/mentees moving towards the future destination. The goal exists as hopes and dreams in a ‘here-and-now’ state. The barriers may be based on unexamined criteria – for example, ‘the future looks too foreign and threatening’. On the other hand, if the coaching condition that the coach/mentor has created is too familiar, the coachee/mentee cannot move forward as they have been directed to dwell on the past – the learning wheel is ‘stuck’. There is also the matter of the inevitable challenge between learning from a metaphorical comfort zone when more elements are fixed and familiar than in an uncomfortable or out-of-comfort zone when more areas are fluid and ambiguity is commonplace. A very fixed perception of the environment in which we operate helps us sustain, and perhaps ‘freeze’, change and learning in exchange for security and safety, but a fluid environment is conducive to exploration and reflection, with safety sacrificed for learning. The fixed world is a convenient perception, perhaps based on stereotypical thinking, past experience and without due appreciation of the emerging distinguishing features of the environment we operate in now and the players we are relating too. Thus coach and mentor need to create a transitional state – a condition that is neither too new nor too familiar for the learner to rise up to (see Figure 3.3; see also Figure 3.1 – upward transformation). There are problems with some of the early work, which presumes that homogeneity generates better learning relationships. People tend to seek relationships where

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NEW Future

Coaching/mentoring/ learning condition

PAST experience

Figure 3.3

Upward transformation in coaching/mentoring/learning paradigm

there is high point-to-point correspondence, which facilitates easy empathy. Research into interpersonal attraction has shown that similarity in attitudes, political beliefs and religiosity predict attraction. Byrne and Nelson (1965), Festinger et al. (1950) and Allport (1954) described prejudice as a faulty and inflexible generalisation, namely negative regard for another group. So when we experience difference in our relationships with others at a personal level or in the experiencing of the environment of operation we might negatively transfer the attitude directed towards that group category to the individual member of that group. Further, the representation of difference as something generating discomfort to be ‘overcome’ rather than savoured, assimilated and desired is prejudicial in itself. The notion that the greater the perceived distance between us or the contexts of operation on a range of attitudes, behaviours and characteristics is linked to perceived unfamiliarity, discomfort and then negativity towards the individual needs to be questioned. This is the leap many writers have taken when communicating the metaphorical comfort zones for learning in a cross-cultural paradigm. We hear that success in leadership is demonstrated in working successfully across traditional boundaries (working in new areas, with new clients, with partners in new ways), in other words, in the ability to move regularly beyond boundaries and fixed positions or zones. Those that want to learn know that they will be stretched only if they engage with someone with a different perspective at least in one dimension, and the greater the number of different zones they bring to the ‘party’, the greater the number of new possibilities for learning. If we map the learning wheel and


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Abstract Conception

NEW Future Internal transformation: consciousness emerges

Reflection

Coaching/mentoring/learning condition

Action

External transformation: towards behaviour

PAST experience

Concrete experience

Figure 3.4

Model matching: Learning wheel and coaching/mentoring paradigm

coaching and mentoring paradigm onto each other, we have a dynamic coaching/ mentoring model based on learning (Figure 3.4). From the above framework, we can see the six sub-stages of reflection described in the earlier section effectively overlapping the three realms of the learning wheel: past experience → meaning → new future. The movement towards the new destination becomes a resultant force (from the upward and forward transformations). This diagonal upward force defines the rolling mechanism – as some coaches/mentors say, ‘let’s get the ball rolling’. Towards the end of this rolling/learning cycle/process, the coachee’s/mentee’s internal consciousness emerges, and this is reflected in their behaviour. This is equivalent to Schon’s notion of thinking-in-action. In practice, the transformation from past experience to future aspiration may not be straightforward, whether in the coaching/mentoring arena or the real world. In fact, to a lot of coachees/mentees, from junior managers to top chief executives, the journey of living the dream may be extremely challenging. There may well be an intervening stage. One of the barriers usually cited is the difficulty in adapting to a new culture. For some individuals, whether they are company directors or new immigrants, adapting to a new culture results in lack of meaning; somehow meaning is lost during the journey. This may result from lack of social reference or the challenges of a new experience and is well known from the new migrants’ experience of alienation (Turner, 1967). However, it may well be equally true that for chief executives and senior managers, ‘it is lonely at the top’. While these people may well have experienced how meanings are formed in their earlier career

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and life journey, they may also have suffered the experience of how those very meanings were challenged and lost. One of the challenges to coaches/mentors is to find a way to sustain and revitalise coachees’/mentees’ personal meaning at that juncture of their lives, for meaning-making involves feeling and thinking. To understand someone’s meaning is not like an idea or abstract concept that can be bought ‘off the shelf’, but involves experiencing it deeply and personally within the context of a shared culture. Like good teachers, coaches and mentors need to acquire skills to unpack the process of meaning-making (e.g. the narrative approaches mentioned earlier and some of the exercises in Chapters 7 and 8) and help learners to form or rediscover their own meaning and take responsibility for it. Thus meaning-making is an important interim step in our equation of the internal transformation. Mapping this new sub-stage onto our dynamic coaching/mentoring model in Figure 3.4 results in a more complete model (see Figure 3.5). When we understand the framework, we can appreciate how a concrete experience in coaching/mentoring can be transformed into personal development and extended into broader commitments, meaning and purposes. To use Mentkowski’s apt phrase, ‘the distance, future, and past can seem immanent in the lived moment, making such moments pregnant with meaning’ (Mentkowski et al., 2000). There may also be a precursor stage in the learning journey within a wider socio-cultural context, where individuals need to be clear where they are and feel secure in their own identity before they can explore new dimensions stimulated by different perspectives and angles not based on core empathy. Such core empathy may be achieved by high similarity with one’s learning facilitator on the key Abstract Conception Internal transformation: consciousness emerges

Reflection

NEW Future

Meaning


PAST experience

Action

External transformation: towards

Concrete experience

Figure 3.5 variable

Dynamic coaching/mentoring/learning with meaning as an intervening


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defining elements of identity. In the course of developing a framework that is both universal and applicable across different cultures, we aim to unpack some of these key elements (see Chapter 6). The dynamic coaching/mentoring model discussed so far is grounded in the psychology of learning. We have found that it is very useful as it can be readily applied to many coaching approaches, including the cognitive behavioural technique (CBT). Chapter 7 shows how CBT can embed the dynamic model in practice.

CHAPTER SUMMARY AND REFLECTION We started this chapter identifying some of the research and theories in psychology of learning and identifying their contribution to a universal framework for coaching and mentoring. Along the way, we found that research findings did not always support theory and some areas have more utility in practice than they do theoretically. We found that the cross-cultural scope of many theoretical approaches was limited and that opportunities to learn around boundaries, to engage in unexpected, unstructured and creative learning was rarely cited – despite growing evidence of its importance in learning. In this rapidly changing global market place, the ability to learn quickly, in transition with out an over-programmed established framework is increasingly important. Working across different contexts with different people is a matter of positive curiosity not discomfort. We also identified the factors that underpin the learning process as relevant for coaching and mentoring: barriers, change, culture, discourse meaning, purpose and impact. Here discourse means open and objective dialogue, challenging biased/distorted beliefs and assumptions (meaning schemes) (Mezirow, 1996). Taylor, Marienau and Fiddler (2000) summarised the common threads of learning process from various learning theories as ‘a process’ of ‘resolving contradiction in dialectical fashion’. In this process, the following characteristics are identified:

• • • • •

increase in awareness new possibilities multiple perspectives new ways of viewing the world and oneself active responsibility for the world

We think that sums it up.

CHAPTER 4

Definitions: Coaching Psychology, Coaching, Mentoring and Learning INTRODUCTION We started out in Chapter 1 with a working generic description of coaching and mentoring, as ‘a developmental process of support offered to an individual which results in action’. This has been sufficient to get us started in our exploration. We now critically review definitions of coaching psychology, coaching, mentoring and learning from the different traditions against the background of our discoveries in previous chapters. Finally we consider a succinct definition of a universal approach to psychology of coaching mentoring and learning.

THE MEANING OF MENTORING The word ‘mentor’ comes from a character in Greek mythology, Mentor, who was entrusted to educate Telemachus, the son of his friend Odysseus. This historical precedent provides the misperception (mentioned in Chapter 3) that mentors are usually experienced people, who pass on their knowledge and help their protégés up the corporate ladder. This notion fixes the roles into learner/teacher hierarchy, and counters our value of equality and idea that the process is mentee-driven. Daloz (1999) spoke about ‘Mentors as trusted guides, who understand theory of personal development and have experience in translating it into practice’. As such, mentoring is defined by some as more concerned with a longer-term personal/career development compared to coaching. Many of the single-strand mentoring definitions are derived in corporate settings and phrases such as overseeing and ‘outside the line of management’ do not make them appropriate for diverse context mentoring. (Note that East Mentoring Forum simply defines mentoring as ‘an interaction between at least two people, in which the knowledge, experience and skills of one or both are shared, leading to growth and self-understanding.’ http://www.mentfor.co.uk).

DEFINITIONS

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Are there Differences between Coaching and Mentoring? Following the above traditions, some practitioners (e.g. Parsloe, 1992) draw clear boundaries between coaches and mentors/coaching and mentoring. Viewed from this tradition, mentoring can be defined as a person development-centred approach, primarily embracing career issues, whereas personal development and coaching are more performance-centred. Mentoring becomes a long-term relationship, which continues through job changes, while co-coaching may be relatively short-term and linked to a project or performance issue. In practice, coaching may take place in the line relationship in specific areas, but co-coaching is always outside the line with a manager experienced in some aspect of improvement who is undertaking supervision. In this book, we advocate the overlapping/interchanging nature of a coaching– mentoring continuum, not only because it is grounded in a common psychology of learning, but also, and more importantly, because it is more fluid, flexible and adaptable to an individual’s changing needs over time to cross contexts and cultures.

A DEFINITION OF COACHING The historical perception that has defined mentoring also helped shape the early definitions of coaching. It has been defined by a number of scholars and practitioners as: The art of facilitating the performance, learning and development of another. (Downey, 1999) Directly concerned with the immediate improvement of performance and development of skills by a form of tutoring or instruction. (Parsloe, 1995)

The classic definition most coaches use is Timothy Gallwey’s as cited by Whitmore: Coaching is unlocking a person’s potential to maximize their own performance. It is helping them to learn rather than teaching them. (1992, 2002, p. 8)

To summarise: coaching activities have the following characteristics (Law, 2002):

• Unlocking people’s potential to maximise their own performance • Facilitation approach – helping them to learn rather than teaching them • An instructional approach – directly concerned with the immediate improvement of performance and development of skills by a form of tutoring or instruction

• Enhancing performance in work and personal life domains underpinned by models of coaching grounded in established therapeutic approaches As mentioned in Chapter 2, there are diverse styles of coaching and mentoring, ranging from the direct instructional approach to non-directive, facilitative

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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF COACHING, MENTORING AND LEARNING Instruction

Facilitation

Figure 4.1 Facilitation vs. instructional approaches in coaching Source: Palmer and Whybrow (2004).

techniques. There is no agreement on which is the best approach. It depends on the individual client, coach/mentor and the contextual situation the stakeholders bring to the space of engagement. However, there is agreement among coaches and mentors that they work with their clients to help them to discover and maximise their strengths for their benefit and/or that of their organisations and communities. Typical statements from coaches and mentors include: the intention of helping people to achieve a breakthrough in their lives and then helping them beyond that breakthrough. (Breakthrough & Beyond Ltd) ‘[To help] people to communicate better, to help them understand other people’s perceptions, and indeed their own too, and to become much more effective in everything that they do. The ultimate aim is to enable organisations to be more efficient, to increase their retention of good staff and to be profitable. However the programmes are also about personal development, so that participants can take away learning and experiences that will help them in their private, as well as their working lives . . . It seeks to make learning fun to enable individuals to take learning back to their work and lives . . . develop a person’s capacity to learn and grow in such a way that they continue learning long after a course ends.’ (Learning to Inspire Ltd)

The above observations represent a diverse spectrum of approaches, ranging from facilitation at one end to instructional at the other. According to the SGCP survey, the facilitation style is the preferred approach, favoured by more than 70% (see Figure 4.1). We advocate that in a universal approach, there should be in-built sustainability and renewal. Potentially, everyone can be a coach/mentor to support others who are engaging in the process.

DEFINITION OF LEARNING We have argued that coaching and mentoring should be anchored in the psychology of learning. On learning, we adopt Marcy Driscoll’s definition, as she has

DEFINITIONS

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successfully brought together different strands of psychology and used them for practice by reflecting on her accumulated knowledge and years of experience in teaching undergraduates and new graduates in education. According to Driscoll, learning is defined as ‘a persisting change in performance or performance potential that results from experience and interaction within the world’ (2005; emphasis added). According to this definition, learners take the input from their experience and produce a permanent change in their performance. While it also implies that the focus should not always be on short-term, readily measured performance improvements, performance does matter and needs to be a focus in any development process at least some of the time. A key question is: what are the exact processes that cause the permanent change? Learning theories aim to unpack some of those processes. They usually look at the concept of learning through three areas (see Figure 4.2):

• Input: what is needed for the process of learning to occur? • Means – how does it occur? • Outcome: what changes take place?

Input

Figure 4.2

Means

Output

Defining a learning process

Applying the Definition of Learning to Instructing, Coaching/Mentoring Applying the psychology of learning to the definition of instruction, Driscoll connects learning theories to instruction for trainers (this has similar implications for teachers, coaches and mentors). She defines instruction as, ‘any deliberate arrangement of events to facilitate a learner’s acquisition of some goal’ (2005; emphasis added).

Definition of Personal Strength – the Contribution from Positive Psychology Linley and Harrington (2006) define positive psychology as: The scientific study of optimal functioning, focusing on aspects of the human condition that lead to happiness, fulfilment, and flourishing . . .

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and strength as: A natural capacity for behaving, thinking, or feeling in a way that allows optimal functioning and performance in the pursuit of valued outcomes.

From these two definitions, coaches/mentors can expect that understanding more about psychology will help coaches/mentees achieve their ‘optimal functioning and performance in the pursuit of valued outcomes’. We shall now see how this compares with the definition of coaching psychology.

DEFINITION OF COACHING PSYCHOLOGY Coaching psychology aims to enhance well-being and performance in normal, non-clinical populations’ personal life and work domains, underpinned by models of coaching grounded in adult learning or psychological approaches (Grant & Palmer, 2002). Note that the above definition emphasises the application of psychology to coaching for normal, non-clinical populations only. It excludes some potential populations who could benefit from coaching. Moreover, the line to draw between clinical and non-clinical along the continuum of a normally distributed population is both arbitrary and difficult to determine. It is also probable that clients who seek coaching intervention may also suffer from psychological problems such as stress, trauma and depression. It is argued that coaches have a duty of care in their practice if their clients enter the consultation with clinical problems (Spence, Cavanagh & Grant, 2006). While Grant and Palmer’s definition was initially adopted by the Coaching Psychology Forum in May 2002, the above issues were discussed in a number of meetings as the Forum evolved into the established Special Group in Coaching Psychology. It was decided that the phrase ‘normal, non-clinical’ be deleted to make the definition more inclusive. Thus coaching psychology is defined as: for enhancing well-being and performance in personal life and work domains underpinned by models of coaching grounded in established adult learning or psychological approaches. (Palmer & Whybrow, 2006, adopted from Grant & Palmer, 2002)

DEFINITION OF INTER-CULTURAL COACHING PSYCHOLOGY As mentioned in the Introduction, valuing diversity and applying coaching and mentoring across contexts and cultures are essential criteria in successful coaching/ mentoring in modern global communities – be it in international business or in a multicultural society. We thus pay particular attention to redefining coaching/ mentoring psychology applicable across cultures.

DEFINITIONS

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Inter-cultural coaching psychology enhances well-being and the performance of individuals from different cultural backgrounds or with dual cultural heritage in their personal life and work domains. Cross-cultural coaching is subtly different from inter-cultural coaching. It is for coaching individuals who come from different countries and hence have different cultures. We advocate in this chapter that it would be useful for the psychological approaches that underpin both forms of coaching to be based on cultural anthropology. However, the traditional emphasis of culture relating primarily to geographical, ethnicity variation is not sufficient in a universal model that operates in an increasingly complex, mixed and hybrid world. Now, work meets home life, people meet each other, workers with different ethos work together, partnership between new types of organisation and inter-community collaboration in new ways is key to our sustainability. The notion of culture and context need to be fluid enough to encompass the changing micro and macro worlds, we construct and move between every day. While our definition is very similar to that adopted by the Special Group in Coaching Psychology within the mainstream (Palmer & Whybrow, 2006, adopted from Grant & Palmer, 2002), it is more in line with Philippe Rosinski’s (2003) proposal that by integrating a cultural dimension into coaching, we can help our coachees access more of their potential to achieve meaningful outcomes.

CHAPTER SUMMARY AND REFLECTION This chapter has provided a list of concrete definitions of the key topics. We are keen to emphasise the theoretical grounding of coaching and mentoring and its scientific credentials but not at the expense of the art. In other words, we do not advocate that a more scientific approach leads to a very programmed and narrow approach. We do know that coaching and mentoring works well, as it is one of the few developmental approaches that is not over formalised and therefore offers wide possibilities for learning. We are informed by many definitions put forward by many scholars in the field. They have much to offer us. However, our understanding of the emergent developments, psychological theories of learning and the imperative to define a contextcrossing, fluid and sustainable approach, draws us to propose: A universal coach/mentoring framework is underpinned by psychological learning theory in a process that is developmental, brings about change and is culturally mindful. It enables flexibility and fluidity in its practice, to extend beyond boundaries.

The process takes people beyond organisational, community and self-imposed boundaries into a new domain. This moves people out of their familiar knowledge and experience zones into the territory of new learning. Such exposure increases understanding of the multiple dynamics in any situation and increased understanding of a complex world. We shall develop this further as our journey unfolds.

CHAPTER 5

Becoming a Learning Organisation and Learning Community through Coaching and Mentoring INTRODUCTION In Chapter 3, we advocate the psychology of learning, the new development in positive psychology and its use in coaching and mentoring as a useful foundation for developing a learning organisation. Coaching or mentoring is a natural partner of improvement within a learning organisation. It works across hierarchies. It extends beyond a relationship of two people to teams. According to our definition of coaching and mentoring (Chapter 4) a process takes people beyond organisational, community and self-imposed boundaries into a new domain. In this chapter, we continue to explore this territory within the organisational context. We argue the business case for a coaching and mentoring agenda and explain their role in the current modernisation climate. We show how an organisation can become a learning organisation by implementing coaching and mentoring programmes. We have expanded the term ‘organisation’ to include communities, which reflect our diverse practices. We explain why mentoring and coaching are necessary; what their issues and benefits are; and how to start a coaching/mentoring programme. We also look at learning and change in an organisation and community context, the role of structures, technology, engagement and collaboration, perceptions of values and attitudes, and empowerment in their contribution to learning community models and how coaching/mentoring can support this and work within an improvement framework. We also look at how coaching/mentoring can benefit organisations and at some specific examples where it could help, followed by practical guidance on setting up the coaching/mentoring process.

Challenges of Modernisation Today every organisation is modernising and improving. Boards of directors are looking at the continual improvement and modernisation brief; governments

BECOMING A LEARNING ORGANISATION

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regularly commission experts to assess strategies for their relevance in the changing context. Organisations are motivated to change to gain competitive advantage, to save money and resources, to increase quality and to incorporate new working practices. New and re-newed alliances are the key to timely and efficient deliverables in a bigger market place. Outsourcing and partnering in areas where organisations are not competitive make economic sense. Collaborations work well when there is mutual trust and respect, where power is perceived to be equally distributed and ways of working are transparent. Rarely is a complaint investigated that does not change something or some thinking for someone. Many of those complaints fall at the edge of someone’s competence, border multiple agency responsibilities, lie between various department functions or are the result of the impact of someone’s limited self belief. Errors also occur when there is no continuity or memory for what has gone before, to inform what happens next. We can all relate to having to speak to eight different people on different occasions to try to fuel change or a development in a situation. With networked computer systems, more people have access to information but that does not automatically transfer to the knowledge to bring about change. The speed of change, the increasing complexity of the environment, the changing marketplace and role of evolving technology, the increased expectations and demands of stakeholders all mean that standing still is no answer. In order to survive in a world of upheaval, the organisation must continue to learn (Vaill, 1996). The following example illustrates what can happen when organisations box themselves in through their past values and do not learn to change.

The Firm That Would Not Learn We recall a firm of 50 years’ standing that built family homes. Its mission was summed up on its billboards as ‘Local homes built on tradition’. The company was so hooked into its traditional practices that it slowly watched itself become less and less competitive until it literally went bust. It took five years. Every year the board held a meeting to discuss their vision, mission, strategy and the continuing deficit. Plans were tweaked – a change of material here and there – but overall the view of the board remained intransigent: people ‘wanted traditionally built homes, using local materials provided by a firm which had occupied a local presence for many years’. Every year they considered the case for change and the case for carrying on as before. A minority on the board put forward ideas to relocate the construction activity to another part of Europe where the market was expanding, but were outvoted as the proposal ran counter to the local ethos on which the firm had made its reputation. Furthermore, there were too many unknowns in that market. There were some suggestions that the company might split, with one half pursuing the traditional approach and the other half experimenting, but the view of the board was that such a split would undermine the mission of being a local house builder. The chairman used values and conviction to persuade the board to ‘stay bold and be true to ourselves’. He urged them not to be ‘swayed by temporary market factors

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secure in the knowledge that our presence in the market for the last fifty years will see us through difficult times and that customers will recognise the shortfalls of the alternative products on the market and return to us’. In surveys that they undertook, they were encouraged by the finding that local people trusted them and knew of their presence; but they still didn’t buy their houses. This made them believe that they knew what was best for their customers and they continued to market their expertise as before. They failed to recognise that customers wanted quality, not tradition, at affordable prices and that loyalty to a local firm was no longer a criterion for purchase. They did not recognise that the customer base and the context had changed. Rumours started concerning the firm’s troubles and negative comments were made in the press about the board’s role. The letters page in the local paper ran an upbeat response from the company chair the following week which stated: ‘The company rejects the assertions made. We believe that we have a major contribution to building traditional local homes and we believe that those people who have bought from our rivals will not get the outcome they seek in the longer term.’ Insults were traded and confidence diminished further. Sure enough, as in the Charge of the Light Brigade, they were bold. Hundreds of employees lost their jobs when the company went down. Many local people expressed genuine regret at the loss of a stalwart firm. What this illustrates is that trust is not enough for successful, purposeful engagement. The benefits have to be relevant to both parties to achieve a perceived balance of power, which facilitates ownership, a desire to get involved and an exchange of knowledge or service. Clearly, the company should have re-branded itself. It should have learnt from the feedback it was getting about its positioning and collaboration with its public. If the perceived benefits of collaboration are not mutual, negative representation of one group to another is commonplace. When the balance of power is not achieved, the environment ceases to be mutually engaging and receptiveness to learning ceases, knowledge flow reduces, trust diminishes and the scope for positive action in new areas decreases. Had the company re-branded and survived, there might have been a need for re-engagement of stakeholder groups/partner relationships in the same way that occurred after the Gerald Ratner case, when demand for Ratner’s jewellery collapsed – along with the value of the shares of the company – after he jokingly remarked that what his stores sold was ‘crap’. The above story also illustrates that the hardest to shift are the top-down, hierarchical, value-driven organisations with ritualistic observances steeped in tradition. The acculturated behaviour at the core of the organisation will endure if the processes and structures are not deconstructed and replaced with new ways of being and doing. Yet the intertwining of values and behaviour means that with any deconstruction the organisation can expect to meet resistance as such deconstruction may be perceived as an attack on the essence of its being. One of the lessons learnt is that the values, beliefs and attitudes that guide organisation and community development need to be owned and are constantly changing. We are not always good at recognising that it is time to change. As


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the environment changes organisation missions can become out of step in terms of goals, behaviour and language. They can cease to be legally compliant and lose touch with good practice. Organisations can become fixated on semi-permanent frameworks of missions, values and protocols and stay hooked well beyond their sell-by date.

Getting Started The starting point in developing any learning organisation is to have a thorough understanding and honest review of the organisation’s business, its marketplace, customers, competitors and suppliers (Verity, 2006). There are various traditional management tools that can help with organisational analysis. These include balanced scorecards, SWOT, PESTEL, and the latest developments in emotional intelligence in the Universal Integrated Framework described in Chapter 6. We first establish what a competent organisation should look like and how learning through coaching and mentoring can help an organisation become competent, and how coaching and mentoring can be introduced into an organisation as a corporate programme to help managers increase their professional competence. We further explore both the theoretical framework (Chapter 6) and technical knowhow (Chapters 7 and 8) with some case studies (Chapter 9) and evaluation of their effectiveness (Chapter 10).

A LEARNING ORGANISATION IS A COMPETENT ORGANISATION What does a competent organisation look like? From our observation, a competent organisation has the following characteristics:

• • • • •

a sense of direction a long-term vision resourcefulness the ability to cope with a changing environment satisfied stakeholders

These elements are usually captured in the origination strategy – for example, large organisations have five-year business plans, and sales departments have strategic marketing plans. Even small and medium-sized companies require business plans incorporating the above strategies if they are to remain competitive. The characteristics are succinctly described in Johnson and Scholes’s definition: Strategy is the direction and scope of an organisation over the long term, which achieves advantage for the organisation through its configuration of

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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF COACHING, MENTORING AND LEARNING resources within a changing environment, to meet the needs of markets and to fulfil stakeholder expectations. (1999, p. 10; emphasis added)

For an organisation to formulate its strategy and implement it through strategic management, at least three sets of issues arise: 1. Analysis – leads to an understanding of the organisation, its strategic position, environment, resources, values and objectives. 2. Choice – formulates courses of action and selects the optimal options. 3. Implementation – translates the strategy into action via resource planning, organisation design and people management. From our literature review as with coaching and mentoring, much of the literature and practices in knowledge management and organisational learning are simply repackaging the tools and techniques found in psychology and management disciplines. In this book, we seek to translate these fragmented concepts and ‘hypes’ into a coherent body of ‘actionable knowledge’ applicable to both individuals and organisations. By ‘actionable knowledge’ (borrowed from Argyris, 1999) we mean the practical knowledge that is useful to practising coaches/coachees and mentors/ mentees; and is at the same time grounded in well-researched, evidence-based framework. Traditionally, there are three schools of thought in organisational learning. These are based on: 1. Rationale – regards strategic management (analysis–choice–implementation) as a rational process. Assumes that the objectives of the action plan are achievable as long as its rationale are communicated to and understood by the stakeholders. 2. Evolution – views organisational behaviour as too complex to be understood rationally. Organisations evolve through trial-and-error, learning-by-doing. Successful strategies emerge over time as if the organisation has its own memories and can remember the lessons learnt. 3. Process – occupies the middle ground. The strategic frameworks and processes can be rationally designed but made adaptable to change by learning from mistakes. Diverse definitions and characteristics of organisational learning and the learning organisation exist. A learning organisation seems to have a process to enable it to:

• Learn from mistakes over time; elicit adaptive behaviour; detect and correct errors, take collective thinking-in-action, so-called organisational theory in use or theory in action (Cyert & March, 1963; Argyris, 1977; Argyris & Schön, 1978). These may be achieved by individuals or groups at the organisational level (Cangelosi & Dill, 1965).


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• Improve action and outcome through enhanced knowledge and understanding with both attitudinal and behavioural changes (Fiol & Lyles, 1985).

• Encode inferences from history into routines that guide current behaviour with systematic rules and procedures (Levitt & March, 1988).

• Share insight, knowledge and mental models that build on past knowledge and memory (Strata, 1989).

• Learn and encourage learning in its people (Handy, 1989). • Synthesise a diverse set of assumptions or beliefs into a shared understanding (Ginsberg, 1990).

• Expand the organisational capacity to create desirable outcome by people continuously learning together (Senage, 1990).

• Acquire useful knowledge and change behaviour (Huber, 1991). • Create new knowledge, make tacit knowledge explicit, disseminate it throughout the organisation, and embody it into new technologies, products and services (output) (Nonaka, 1991). • Elicit error-free operation. Organisational behaviour reflects ‘collective minds’, the so-called ‘heedful interrelation’; an organisation behaves like an intelligent machine (Weick & Roberts, 1993). • Create, acquire and transfer knowledge, modify the organisational behaviour to reflect new knowledge and insight. See the world in a new light. Learn from the organisation’s own experience and history, and the experiences and best practice of others (Garvin, 1993). To sum up, a learning organisation has processes in place to facilitate organisation learning, which is very similar to our definition of learning process. It consists of:

• Input – experience. • Process – routines and procedures that allow people continuously to learn (e.g. staff competencies framework, personnel training and development plans, and Investors in People initiative); transform experience into new knowledge, insight and understanding; share and disseminate that knowledge (e.g. interest groups, user forums and communication strategies); accumulate it into history (e.g. archive); mechanisms to detect new knowledge, correct errors, change behaviour based on the input experience (e.g. performance management, feedback loop and evaluation). • Output – changed behaviour, new technologies, products and services, and history (from accumulated experience). • Outcome – shared understanding and values, expanded capacity; improved competencies, action, products/services and customers’ satisfaction. Learning organisations are different from the traditional resource-based organisations in terms of the following task characteristics (Senage, 1990; Arvedson, 1993):

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• Goal-setting – shared visions, not vision from the top. • Thinking and doing – systemic (thinking and doing at all levels) rather than atomistic (the top thinks, managers act).

• Conflict resolution – setting up dialogue, integrating diverse opinions, sharing understanding rather than mediating politically through power relationships.

COACHING PSYCHOLOGY AND ORGANISATION MEMORIES On 19 December 2006, at the second National Coaching Psychology Conference, Ernesto Spinelli, in a speech on ‘applying existential psychology in a coaching psychology practice’, criticised the overemphasis on a future focus in coaching philosophy. He pointed out that such an approach neglects the past and present as if they do not exist. Indeed, both past and future are important as they make up our present moment of engagement for change. Organisations that attempt to get it ‘right first time’ by over-utilising technology (e.g. electronic communication and storage) run the risk of forgetting their past and suffering from organisational dementia with vital knowledge inaccessible (see the case study of a high-tech firm in Blackler, Crum & McDonald, 1999). The organisational memory that embodies a collective sense of history and shared values is key to success and delivers high performance. The first question is: ‘What kind of knowledge should employees share within an organisation?’ Five types of knowledge that need to be shared among a team can be identified from our literature review:

• Dictionary knowledge (declarative knowledge) – definitions and classifications of •

•

•

•

objects and events. Statements that declare what should be done (Sackmann, 1991, 1992; Zack, 1999). Recipe knowledge (procedure/process knowledge) – task-specific, procedures that describe how a specific task should be done, which allow team members to follow the instruction with a shared expectation of the outcome (Sackmann, 1991, 1992; Cannon-Bowers & Salas, 1993; Zack, 1999). Directory knowledge – task-related, descriptions related to how tasks are actually done. This knowledge is usually in the public domain, commonly known by all existing members, which may place the new members at a disadvantage (Sackmann, 1991, 1992; Rentsch & Hall, 1994). People knowledge – understanding each other’s competencies within the team so that members can adapt their behaviour to complement or compensate others’ strengths and weaknesses. Working as a team or within an organisation, one needs to learn who knows what (Moreland, 2000). Axiomatic knowledge (causal knowledge) – fundamental attitudes, beliefs and values: shared organisational values and team members’ attitudes and beliefs enable the team to reach consensus effectively and efficiently. This knowledge


Axiomatic knowledge:

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Codes and Ethics

Values and belief

Dictionary knowledge

Recipe knowledge

Directory knowledge

People knowledge

Figure 5.1

Knowledge flows within the organization

explains why people do certain things or behave in certain ways. It shapes and defines the organisational culture (Sackmann, 1991, 1992; Zack, 1999; Mohammed, Klimoski & Rentsch, 2000). The above types of knowledge are not fixed. They flow between people and processes within the organisation and transform it so that it becomes effective and well functioning. For an organisation to direct employees to reach consensus effectively and efficiently, it is important to translate implicit axiomatic knowledge into explicitly shared values in the form of basic ground rules, ethics, codes and conducts. Figure 5.1 shows how the knowledge flows within the organisation. Of course, knowledge does not flow spontaneously. It requires an active and coordinated effort on the part of the stakeholders to ensure that new knowledge is acquired (e.g. through coaching, consultancy, training and development), existing knowledge is maintained (e.g. with inventories and storages), as well as rolled out and transferred to new employees (through induction training and mentoring, etc.). These effectively form three clusters: knowledge acquisition/creation, knowledge capture and storage, and knowledge diffusion and transfer (Staples et al., 2001). The process of knowledge management is consistent with our input–process–output/ outcome system.

Role of Top Team This knowledge flow process is usually initiated from the strategic cognition in the top management team within the organisation. Thus the characteristics of the top

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Organisational performance

Diversity Figure 5.2

Organisational performance vs. top team diversity

team have a significant impact on the overall organisational performance in terms of its corporate strategic change and strategic consensus. The results from the empirical studies over hundreds of large firms from diverse (but mostly private) sectors during the late 1980s and 1990s have demonstrated a significant correlation between top team diversity (age, demography, education level, location, management function, tenure, etc.) and organisational performance (short- and long-term) with mixed findings in terms of the intervening variables. (For specific research studies, see Murray, 1989; Wiersema & Bantel, 1992; Markoczy, 1997; Lioukas & Chambers, 1998; Miller, Burkre & Glick, 1998; Sutcliffe & Huber, 1998; Chattopadhyay et al., 1999; Smith et al., 1999.) There seems to be an optimal level of diversity if the top team is to perform effectively and efficiently. We hypothesise that the relationship between the top team, diversity and organisational performance may come in the form of an inverted U-shaped curve similar to that produced in stress and performance relationships (Figure 5.2). Very little is known about the degree of diversity that produces optimal organisational performance. This is a subject of research in terms of measurement of team diversity and attitude to diversity (see Chapter 6 for the measurement framework and Chapters 9 and 10 for case studies and evaluation). However, one implication is clear. To maintain a sustainable high performance, diversity within the organisation, in particular at the top team level, needs to be harnessed and managed so that team members can achieve strategic consensus with shared visions, beliefs, values, understanding and insights. A key question here is: ‘What does the top team look like?’ To answer this requires us to unpack the variables that contribute to the management competence. We shall draw attention to the characteristic of management competence in the next section.


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LEARNING ORGANISATIONS AND PSYCHOLOGY OF LEARNING Within an organisation, knowledge exchange requires interaction between people and business information processes. In its simplest form, this interaction requires at least two actors, whether communication is from one person to another, or learning from information such as from company handbooks or procedures, developed by another person. Knowledge is transferred in many different ways. According to a Japanese concept of knowledge creation, the approaches can be classified into four types of organisational competence (Nonaka, 1991; Nonaka, Takeuchi & Umemoto, 1996):

• Socialisation – people learn from each other. Tacit knowledge is directly transferred from individual to individual within an organisation through observation and hands-on experience (tacit to tacit). • Combination (integration) – several discrete pieces of explicit knowledge are integrated into a coherent set of knowledge, organisational procedures, rules and processes which can be combined to form a larger complex system (explicit to explicit). • Articulation – people translate tacit knowledge into an explicit form and communicate through the organisation (tacit to explicit). • Internalisation – declared knowledge, having been communicated, is shared, and over time is internalised in the minds of employees in the organisation and becomes their own tacit knowledge (explicit to tacit). These can be summarised in a knowledge transfer matrix as shown in Table 5.1. The organisation learning process described by Nonaka (1991) can be mapped onto our learning cycle as follows:

• From concrete experience to abstract conception via internal reflection (internalisation, from explicit to tacit, process-to-people transformation).

• From reflection/abstract conception to action (articulation, from tacit to explicit, people to process communication). Organisation learning in this form can be expressed as a network of individual learning cycles via people to people (socialisation), people translating their knowledge Table 5.1

Knowledge transfer matrix

Knowledge Implicit/tacit – in people Explicit – in process

Implicit/tacit – in people Socialisation (people–people) Internalisation (process–people)

Explicit – in process Articulation (people–process) Combination/integration (process–process)

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Abstract Conception: Person A, B .. X

Person A

Reflection: Internalisation

Process 1

Action: Articulation

Process 2,...n

Combination

Figure 5.3

Learning cycles and knowledge network

into business processes (articulation), and vice versa (learning from procedures and process, internalisation), and the process can be multiplied into a system (combination) and become a learning organisation as a whole. Figure 5.3 shows a simplified version of a knowledge network. It consists of two or more learning cycles where person A can learn from person B, etc. and/or business processes 1, 2 to n. The characteristic of the network model is consistent with the co-operative inquiry (Heron, 1981a and b; Reason & Rowan, 1981; Reason, 1988); or naturalistic or human inquiry (Lincoln & Guba, 1984; Bell & Hardiman, 1989). In this context, coaching can facilitate knowledge flow within an organisation. The role of a coach in this case becomes that of a researcher with the objective to conduct an enquiry into knowledge transfer processes. While we believe that our embedding of the learning cycle in coaching and mentoring framework for improving organisational performance is novel, its application in knowledge acquisition and training is certainly not new. As early as 1988 Jill Bell (JB Associates) and Bob Hardiman (IBM UK) ran a four-day experiential training course entitled ‘The Human Side of Knowledge Engineering’ in the US, Germany, Singapore and Brazil using the human inquiry approach (Bell & Hardiman, 1989). They called their method ‘Naturalistic Knowledge Engineering’ (NKE). We have brought the principles of NKE up-to-date in the organisational coaching context, which essentially consists of the following processes:

• Co-operative process – involves managers, experts, coachees/mentees and other coaches/mentors

• Natural process – the session should take place in the setting where the knowledge is usually applied


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• Research process – explores the enquiry with people in the organisation • Knowledge acquisition process (articulation) – finds out tacit knowledge and transforms that knowledge into a useful and articulated form

• Interactive process – follows the experiential learning cycle (Kolb, 1984; see Chapter 3)

• Auditing process – validates and verifies the knowledge gained • Organisational process – the approach developed needs to be context-specific and sensitive to the organisational culture Translating Kolb’s learning cycle into knowledge elicitation process, Bell and Hardiman (1989) used different interpretation and terminologies, which we expand as follows: 1. Collect (concrete experience) – collect relevant data, information and knowledge from all possible sources (see Figures 5.1 and 5.3). 2. Reflect (reflection) – the coach/coachee needs to spend time thinking about what has been learnt. 3. Theorise (abstract conception) – record the patterns that have emerged from the coaching engagements. Make sense of the data and derive meaningful knowledge from them. Represent the knowledge in useful and explicit forms. 4. Plan (action) – plan where one needs to go next.

MANAGERIAL COMPETENCIES AND INTRODUCING A COACHING PROGRAMME From the analyses in the previous section, which support the latest trends in organisational development, we advocate that coaching and mentoring can help managers to:

• • • •

improve their level of professional competence improve their effectiveness in their jobs manage and create a high-performance team learn effectively

As an outcome of the above, when an organisation has a significant number of middle and senior level managers who, through coaching and mentoring programmes, become high performers, it has become a competent/learning organisation. To achieve this, we need first to establish the link between a competent organisation and managerial competencies, and how coaching and mentoring can be introduced to help improve the competence of the staff and their organisation. Research in organisational psychology tends to link managerial competencies with cognitive style and personality traits, using psychometric tests such as

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Myers–Briggs Type Indicators (MBTI; Myers, 1962) and the Embedded Figure Test (Witkin, 1962). The Embedded Figure Test assesses the individual’s cognitive ability to separate foreground figures from their background environment (Field Independence). MBTI consists of four dimensions of personality types:

• • • •

extravert – introvert sensing – intuitive feeling – thinking perceiving – judging

We can use the learning cycle and the learning style developed in Chapter 3 as a measure of managers’ decision-making behaviour. The following significant correlation between cognitive styles and decisionmaking behaviour have been found (Leonard, Scholl & Kowalski, 1999):

• • • • • •

concrete experience – associates with feeling and field independence abstract conceptualisation – thinking and field dependence active experimentation – extravert reflective observation – introvert analytical decision-making – sensing conceptual decision-making – introvert

At the same time, Leonard et al.’s (1999) study found that Field Dependence correlates with Intuitive, and Field Independence with Sensing. Given this insight in managers’ learning style, we propose that coaching and mentoring are a more effective way of helping managers improve their competence than generic training. Coaches and mentors can individualise their programme of development for coachees/mentees by working with their cognitive style and promoting their signature strengths. The key challenge within an organisation is the initial barrier of introducing coaching/mentoring into the organisation as part of its change culture.

Introducing a Coaching Programme within an Organisation Like any project appraisal, for a coaching/mentoring programme to be approved by the board within a reasonable sized organisation, the coaching/mentoring advocates are usually required to make a business case to demonstrate value for money. A typical business case consists of:

• A strategic case – set out the strategy of the coaching/mentoring programme and how it helps deliver the organisational objectives as part of its corporate strategy. For example, coaching may facilitate greater use of organisational strategic intelligence and lead to its widely used management practice.


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• The economic case – project appraisal using techniques such as cost–benefit/ effectiveness analysis (see Chapter 10 for framework and details).

• The financial case – check to see if the budget-holder can afford the programme. • The commercial case – shows how the programme contributes to the commercial aspect of the organisation.

• The project management case – demonstrates that the programme is achievable by carrying out scooping exercise and feasibility studies. As part of the business case, the project manager should also carry out an impact assessment. This aims to assess all the possible impacts of the programme on the organisation, its customers and employees. From the perspective of diversity, the impact assessment should include an equality impact assessment as well as a risk assessment. Targets can be set within a proposed coaching/mentoring programme to help progress in terms of producing outputs, delivering outcomes and meeting the organisational objectives. Targets should be SMARTER:

• • • • • • •

Specific Measurable Achievable Relevant/realistic Time-bound Evaluative Review

The above can be embedded in a coaching and mentoring programme and guide the choice of coaching techniques (see Chapter 8). For the appraisal of a coaching/mentoring programme to be successful, the following considerations need to be given at the outset:

• • • • •

The availability of coach/mentor and other specialist resources that may be needed. The cost and benefits of the programme. Quality assurance. How the knowledge from coaching/mentoring can be transferred. A project plan for the programme, setting out key objectives, milestones, resources and coaching/mentoring streams.

Before any coaching/mentoring programme is introduced, it is important for the programme owner (budget-holder) to identify a clear need, which the organisation as well as individual staff need to address. Accordingly, a statement of the rationale for the coaching/mentoring programme should be developed. Key questions for introducing a coaching/mentoring programme include:

• Is the rationale for the programme clear? • Is it reasonable to assume that coaching/mentoring will be cost-effective? In other words, do the benefits of coaching/mentoring exceed the costs?

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• • • • • •

• • • • •


What are we trying to achieve? What are our objectives? What constitutes successful coaching and mentoring outcomes? Have similar objectives been set in other proposals, such as training programmes, that could be adapted? Are the coaching/mentoring objectives consistent with the organisation’s strategic aims and objectives? Are the coaching/mentoring objectives defined to reflect outcomes (e.g. improved performance, stress reduction or enhanced sustainable organisational and personal growth) rather than the outputs (e.g. number of coaching/mentoring sessions, coaching prosecutions or mentoring matching), which will be the focus of a particular coaching/mentoring programme? How can the coaching/mentoring objectives and outcomes be measured? Are the coaching/mentoring objectives defined in such a way that progress can be monitored? What factors are critical to coaching/mentoring success? What SMARTER targets can be set? What targets does the coaching/mentoring programme need to meet?

Coaching/mentoring intervention can incur costs and create inspirational distortions from the coachees’/mentees’ perspectives. These must be taken into account when designing any coaching/mentoring programme. For example, a coaching/mentoring programme may be successful in raising coachees’/mentees’ aspiration, but some may then feel the need to move on or even consider leaving the organisation that funded the programme. This will involve additional costs for the organisation and needs to be taken into account in terms of psychological contract and contingency plan. Coaches/mentors therefore need to understand that when introducing a coaching and mentoring programme, they have to overcome the following barriers/constraints:

• Limited resources – for example, time and budget. • Managers’ preoccupation with the resources required, and not focused on the benefits.

• A preoccupation with the possible problems that will be encountered; not being solution-focused.

• High or unrealistic expectations, for example, a simple solution that will fix all the complex problems.

• Resistance from staff, for example, a ‘not invited here syndrome’. • Being misled by the ‘hype’ of coaching and mentoring. • Preoccupation with status – coachees/mentees may want to enhance their status by being mentored by a senior member of staff or coached by a high-profile expert. In order to identify the scope of the issues involved and the basis for coaching/ mentoring, the coach/mentor may need to carry out research (e.g. a scoping study) covering the following:


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• The objectives of the coaching/mentoring programme – these should be • • • • • •

consistent with the organisation’s policy, its departmental objectives and wider micro-economic objectives. The result of coaching/mentoring – if nothing changes, or if there is minimal change. The market situation of the organisation – will the coaching/mentoring programme help prevent market failure that the organisation may face or improve employment levels? Current and projected trends and published forecasts and how coaching/mentoring can help improve future results. Potential beneficiaries – identify those who will benefit from the coaching/ mentoring programme as well as those who may be disadvantaged (e.g. those unable to attend the programme). Technological developments – for example, e-learning, online tools, etc. Whether the coaching/mentoring programme will change in scope or scale over time. The effects can multiply as a result of a network of coaches/mentors and coachees/mentees.

From the above study, if a coaching/mentoring intervention can be shown to be worthwhile, then the objectives, outputs and outcomes of the proposed new programme need to be stated clearly. This allows the identification of the full range of coaching/mentoring options that an organisation may adopt. Examples of coaching/mentoring outputs and outcomes include:

• number of mentor/mentors matching • number of coachees/mentees assisted • value of extra output, or improvement in efficiency, of the coachees’/mentees’ • • • • • •

performance development of skills number of coaching/mentoring places numbers of those who have completed the coaching/mentoring programme value of extra human capital, and/or earnings capacity qualifications (e.g. MBA) improved productivity

WIDENING THE CONTEXT The learning organisation concept transfers well to communities. Sociology speaks of movements for change in communities and change is underpinned by learning. Social movements for improvement rely on the realisation of a vision and motivation channelled into positive action which somehow is different from prior attempts to

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bring about collective change (Eyerman & Jamison, 1991). Only through exploration of old issues in new ways can change be brought about as individuals have new insights and learn to shape their action. Communicated individual insights are not enough to trigger collective action. Collective action requires the following: insight from experience in the context of making a better world, which has transferable significance and resonance to others plus a strong association with processes that lever desired outcomes and the scope to motivate others to believe that those outcomes are possible through their action (empowerment). Increased confidence in one’s abilities as a result of affirmation and positive relationships with others brings about empowerment. Empowerment of individuals beyond and within existing hierarchies brings momentum to the context, to release movement and change. Sometimes organisations are good at evidencing lip-service consultation to create document trails that may convey that empowerment and involvement of all parties has taken place, particularly in the service sector. This is often only superficial. For example, professional and service users may fear that transgressing boundaries will create role confusion or undermine their expertise. So it is in their interest to maintain the status quo. However, according to our Universal Integrated Framework (Chapter 6) and the case studies based on our experience, we have found that listening and challenging roles and boundaries are part of constructive development as long as risks to continuing service delivery are assessed and managed. One leader in a social enterprise organisation said: Expertise of professionals might contribute to improved service outcomes but only their wisdom of truly opening ourselves up to listening deeply to service users will improve their quality of experience.

Practitioners in a range of service engagements may have to deal with some repeated, persistent and unwarranted complaints. Such complainant motives may be to do with undermining communities rather than building them, but therein lies the challenge of discernment. Discernment, however, is the stage that follows deep listening. We have rarely known a complaint that did not change something. For even if there is no basis for it, there is always learning about policy and forced self-evaluation by the agency, addressing the process of dealing with complaints, structures in place to communicate, the nature of multi-agency working, or insight into the background of the complainant that triggers new and unexpected action.

SOCIAL SUPPORT FOR COACHING AND MENTORING Providing social support for coachees/mentees forms a wider dimension of coaching and mentoring beyond the traditional mentoring role where a senior person simply supports the less experienced mentees. The looser concept of coaching/mentoring in our Universal Integrated Framework embodies the function of social support but without some of the hierarchical constraints. This new dimension can be described as ‘constellations of developmental relationships’ (Kram & Hall, 1996). Access to


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developmental relationships increases satisfaction (Higgins, 2000). Social support includes emotional support, providing reassurance, self-worth, listening and concern. It includes appraisal support (feedback and confirmation), informational support, instrumental support (tangible assistance), investment of time or resources. Friendship and caring can play a big role in helping individuals maintain self-esteem (Wills, 1992). While the sponsor’s role in mentoring is important for facilitating learning in career development, the psychosocial support in developmental relationships brings about learning, positive change and may reduce stress. This looser concept of lateral and multidimensional mentoring has a place in the development of wider support to engender learning in communities such as prisons, schools, support of illness, etc. Coaching and mentoring, peer/lateral, group coaching and developmental relationships that are convergent with coaching and mentoring qualities – all are vital in building supported communities that are learning and changing. For some people the focus on the social support side of coaching and mentoring, underpinned by the qualities and skills, represents nothing more than the development of friendships. However, we all know how destructive some friendships can be. Some individuals naturally favour advice-giving over listening, criticism over praise and encouragement, and these ingredients might work counter to building self-esteem and empowering individuals. Likewise the befriended may struggle to move the relationship forward in a purposeful way. In this context, we need to work with whole communities to fine-tune their natural befriending behaviour. A combination of busy work and home lives for many, use and access to technology, increased independence, migrant workforces and diffused families means that there is more pressure on time and a focus on quick-fix approaches to problems rather than the development of relationships per se. It might seem odd to suggest that we can benefit by sharing old principles and approaches to good listening to bring about new thinking. No one is pretending that coaching or mentoring is rocket science or novel. It is often the simplest intervention, with its roots in natural behaviour, that generates the best outcomes. It is social coaching and mentoring where the benefits are most impressive. For example, in prisons, mentoring of inmates by outsiders can prepare them for life on the outside and for employment in particular. Organisations such as the National Health Service (NHS) and many community groups are beginning to recognise the merits of mentoring inmates with histories of mental illness and addiction as a preventative approach to hospital or rehabilitation unit readmission. Likewise mentoring in schools has been particularly effective when working with disadvantaged children. Their learning is often not limited by ability alone but by lack of self-esteem and confidence to try. For some individuals the opportunity to sit with an adult ‘who is on side’, encouraging and interested in them is a new experience. The promising results from such encounters have led to region-wide mentoring schemes to promote learning for all. Once young people are confident in themselves as learners, they are able to input into the wider learning community in an active way. One of the most powerful examples of coaching and mentoring in

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the community is when those in traditionally powerful roles are coachees/mentees to those who have been previously marginalised. They have a chance to explore issues from a different perspective and gain a new empathy as a result.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN INDIVIDUAL LEARNING AND ORGANISATIONAL LEARNING The micro-context of coaching or mentoring is entirely congruent with the organisational or community journey to improvement through goal-setting, exploration of the context of operation and reality of the individual (mapping the environment), consideration of the issues from all perspectives, including tensions in the system and the move to reconciliation of the balance in the generation of options and alternatives to bring about positive change. Coaches and mentors, through the process of working beyond traditional boundaries, are introducing new ideas and importing best practice into their communities. In a recent study on public sector managers in a health and social care setting a line manager noted that ‘the one competency that eludes middle managers is managing in a complex environment. A key question is – how can we prepare them for it before they get into post?’ As she affirmed, experienced senior managers seemed to have it by and large, and coaching and mentoring provide one way to instil that experience before taking up a senior post.

THE NEED FOR LEARNING COMMUNITIES Many writers have attempted to explain theories underpinning complexity as experienced by organisations. Stacey (1996) identified that organisations move between stability, instability and complexity, but the ‘frozen’ stage described by Lewin was rarely a reality, as change is ongoing. In complex environments social networking becomes essential, as does collaborative working building on those connections to ensure seamless processes from customer and stakeholder perspectives. Knowledge to fuel change is an emergent quality of learning, and informal contexts speed up the availability of knowledge in a timely way to make the most of opportunities for innovation and change. Formal, controlled and programmed environments generate cautious, orderly activities refined from the past. Informal, emergent and iterative thinking environments generate active experimentation in the present chaos from which leading-edge thinking is derived. The latter notion, based on Kessels’ (1996) corporate curriculum model, enables participants to develop tolerance of uncertainty and change. Consumers are showing more interest in the processes and mechanisms that underpin production and service delivery, be it the ingredients that are used, the nature of production, ethical or otherwise, and the use of technology. One key


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question that learning organisations need to ask themselves is: ‘Are we traditional or leading edge and how does our strategy match our values?’ Organisations need to be clear about what they are doing, why they are doing it and how they compare with others. We work in organisations and communities where we have to engage with the change process and in so doing equip ourselves to be active rather than passive. The requirement to keep learning in order to remain at the leading edge is corporately called developing a learning organisation – a concept derived by Pedlar, Burgoyne and Boydel (1991) as a strategy for sustainable development. Organisations are required to be active learners throughout their corporative lives, self-modernisers and improvers, reaching out to the changing context in which we operate. Pedlar et al. also recognise that organisations need to stimulate, support and challenge people through the process of change by ensuring that they are receptive learners, creative thinkers and implementers. Learning and change go hand-in-hand. Many situation-based paradigms have emerged which partner active experience (real work) with learning reflection in order to bring about change such as project-based learning, action learning and coach/mentoring. The move to become a learning organisation moves us away from traditional, top-down command to involvement, questioning and challenge. We all need to be players rather than observers. If we want to be at the forefront, then we have to go beyond participation to leadership in creativity/innovation and its implementation. There are frameworks to guide organisations in their modernising. Most models are underpinned by the need to set goals for changes based on a clear understanding about what is to be achieved. Processes of mapping the environment in which organisations operate, processes and flow of activities and analysis and redesign are precursors to improvement action. Organisations need to know how they will measure the impact of their changes and present the data to others. Improvement strategies at the organisational level need to balance the needs of capacity and demand, identify the delays in the systems and bottlenecks, the quality issues that impact on customer experience and the maximisation of productivity. To understand these issues they need to understand stakeholder views at every point in the process and see the range of perspectives. As for moving people forward in change, understanding their views and early engagement of them in a consultative process prepares the ground well. However, there are inevitable human dynamics to manage through the change process and so improvement strategies work to ensure that knowledge and skills are in the system to facilitate change at the individual, group and organisational levels. Embedding the change or improvement beyond the life of a funded initiative or ‘flavour of the month’ initiative is a real challenge aided by ownership, early experience of benefits, reflection of personal learning and spread of the best practice. ‘Spread’ or take-up rarely works when it is a ‘must-do-it-this-way-or-else’ mandate. Success is based on the establishment of a sound fit within local planning goals, detailed environment mapping and a committed local distributed leadership cohort. Sustainability is increased when all partners and stakeholders have mechanisms through which to work in mutually beneficial ways.

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THE NEED FOR COLLABORATIVE AND PARTNERSHIP APPROACHES TO LEARNING The changing environment in which we operate presents challenges for collaborative working. Alliances are the key to timely and efficient deliverables where outsourcing and partnering in areas where organisations are not competitive make economic sense. The continued relationship with stakeholders and the customer base is also important. Respect and positive affirmation of customers and stakeholders are keys to success – remember the Ratner case, discussed above. Perhaps that was extreme but there are many collaborations between organisations and the communities that they serve which operate on subtle undermining of those communities, gentle ridicule, questioning their ability to participate in the collaborative process or their judgement to know what is good for them. All can lead to a slightly resentful community dependency or hostile tolerance.

CHAPTER SUMMARY AND REFLECTION Collaborations work well when there is mutual trust and respect, where power is perceived to be equally distributed and potential benefits are seen as mutual. Perception and reality are not always the same. For instance, one individual can attribute and interpret a situation differently from another, perhaps because of a prior assumption. The reputation of an organisation or agency can continue to operate long after the activity that brought it about has ceased. Authentic relationships between stakeholders and community partners based on the hereand-now can help organisations move reputations towards current evidence. A change of leadership at the top cannot always bring about change in the way an organisation behaves. Leadership may be working to a very different mission and script from the supporting body beneath it. Tacit behaviour and overt behaviour may present contradictory information to stakeholders about what the real mission is. There are different types of knowledge a high-performance team needs to share. These may be explicit, tacit or a mix of the two. Dictionary and recipe knowledge are explicit, while axiomatic and people knowledge are implicit. Directory knowledge may be implicit or explicit. Management of these different types of knowledge requires active acquisition/creation, knowledge capture and storage, and knowledge diffusion and transfer. Coaching and mentoring are identified as key vehicles to facilitate knowledge acquisition and transfer. From the discussion of this chapter, we have deduced that the role of a leader in the learning organisation is to:

• Ensure that a vision exists, build and share rather than creating it. • Recognise leaps of abstraction (make inferences from observation to global generalisation).


• • • • • • • •

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Empower staff. Inspire commitment. Ensure good decision-making throughout the organisation. Translate implicit assumption to explicit knowledge. Make tacit knowledge explicit and create new tacit knowledge through the learning cycle. Manage diversity of the top team and achieve strategic consensus. Act as a designer of the organisation. Design learning processes, coaching and mentoring programmes. Act as a coach and mentor.

Novices may be confused when they attempt to distinguish the differences between coaches and counsellors. This is partly due to the fact that counselling is an important element in coaching and mentoring. We cannot expect coachees/ mentees entering the meeting to be perfect human beings, free from psychological barriers and work/life problems – if they were, they would not need coaching in the first place. Often, they will have psychological baggage, concerns and preoccupations that coaches/mentors need to identify and address before they can be set free. Apart from counselling skills, we hope this chapter has made clear that a successful coach/mentor needs the following qualities and skills:

• Awareness – the ability to be aware of oneself and others, to be sensitive to one’s own and others’ identity, social need, organisational and cultural differences.

• Empathy – the ability to establish rapport with coachees/mentees as well as the programme owner (usually a senior manager).

• Friendly personality – friendly and outgoing. Coaches/mentors like people and • • • • • • •

meeting new people as part of their work. More importantly, they are the people whom staff at all levels like to talk to. Diplomacy – the ability to understand organisational politics and its idiosyncratic culture, to develop good interpersonal relationships, and to negotiate round the organisational maze. Facilitation skills – the ability to encourage people to talk about their problems as well as guiding them to discover solutions. Learning skills – being quick to learn and learn who knows what, in particular within a team and an organisation. Interview skills – the ability to conduct open interviews as well as focus on knowledge acquisition from the stakeholders. Listening skills – the ability to listen attentively to what is being said as well as what is left unsaid and to make people feel valued and respected. Management of change – the ability to initiate, embrace and manage change within an organisation. Tolerance of ambiguity – the ability to tolerate the chaos within an organisation where change is constant.

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In this chapter, we have viewed executive coaching within the context of learning organisations. We have argued the case for coaching as a vehicle for leveraging organisational culture and sharing organisational information. Thus, apart from performing the role of ‘learner’ as well as a ‘teacher’/instructor, a coach/mentor has the third role: as a facilitator for knowledge elicitation, transfer and management. This implies a new paradigm that requires the coach/mentor to be a quick learner and flexible, to have professional competence that matches the leadership role, understanding of diversity and organisational culture. In Chapter 6, we describe this new paradigm by developing a Universal Integrated Framework to show how leadership competence can be developed and explore the qualities of coaches/mentors more systematically.

CHAPTER 6

Developing a Universal Framework for Diversity, Coaching and Mentoring INTRODUCTION We are extending the learning context beyond the organisational perspective to our individual differences. We build on some of the theories and research of individual learning in a global context and identify the role and significance of culture and context for coaching/mentoring success. The wider influences on our learning and the impact of multi-media communication on learning relationships are considered. Communication, feedback and supervision are proposed, as means of building in collective learning into the process to ensure that coaching and mentoring is part of a wider learning system. We also describe an Emotional Intelligence framework with an added cultural dimension that supports the Universal Integrated framework. Together these features aim to strengthen the way we work in a diverse learning context. Much collaboration and partnership research looks at the conditions that facilitate effective working together through interpretive factors such as attitudes, values and perceptions and contextual factors, which include structural components such as technology, systems and procedures and organisational complexity. When these conditions are not met, barriers to a successful outcome are experienced. Learning in partnership or collaboration with another person requires an understanding of all these diverse factors. We are extending the context beyond the organisational perspective to our individual differences in how we conduct our relationships to stimulate learning. We consider some of the theories of individual learning in a global context, appreciation of the environment that we engage in, the wider influences on our learning and the impact of multi-media communication on learning relationships. We look at coaching/mentoring applications, matching cross-culturally and examples of these theories in practice, considerations for a mentoring mix, considerations for distance mentoring, the development of a universal approach to coaching/mentoring and the importance of including diverse research data sets and the continuation of the role of psychological theory in informing best practice.

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THE UNIVERSAL INTEGRATED FRAMEWORK – BUILDING ON THE INTEGRATED UNIVERSAL ELEMENTS OF DIVERSE MENTORING COACHING In this section, we describe the Universal Integrated Framework (UIF) we have developed through our research and practice, which addresses coaching and mentoring diversity in practice. The idea of building a generic framework – a meta-model – is not new. It is well within the ambition of many leading academics and practitioners in the fields – David Lane, in his workshop at the second National Conference of the Special Group in Coaching Psychology, attempted to help participants build their own meta-models (Lane, 2005). Building a metamodel has clear benefits. As Lane points out, it can assist coaches to integrate their coaching processes in terms of:

• frameworks – models can be added to the framework one by one • questions – coaching questions can be structured and embedded in the meta-model leadership – it ensures that coaches have a clear purpose, perspectives and • process. Our UIF has the following unique characteristics:

• • • • • • •

learning cycle and supervision, continuous professional development (CPD) appreciation of cultural environment coach/mentor/mentee fluidity integrative continuum cross-cultural emotional intelligence a pragmatic implementation model that embeds all of the above elements communication methods and a feedback mechanism

LEARNING CYCLE, SUPERVISION AND CONTINUOUS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT So far we have covered a wide but coherent range of philosophies and theories on coaching and mentoring. However, without implementing the plan of action, all these would be just another theory. This constitutes the implementation phase. So as the first step in building our UIF, we embed the dynamic coaching/mentoring/ learning model (see Figure 6.1). Our UIF embeds the dynamic coaching and mentoring model (the learning cycle described in Chapter 3), which maps onto the continuous professional development (CPD) learning cycle very well (see Figure 6.2).

DEVELOPING A UNIVERSAL FRAMEWORK

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Abstract Conception

NEW Future

Meaning Internal transformation: consciousness emerges

Reflection


Action External transformation: towards behaviour

PAST experience

Implementation: New engagement

Concrete experience

Figure 6.1

The complete dynamic coaching/mentoring/learning model

Evaluation Application to practice

Identification of CPD needs Link individual and organisational objectives

Use the learning in practice

Fulfilment of outcomes = Demonstration of competence Synthesis of learning to practice

Identify appropriate activities

Action plan Reflect critically

CPD activity

Figure 6.2

CPD cycle (from Department of Health CPD project)

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The model is consistent with supervision and CPD, which offers coachees/ mentees the opportunity to review the coaching/mentoring process and optimise their learning. Integrating CPD and supervision enables practitioners to achieve excellence, develop talent and ensure the quality of performance. Supervision is a forum in which coachees/mentees meet their coach/mentor and talk about their work with the aim of improving it. They bring their practice to the forum and review the lessons learned from that experience with help from their coach/ mentor or supervisor (Carroll, 2006). According to Carroll’s definition, supervision is a form of experiential learning, where the work is reviewed, interviewed, questioned, considered and critically reflected on – what he calls ‘reflection-on-action’ leading to ‘reflection-for-action’. So it makes sense to integrate supervision into our universal framework from the learning perspective. It provides us with a tool with which to assess the impact on individuals’ performance and satisfaction, which is the key to realising the benefits of mentoring/coaching and ensuring that it offers value to the business. Coaching/mentoring, including CPD and supervision, enables coachees/ mentees to move from ‘I-learning’ to ‘we-learning’. (Shared learning is explored further in this chapter under the feedback mechanism.) External and internal managers can be mentors and coaches. For top executives there are requirements to use external coaches/mentors to guarantee confidentiality and reassurance to those in the most challenging and demanding positions. In a mixed economy of external and internal coaches/mentors, it offers an opportunity to share best practice within one framework.

APPRECIATION OF THE CULTURAL ENVIRONMENT The culture/environment in which we engage as learners is identified by appreciation of the distinguishing features present, including those stemming from the physical environment – buildings, heating, lighting, sound, aspects of the physical environment that impact on safety and health; the shared vision and purpose, motivations, functional and professional status, social distinctions and characteristics of groups, ways of ritualised being or doing in that localised environment both tacit and overt; criteria for success and understanding of stakeholder benefits, experience of tension and conflict; communication rituals and contextual protocols that smooth understanding and the unique elements (motivations, team working style, experience of tension and conflict, learning style and risk strategy) of individuals. All these have to be appreciated in order to work harmoniously (Figure 6.3). The culture or context of operation may be the environment that we occupy or the attributes we extend to the environment, including the players who are part of our networks. This interplay between our values, perceptions and assessment skills of what we observe and experience are key to our appreciation of our context. Our values are influenced by our upbringing and the family culture we experience within the wider context of community. Our understanding of success, happiness,


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Vision, Values Physical environment

Political environment

Figure 6.3

Ritualised behaviour (verbal and processes)

Collective and individual expectations including stakeholder/stakeholder group recognition

Appreciation of cultural environment

sense of self and aspirations may have developed during this stage. Priorities may have been distinguished from those around us through this experience and we may have imbued values for life from behaviours and phrases adopted in our family life. You might want to take a moment to reflect on some of those family phrases that have stuck with you. For example:

• • • • • • • • • • • •

Keep your own counsel. You’ve made your bed, now lie in it. Waste not want not. If you give people enough rope, they will hang themselves. The family comes first. People look down on us but we stand tall. The world is your oyster. Look after yourself because no one else will. We all make mistakes. On women – that is someone’s mother. On disability – be kind, for there but for the grace of God . . . On men – keep them on a short leash.

Some of these phrases might form the basis of opinion which is false or leads to false assumptions. It is this family culture and later the wider cultural experience that give us our sense of what is right and what is wrong and determine how we assess risk and our preferred way of working or being. When family cultures merge – perhaps through marriage and particularly when there are children – it is amazing how strongly these early prototypes for doing and being battle to replicate some of the significant and favoured elements of one’s background culture. The greatest perceived differences between people are their background, race, physical and mental abilities, and gender, and in the organisational world, functional and professional categorisations. Yet in theories such as Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, the universal needs we share are clear and succinct (see Chapter 3 for a literature review on psychology of learning). Shared values/goals are more important in collaborative learning than styles and approaches that distinguish individuals’ behaviour (Spreitzer, 1995).

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There are some core elements that we as learners all share. Learning needs motivation, support, feedback and review, although style and content to achieve learning may vary. Some writers have drawn up models of inter-cultural sensitivity, which attempt to identify individual differences as a result of cultural associations and propose an acknowledgement of those differences for the actualisation of the potential of relationships to develop (see Bennet, 1991; Rosinski, 2003). So how useful are these typology approaches to cultural classification of difference for leveraging individual learning in diverse settings for relationships? There are many problems with such approaches, not least that we live in a hybrid world, an eclectic mix. In terms of ethnicity, we find individuals who display many of the cultural and ritualistic behaviours and attitudes of their country of origin even though they may be of different ethnicity. We have businessmen and women operating out of China who have been educated in Europe or America. We live in a world where an increasing number of people are of mixed parentage. Faiths from which we may derive cultural religiosity are observed in a wide spectrum of ways where the commonality in beliefs and behaviours may be greater at the boundaries of faiths, than within them. Professional cultures identified through traditional functionality, and ring-fenced through professional governing bodies, have been forced to merge and disseminate their skill sets (e.g. doctors to nurses, professionals to technicians) in order to compete effectively and add value for money. So those with professional knowledge and skills may not be members of the profession. Such typology approaches produce a false sense of absolute categorisation, and only serve as another boundary to cross. They are attractive because they offer ‘fixed’ knowledge and expertise (albeit a pseudo-knowledge set) as a way to progress interpersonal development rather than a process to engage individuals in the identification of their emergent self and context for operation. Although they have a value as general background information, many find their usefulness in their literal application and endorsement of fixed knowledge or stereotypes. Environmental pressure to make sense of what we see immediately based on retrospective choices, playing safe, being aware of the here-and-now, taking action and moving to closure (tick the box) takes precedence over a more reflective, emergent process which explores new modes of vertical categorisation distinguished by the maturity of the process. In terms of diversity, the gestalt model can indicate the different perception of visual fields but not explain the balance of contribution of the wider environment, personal and collective history or any variation in meaning and significance. What we may have is a model that encourages individual understanding of the past through the urgency of the present and the processing of a structured framework that is intertwined with Western acculturated behavioural processes.

The Significance of Culture One of the key themes of our coaching/mentoring framework has been that it aims to address the significance of culture. Understanding a culture is also a


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general problem about understanding the life experience of others. Learning, relationships and ritualistic behaviours are illusory because they are located on the boundary between the ‘internal life’ of an individual and the ‘external world’ of relationships, customs and organisations. Cultural themes are consciously and unconsciously reproduced in conformity with the previous pattern (Krause, 1998). So what is culture? How is it defined and reproduced? Can culture be treated as a variable and separated from something else? What does it look like? Using Geertz’s (1986) analogy, culture is ‘the icing on the cake’. But if culture is like a cake, is it a layered cake or a marble cake? One can argue that it is culture that bakes the cake (Strawson, 1996). A tension exists between similarities and differences among cultures even within an institution. Within the context of addressing the diversity in the organisation, many important questions can be asked, for example: ‘Can people transform the workplace by expressing, not giving up, their cultural values?’ ‘Can cultural differences be treated as if these were the same kind?’ Resolving such tension and addressing some of these questions are important to our development of a universal framework that can be applied across cultures. If we can find something which is cross-culturally the same, we may also be able to discover the human condition we all share. This can then serve as an anchor for us when we work across cultures. Our integrated universal framework accepts that culture is multilayered and its unique aspects in every mentoring/coaching application as all behaviour change and values shifts are contextualised but not automatically transferable. One solution does not fit all and the person who knows most about their environment is the person who experiences it constructively, supported and challenged by their mentor/ coach. Working with individuals to identify differences and celebrate the uniqueness of all situations and circumstances reflects real universality and encourages best-fit solutions.

COACHING AND MENTORING DIVERSITY IN PRACTICE In a diverse environment the definition of coaching/mentoring described in Chapter 4 becomes more difficult as the term has become more diffuse in a large number of contexts. This is compounded by the many people using different media and where diverse meanings are applied (Nandram, 2003). So what does the mentoring/coaching research and practice described in Chapter 3 add to our understanding of learning in collaboration in applied contexts? We know that goal-setting may help to structure the coaching/mentoring process, but it is not vital to its success. We know that self-efficacy is important in bringing about satisfactory outcomes in coaching/mentoring, but that the network of sub-components underpinning ‘can-do’ attitudes may differ across cultures. In coaching/mentoring, the focus is on nurture to help individuals reach their potential and the locus of control is of partial use in establishing a sense of responsibility, but also in recognising the importance of interplay with others and

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our situation. In the coaching/mentoring relationship it is coachee/mentee-driven so coaches/mentors have to take a back seat and facilitate the other person to explore themselves, others and their environment, and work out causality and consequence in that situation. The nature of the quality of the relationship is emphasised in coaching/ mentoring as a prerequisite for learning and satisfaction more than in other strands of development. Features that are regularly cited as contributing to that quality relationship are trust, commitment, authenticity, listening, time for critical reflection, positive regard and caring, boundary clarity and management, questioning and challenge. These go beyond the routine, programmed and instrumental conditions for learning employed by other methods and lie at the core of our coaching and mentoring process. Perhaps the caveat to our model lies with some individuals who have felt marginalised in previous partnerships for learning and working. In some diversity mentoring pairs, such as black and minority ethnic (BME) staff and individuals with disabilities, there is some preparatory work to be done where individuals can accept themselves and trust their experience before they can trust someone else who does not share some of those elements. Such commonality might be a good basis to build a rapport and develop more security and self-affirmation. As the research on interpersonal attraction has identified, this stage may be satisfactory in the short term only and a springboard for new development and wider receptiveness to learning. For when individuals want to move beyond empathy they may require a greater focus on commonality of goals and values as a precondition for continued learning. This stage of mentoring minority individuals lasts months rather than years; alternatively, they may take on multiple mentors as their confidence increases. This will not apply to all people though. There is good sense in extending the choice of mentors from a range of diverse backgrounds and with a range of experience for that important minority in any mentee group. Time limits for the duration of relationships need to be flexible to accommodate different needs. In the same way that there may be a preparatory stage in mentoring there may also be some common mentoring journeys underpinned by core patterns. Once again we see diversity in the mentoring journey – that we may travel at different rates, perceive the experience slightly differently, get off one or two stops earlier – but there may be commonality about some of the landmarks along the way. We propose that diversity mentoring can be expressed as a triangle as shown in Figure 6.4. The model comprises four stages, with stage 1 at the bottom, smallest angle, working up to the top to number 4: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Prerequisite stage for diversity mentoring. Beyond homogeneous empathy into mentoring. Looking forward and making things happen. Maturation as a diversity mentor champion.


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4. Maturation through multiple mentors into unknown zones using multiple media and methods 3. Exploration of new insights from assimilated experience 2. Consolidation of self in diverse, trust building relationship 1. Prerequisite homogeneity between mentor and mentee (assimilation of personal experience and validation)

Figure 6.4

Diversity coach mentoring journey

Stage 1 – Prerequisite Stage for Diversity Mentoring Validation of their story and experience with a person of high-grounded empathy and/or similarity/homogeneity in minority area. Prepares them to trust others as self-acceptance and belief grow. What can you do to move them on to the next level? Train them as mentors as well as mentees to empower them about the process even if they are not yet ready to mentor. Train them in coaching elements too so that they have more skills to draw on. Help them become aware of emotional intelligence and its impact in mentoring/coaching. Some people move quickly out of this stage as they have already made the journey on their own, but others need much more time. Choosing a mentor with high similarity is very important.

Stage 2 – Beyond Homogeneous Empathy into Mentoring A new mentor or extended role for the mentor from stage 1. Often mentees will be ready to test their learning in different relationships. New relationships

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offer the opportunity for individuals to consolidate a sense of self, review experience from this perspective and find new ways to develop trust and honesty. What can you do to move them on to the next level? Give positive feedback about how they present themselves. Encourage them to take on enhanced roles in their work or try new things/situations. Encourage them to keep learning logs that describe the changes taking place – both internal and those observable to others.

Stage 3 – Looking Forward and Making Things Happen Move beyond the past and understanding of it to an exploration of new insights from individual experience, which can be leveraged, to shape the present and future. Ready to start mentoring others in their area of minority experience or generally more junior staff from the general population, or other individuals who have travelled less far on the journey. What can you do to move them on to the next level? Supervision with other coaches, mentees and mentors, continual development and widening networks and roles/tasks. Particularly important is an increased tacit knowledge of how their environment works and, in an organisational setting, how successful change is brought about, and integration of how and why they have their minority experience and the skills and knowledge they can derive from it for the greater good. Use mentoring skills with a range of technologies and structures that go beyond established boundaries.

Stage 4 – Maturation as a Diversity Mentor Champion This includes:

• Mentor majority culture people on diversity issues showing real understanding of the environment and universal goals of engagement.

• Establish wide-ranging networks. • Find new coaches/mentors to fit different purposes and manage boundaries well. • Maintain roots in minority communities but also maintain diversity across communities.

• Cross-reference experience and bring creativity to whatever you do. • Have a range of mentoring coaching relationships in place using different technologies.

• Use good practice and insights to inform wider universal practice and coordinate mentoring partnerships.

• Champion minority achievements.


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• Offer input into new approaches and best practice. • Be an observable role model across communities. • Continue to go to supervision and contribute to the development of others less far along the journey through training facilitation and strategic engagement at a wider level. At this point the focus is on maintenance rather than the next levels. People often drop out after a few years or, as a consequence of their success, become estranged from their minority community and find themselves in new roles where they cannot mentor as easily. Supervision and being mentored by someone with high homogeneity with you but less experience of the diversity/mentoring journey as one of your multiple mentoring relationships may help avoid some of the pitfalls. There have been a number of occasions when minority leaders who themselves have received mentoring may not be keen to offer it to others. In minority groups the effect shows up particularly in organisations, where minority leaders are in short supply. However, this is a universal finding across communities and may be more about the insecurity of individual potential mentors, an over-alignment with the position and lead culture of players in similar positions they have attained and the route that enabled them to get there. A coordinator of a mentoring programme reported that medical consultants were reluctant to mentor registrars in their development. She reported that they typically commented: ‘My colleagues and I got through on our own and if they are any good they will get through – it’s how things are.’ A black consultant, when asked to mentor other BME mentee doctors, replied: ‘These schemes change nothing and that’s why I don’t get involved – although if you are really good you can get through to being a consultant.’ Whilst acknowledging specific differences among individuals, contexts and media, commonly cited best practice from studies conducted in a wide range of mentoring and coaching situations referred to the importance of mutual benefits, willingness to sign a mentoring agreement, preparatory training and supervision. Clutterbuck (2003) summed up the best practice for mentors: Matching needs to embody the element of choice, to offer at least two options to ensure commitment on either side. All relationships should be probationary for the first two meetings.

Based on the psychological research presented in Chapter 2 from a range of contexts, we cannot support the approach of trying to simulate aspects of face-to-face communication through video conferencing and technology as the way forward as you lose some of the benefits of online communication. It may be that rather than trying to simulate face-to-face communication in a hybrid form we try to make the most of the medium of computer-based communication and be clear about the impact of the effect of the total communication mix of methods (e.g. phone, email, chat rooms, text, video conferencing, messenger) on the learning outcomes and individual

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learning style. What is the ideal ordering of any hybrid mix of communication in the process? What mix does not work? How is this affected by personal learning styles? What is the scope for more peer mentoring or team mentoring on-line, using group chat situations? In this chapter, we put forward a model to explain the spectrum of mentoring method mix. Further, e-mentoring goes beyond distance mentoring. It is advantageous when cultural differences are wide, easily incorporated into organisation life and – yes – there have been individuals who have owned up to e-mentoring several people at the same time. That may not be good traditional practice but as the mentor in question stated: My mentees feel that I am attending to them entirely and I am, but the delay in the chat means I can do two concurrently. Actually, I get ideas of questions and insights that I can use productively from one to another. Rather than distracting me I find it stimulates my thinking and enables me to reflect back more effectively. I also know of mentees who like to run a mentee session concurrently with a session when they are mentored as they feel it enriches their experience in both roles.

It is also to be noted that in many e-mentoring schemes a lot of the informal benefits are reduced by highly programmed and prescriptive schemes, which limit flexibility by allowing email only. Yet children are the chat and text generation, and it would be a shame that a medium in which they communicate fluently is not used because mentors feel less at home in that environment, or are less competent in designing systems that meet their needs. Many of the reasons given are concerns to protect vulnerable mentees such as school children or vulnerable adults and to fit in with pre-formatted, formal institution systems and protocols in communication and learning. Then there are design restraints, particularly costs, which limit the scope of specific e-mentoring programmes to optimise the range of methodologies that might suit a range of styles and needs. Although safety is always a concern, we must ensure that the merits of mentoring flexibility and fluidity are not lost. Technology should be optimised in a learnercentred way to inform mentoring options, and the preferences of mentees and learners should help us to overcome risks and barriers to their learning. All communication between children and vulnerable adults is risky, but the procedures on safety should not inhibit innovative design. If safety is considered at the outset, effective procedures can be developed that meet statutory and funding requirements. However, procedures need to be established which fit the purpose and the medium rather than traditional mentoring procedures being tacked on to new approaches. We need to develop an integrated, safe culture for all vulnerable users where children are informed how to keep safe, boundaries and expectations are clear, monitoring focuses on breach of boundary codes, agreements are in place at the outset for randomised monitored e-mentoring, supervision for mentors and peer review for mentees are requirements and mentees are trained as mentors to empower them about the process so that they can assess their behaviour and outcomes.


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As for coaching/mentoring neatly fitting into existing institutional arrangements, we have to remember that coaching/mentoring works best when it is informal and ‘outside the line’. This may translate into schools and other institutions as slightly apart from the mainstream but networked into the mainstream.

COACH/MENTOR/MENTEE FLUIDITY Mentor/coach training has traditionally focused on the development of the mentor/ coach with some development for the coachees/mentees. In the UIF model the coachees/mentees are also trained as coaches/mentors so that they are better able to drive the process as a coachee/mentee from having the knowledge of the whole process and the elements within that need to be optimised if the benefits are to be realised. Individuals are encouraged to be both coachees/mentees and coaches/ mentors so that they recognise the learning opportunities in both roles and identify them as transitory as an aid to learning rather than set and ‘boxed-in’ positions. It is essential to learning that leaders experience both roles. This is also consistent with the so-called ‘double-loop learning’ in organisations (Argyris, 1977). Language may impose psychological barriers around these roles. The coach’s/ mentor’s role suggests that it might be the driving role linked with an action-centred approach, but in reality the coachee’s/mentee’s role is the one that is the driving role. As such, coachees’/mentees’ training is important to help individuals maximise their opportunities for learning and there is some evidence that simply having to find a coach/mentor is useful for development and for the contracting that follows.

INTEGRATIVE CONTINUUM As discussed in Chapter 4, some schools of thought encourage separateness between mentoring and coaching, stressing the personal/performance distinction. However, a rigid distinction might cause mentoring to be marginalised in the organisational business agenda and become distanced from personal development. Despite some differences between coaching and mentoring, we recognise coaching and mentoring as an integrative continuum. From our practice, we have observed that there is a link between them, underpinned by the same skill set. For example, when coachees and mentees are driving a goal-centred process in an exploratory way, the outcome of both mentoring and coaching is ‘action’ (which is also the outcome of the learning process in our coaching/mentoring model as described in Chapter 3). It is also in the interests of sustainability and embedding mentoring and coaching as a holistic approach that we emphasise the connections to the core business and central systems and processes. Linking personal development with performance improvement underpinned by the same skills set enables us to develop a more coherent integrated framework. This ensures that mentoring remains, by

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association, at the core of the business agenda and that coaching addresses leadership development as well as organisational improvement. The emphasis on the connections between coaching/mentoring and the core business processes ensures that it stays at the heart of the business agenda. Embedding mentoring/ coaching within the organisation also ensures its sustainability. If it is a scheme or an initiative, one expects it to be a strand of work outside the main agenda and as such it is vulnerable in a world of changing priorities. Organisations are more likely to stop add-on schemes or programmes that are not well embedded within core processes. Sustainability is achieved through an integrated approach, which ensures that mentoring/coaching is part of the way we support reform and develop leaders. The link between mentoring and personal development and performance improvement has to be established in an integrated framework for a sustainable leadership improvement process that ensures short- and longer-term gains.

CROSS-CULTURAL EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE Although the idea of emotional intelligence (EI) was made popular by Goleman (1995), the concept is not new but can be dated back to the 1920s with work by Thorndike (1920) on social intelligence. Gardner (1983) advocated the concepts of both intra-personal and inter-personal intelligence as alternative attributes for individual achievement. A formal definition of EI was developed by Salovey and Mayer (1990) and later redefined as: The ability to perceive emotions, to access and generate emotions so as to assist thought, to understand emotions and emotional knowledge, and to reflectively regulate emotions so as to promote emotional and intellectual growth. (Mayer & Salovey, 1997)

In the latest definition, Petrides and Furnham (2001) define EI as: A constellation of emotion-related dispositions and self-perceived abilities representing a distinct composite construct at the lower levels of hierarchical personality structures.

Self-efficacy is also part of the motivation mobilisers at our disposal, which have been shown to impact on our likely success. We can get sponsorship and support from others, including stakeholders, who might encourage, invest time and energy and benefit from our learning achievements. We can also derive the learning methods that will suit us and plan to achieve our goals so that we really own them and the methods we employ. We need benchmarks and a clear vision of what success looks like and feels like to keep us motivated and on track. We have also included the ‘self-efficacy’ element in our UIF (see p. 93). However, we need to handle the element with care. A lot of the underlying assumptions are embedded in Western, and more specifically American, culture. The definitions of each of the elements and the components that bring them about may not be universally relevant. Some individuals derive their sense of purpose and empowerment


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to get things done through a positive and yet passive life-force; for others a sense of destiny may be the driver; for yet others a sense of control may be anathema – instead, a sense of harmonisation and integration provides the route to holistic progress. Yet all might produce what is measured as a ‘can-do’ attitude. So self-efficacy scales may measure observable or self-assessed outcomes, but the dimensions and link between them may be far from transferable. While emotion draws our attention to deal with the issues that are important to us, it may not be the best guide for action. Combining feeling and thinking with knowledge of the cultural context enables us to deliver the most effective results in our professional engagement. We have thus developed an integrated framework grounded in the latest psychological approaches in emotional intelligence (Goleman, 1994, 1998).

INTEGRATING CROSS-CULTURAL COACHING/ MENTORING INTELLIGENCE INTO THE UNIVERSAL FRAMEWORK Although Goleman’s Emotional Competence Framework was popular, its cultural competence dimension was under-developed. We have expanded the framework by adding two dimensions, Cultural Competence and Coaching Professional Competence, with 360-degree feedback built into the system. Our model thus consists of four dimensions: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Personal competence. Social competence. Cultural competence. Professional competence.

Professional skills

Culture

Social/other

Self

Integrative Professional

Figure 6.5

Universal Integrated Framework – a pragmatic model

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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF COACHING, MENTORING AND LEARNING Table 6.1

Appreciation of the Cultural Environment

Macro

Micro

Long-Term

Short-Term

The model translates all the elements described earlier into a practical model. The integrative professional seamlessly crosses all the boundaries of emotional intelligence including the cultural and contextual dimension. It aims to help mentors and coaches with their development particularly of EI from a cultural perspective. We call this cross-cultural coaching/mentoring and social intelligence (CMSI). A total of 18 elements of core competence have been identified within these dimensions. Taking into consideration the need to balance the number of questions at each dimension and element, a total of 100 questions have been created. These are described next.

Dimension I: Personal Competence These competencies reflect how we manage ourselves. They consist of two parts: 1. Awareness of oneself (self-awareness). 2. Management of oneself (self-regulation/self-management).

Self-awareness Measures whether you accept and value yourself. Awareness of one’s internal states, feelings, emotion, cognition, preferences, resources and intuitions. Element 1: Emotion Awareness of one’s own emotion. How self-aware are you? Check the following statements that describe you in general: 1. I am at ease with myself and who I have become. 2. I worry about my shortcomings. 3. I have complete belief in how I utilise the resource/support structures I have in place. 4. I pay attention to what my body tells me. 5. I see myself as an intuitive person. If you can answer ‘yes’ to most of the above questions (except question 2), you will achieve high scores in self-awareness. The higher your score, the more


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you are aware of how you feel and know, and recognise the sources of that knowledge. Element 2: Cognition Self-reflection and evaluation – know one’s own values, self-worth, capacities, strengths and weaknesses. This may be achieved through reflecting one’s own experience analytically, critically evaluating the validity of one’s assumptions, beliefs, values, and drawing conclusions. Indicators:

• Accurate evaluation of one’s strengths and weaknesses • Being intuitive • Confidence For example: 1. 2. 3. 4.

I know my strengths and weaknesses. I can voice a view that I believe is right even though it may be unpopular. I worry about my shortcomings. I have complete belief in how I utilise the resource/support structures I have in place. 5. I see myself as an intuitive person.

Self-management The ability to manage one’s emotion and motivation and control them productively. It measures whether you invite the trust of others by being principled, reliable and consistent (trustworthiness). The CMSI self-management score is broken down into Resilience, Flexibility and Trustworthiness with a total of 13 questions. Element 3: Motivation Positive emotion that drives one towards one’s goals or aspirations. The ability to perform consistently under pressure in a range of situations. The ability to maintain commitment and take a course of action to achieve one’s objective in the face of obstacles, personal challenge or criticism. The ability to manage one’s awareness of emotion and control it productively. For example, Resilience measures whether you are able to pick yourself up and bounce back when things go badly. Realism measures whether you balance optimism with realism. Indicators:

• ambition • achievement

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• commitment to oneself, the team or organisational objectives • standard of excellence • optimism (emotional resilience) – perseverance in achieving goals in spite of obstacles For example: 1. I actively take opportunities to set challenging tasks in order to fulfil the organisational mission. 2. I get despondent or depressed fairly easily. 3. I am a very resilient person in hard times. 4. I always build in contingencies so that I can increase the likelihood of a good outcome. 5. I believe that when one door closes another opens. Element 4: Control The ability to control disruptive emotions and impulses. It measures whether you are emotionally controlled, namely whether you are free to express your feelings but in control of whether, how and when you do so. For example: 1. I am able to show how I feel as well as conceal my feelings. 2. When I am upset or cross I feel the need to let it out no matter what the outcome may be. 3. I can express my feelings easily but choose when and how to do so. 4. I keep calm when others are angry. 5. When I am angry or upset I tend to take it out on others. Element 5: Trustworthiness This also means honesty or integrity. It measures whether you invite the trust of others by being principled, reliable and consistent. For example: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

I confront unethical actions in others. My beliefs and attitudes shift depending on whom I am with. I know what my inner principles are. If I make a mistake I sometimes blame others. I am true to myself even if this risks disapproval from others.

Element 6: Conscientiousness Take responsibility for personal improvement and performance.


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For example: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

I I I I I

do not always make commitments. do not always keep promises. hold myself accountable for getting the job done. am well organised in my work. pay attention to detail in my work.

Element 7: Flexibility Measures whether you are able to adapt your thinking and behaviour to match changing situations (also adaptable for change). Key questions include:

• Do you inquire into and respond openly to others’ ideas? • Can you address your fear of losing what is familiar and try something new, rather than playing safe? Self-assessed statements include: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

I can perform multi-tasking well. Once I’ve made up my mind I stick to it whatever happens. I particularly like to learn new ways of doing things. I find unexpected changes unsettling. It’s easy for me to adjust my responses to changing conditions.

Element 8: Creativity Innovative, comfortable with new ideas and novel applications. Self-assessed statements include: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

I I I I I

am creative. am open to new ideas. enjoy doing new things. like novel solutions to problems. can easily generate a lot of new ideas.

Dimension II: Social Competence Social competence reflects how we manage relationships. It is a didactic process as individuals gain insight through social interaction and awareness of others. This social process simply could not exist individually (Senage, 1990). It consists of the following elements:

• awareness of others (empathy) • management of others (social skills)

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Awareness of Others (Empathy) Awareness of others’ feelings, needs and concerns. It measures whether you empathise with others. There are 20 questions in the CMSI.

Element 9: Understanding (and trust) The ability to see things from others’ point of view. The ability to understand the key issues, see the whole picture and draw a clear conclusion when presented with incomplete or ambiguous information. Measures whether you trust others but can also protect yourself from exploitation. Self-assessed statements include: 1. I find it difficult to understand people who have feelings/beliefs different from my own. 2. I aim to accept people rather than judge them. 3. I readily feel empathy for others. 4. I tend to be suspicious of other people’s motives. 5. I tend to trust others even when I am aware of the risks.

Element 10: Empowering Help develop others to satisfy their needs and achieve their aspirations. Indicators include:

• Customer-centredness • Service orientation Self-assessed statements include: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

I I I I I

help others achieve their aspirations. help foster others’ skills. provide my subordinates with challenging assignments. reward others’ accomplishments. provide constructive feedback.

Management of Others (Social Skills) The ability to influence, collaborate and cooperate with others by identifying common ground, shared objectives, taking a leadership role, managing team spirit, resolving conflicts and communicating clearly with a display of interpersonal sensitivity.


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Element 11: Communication Listening to others’ points of view. Provide clear and convincing messages about one’s position and rationale. Self-assessed statements include: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

I listen well. I am receptive to good but not bad news. I find giving clear precise and concise messages difficult. I welcome the sharing of information appropriately. I like to create an open communicative environment.

Element 12: Facilitating conflict resolution Measures how well you can balance the need to be assertive (standing up for what you want) while remaining calm and respecting others. Helps mentees/coachees handle conflict. Coaches and mentors engage the emotional and social aspects when confronting conflicts. These include:

• • • • •

Ability to persuade others to change their viewpoint Negotiating Resolving disagreements Relationship management – building bonds, nurturing relationships Collaboration and cooperation – identifying a common ground. Working with others to achieve common objectives

Self-assessed statements include: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

I can disagree with people regularly without falling out with them. I prefer to use indirect influence to build consensus. I prefer win–win solutions to conflicts. I seek agreement from all stakeholders in conflict situations. I readily collaborate or cooperate with others to work towards shared goals.

Element 13: Leadership facilitation Inspirational. Providing guidance to individuals and groups. Self-assessed statements include: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

I I I I I

coach by example. articulate coaching objectives well. generate enthusiasm for a shared vision. guide others to perform according to their abilities. hold others accountable for their responsibilities.

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Element 14: Coaching the team Creating synergy in team or group coaching to achieve collective objectives. Self-assessed statements include: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

I I I I I

create synergy in order to work towards group goals. create a model of team qualities. generate enthusiasm within a team. engage all members of a team in active participation. readily share credit with the team members.

Element 15: Coaching for change Championing change and modernisation. Self-assessed statements include: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

I I I I I

encourage coaches to take action to champion change. help coaches to identify the need for change in their organisation. help coaches to take action to remove barriers to change. engage others in the change process. create a model of change according to others’ expectations.

Dimension III: Cultural Competence This competence reflects how we manage organisational change and consists of the following elements:

• Awareness of other cultures (enlightenment) • Management of organisational cultures (champion) Cultural competence measures the extent to which coachees/mentees inquire into or respond openly to others’ culture, ideas and values; and their willingness to challenge and question one’s own assumption as well as those of others. Coaches and mentors have the ability to mediate boundaries between cultures, connect to others and one’s own culture. In doing so, one experiences oneself as part of a larger, collective consciousness, both culturally and spiritually. One recognises that collective awareness and morality transform the organisation and society as a whole.

Awareness of Other Cultures (Enlightenment) This includes:

• Cultural awareness – understanding the organisational and group’s culture, politics and their power relationships across culture.


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• Cultural sensitivity – assesses whether you are culturally comfortable with yourself and others from a different background.

• Cultural flexibility – measures whether you align yourself with values from a Eurocentric or African/Eastern value framework.

Element 16: Appreciation Having appreciation of other cultures and religions. Self-assessed statements include: 1. We all have to struggle. I wonder why it is so different for people from other cultures. 2. I make an effort to learn some of the languages of those in my community who may speak something other than Standard English. 3. I have an interest in different ethnic cultures. 4. I have an interest in different types of organisational cultures. 5. I can articulate aspects of my own culture and background. 6. I cannot articulate distinguishing aspects of organisational cultures. 7. I can identify goodness and badness accurately among cultures. 8. I do not have an appreciation of the roles of education, money, values, and status among cultures. 9. I have an understanding of how my own background and culture are seen by others.

Element 17: Respect Showing respects of the differences in others cultures. Statements include: 1. I respect people from other cultures. 2. I relate well to people from various backgrounds and cultures. 3. I recognise that most black minority and individuals from ethnic backgrounds want to be treated in the same way as those in the majority culture. 4. I believe that the majority culture should help staff of different backgrounds be assimilated. 5. I believe there is one unitary model of coaching and mentoring that suits all. 6. I believe that there are many different options for different people. 7. I accept that individuals outside the majority culture may be at a disadvantage. 8. I recognise that individuals are more likely to choose leaders from groups of people who most resemble themselves. 9. I believe that individuals from minority backgrounds are less likely to have negative views about other minority groups than the majority culture. 10. I feel insecure when I speak to others from a background different from mine.

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Management of Organisational Cultures (Champion) Element 18: Championing equality and diversity Achieving high performance with people from different cultures and backgrounds. Contributing one’s voice to a collective endeavour. Statements include: 1. I see diversity as an opportunity to increase the performance of the organisation and society. 2. I create an environment where people from diverse cultural backgrounds can excel and achieve their potential. 3. I am not personally responsible for the policies of racist institutions. 4. I take a positive stand against racism even at some possible risk, when the occasion arises. 5. I take positive steps to implement discussions in coaching and mentoring that aim at understanding and eliminating racism, sexism and ageism. The above elements and dimensions are summarised in Tables 6.2 and 6.3. The 18 elements are comparable to Petrides and Furnham’s (2001) 15 components of trait EI, which are summarised in Table 6.4. Petrides and Furnham’s framework consists of overlapping elements, which are not logically distinct. Furthermore, like other EI tools, their framework leaves the cultural component undeveloped. We believe that the EI elements are better organised in a hierarchical structure as exemplified by our pragmatic model.

Dimension IV: Professional Competence The final section reviews coach/mentor knowledge and approaches that have an impact on coaching/mentoring outcomes. This requires coaches and mentors to adopt a professional approach, giving and seek authentic feedback to and from others.

Table 6.2 Dimensions of UIF pragmatic model Competence

I. Personal (Self)

II. Social (Other)

III. Cultural (Culture)

IV. Professional (Competence)

Awareness Management

Self-awareness Self-regulation

Empathy Social skills

Enlightenment Champion

Reflective practice Continued professional development

DEVELOPING A UNIVERSAL FRAMEWORK Table 6.3

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Elements of cross-cultural emotional intelligence

Dimensions I. Personal competence

II. Social competence

III. Cultural competence

Elements

Qs

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18.

5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 10 10 5 100

Emotion Cognition Motivation Control Trustworthiness Conscientiousness Flexibility Creativity Understanding Empowering Communication Facilitating conflict resolution Leadership facilitation Coaching the team Coaching for change Appreciation Respect Champion cultural diversity

Total

Table 6.4 Petrides and Furnham’s (2001) 15 components of trait emotional intelligence Facets

Perception

Adaptability Assertiveness Emotion expression Emotion management Emotion perception Emotion regulation Impulsiveness (Low) Relationship skills Self-esteem Self-motivation Social competence Stress management Trait empathy Trait happiness Trait optimism

Flexible to adapt to new conditions Willing to stand up for one’s rights Able to communicate one’s feeling to others Able to influence others’ feelings Clear about one’s own and others’ feelings Able to control one’s emotions Able to hold back one’s urges Able to have fulfilling personal relationships Successful and confident Able to drive in the face of adversity Able to network with excellent social skills Able to regulate stress and withstand pressure Able to see others’ perspective Cheerful and satisfied with life Able to look on the bright side of life

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Statements include: 1. I believe people have their own solutions – they just have to find them. 2. I believe coaches/mentors can also be the coachee/mentee. 3. I recognise the importance of goals and expectations checking to help a coach to progress. 4. I am comfortable with silence. 5. I listen more and say less. 6. I keep most of my interventions for challenging questioning. 7. I often find myself interrupting the mentor/coach. 8. I always offer advice to coachees and mentees on how to improve their situation. 9. I stick to the rules of my coaching approach at all times. 10. I can accurately summarise what the coachee/mentee is saying. 11. I tell people if they are not appropriate for the coaching process. 12. I rely on my own judgement about whether the relationship is going well. 13. I need to have knowledge of the individual/organisation culture before I begin a mentoring relationship. 14. I need to be aware of the expectations of other stakeholders when questioning/ exploring the perspective of an individual mentee/coachee. 15. I facilitate the mentee/coachee in reviewing their learning. 16. I do not question the coachee/mentee on their understanding of the change process they are experiencing. 17. I encourage the mentee/coachee to experiment with their learning. 18. I hook the mentee/coachee into useful networks. 19. I do not encourage individuals to review their expectations. 20. I initiate discussions on how the mentoring/coaching relationship will work. The pragmatic model described above embeds psychology of learning. It is consistent with other meta-frameworks in learning and development, but our model goes deeper, and extends social aspects to cultural competence (e.g. compare Taylor et al.’s [2000] Development Intention Framework).

Table 6.5 Comparison of UIF with development intention model UIF

Development intention model

Personal competence (self-awareness) Personal competence (self-awareness: cognition) Professional competence Personal competence (self-management) Social/cultural competence

Towards knowing as dialogical process Towards a dialogical relationship to oneself Towards being a continuous learner Towards self-agency and self-authorship Towards connection with others


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The statements provide indicators for respondents to assess their own development intention and thereby improve their future performance. In completing the test, the participants become more aware of how they feel and construct knowledge.

COMMUNICATION METHODS AND FEEDBACK MECHANISM Diversity goes beyond who we are and extends to how we communicate and optimise the increasingly diverse range of communication media available to us. In this section we explore some of the potential communication methods that enable us to implement the CMSI model described in the previous section. In terms of communication methods, we have seen an upsurge in e-learning and telephone communication. The developing world has improved its communication networks in many areas enabling learning relationships to build at a distance, out of office and education institution hours. Whilst e-learning may be no more than access to information without other relationship involvement, it is the context of what makes developmental relationships for learning that interests us here. These relationships develop to support individuals in their learning as part of an organised programme, provide opportunities for learning beyond their experience of other media or are part of a mixed package of media methods for learning to optimise development. Perhaps the new challenge is to understand the contribution of each of the elements of communication media on the development of the relationship and the impact of the mix on those relationships, the cross-referencing of research from various media and types of relationships and the achievement of learning outcomes. Zulfi Hussain used to say that e-mentoring referred to ‘everything’. However, the expansion of the Internet in the last 20 years has meant that a lot of the ‘everything’ is on the Internet. There have been mixed findings about the impact of the Internet on the development of relationships. There was an early expectation that a medium devoid of social cues would produce an ‘impoverished environment’ in which it was difficult to form meaningful relationships. But Hussain saw the absence of social cues as an advantage for those marginalised by differences. He described the Internet as a medium that worked towards a universal level playing field, able to dismantle cultural barriers derived from social and personal cues. For those with disabilities and mobility issues, the Internet provides a way to communicate with the wider world. In the developing world Internet-accessed learning is an economical and realistic approach to bridging learning and skill divides. Access to computers, supporting electronic infrastructure and basic reading, writing and language skills and computer literacy are the new barriers. Many individuals with disabilities have, through their engagement and pioneering, propelled the technology forward to be more user-friendly and accessible. Such groups have worked to ensure there are more functions and aids online to open up and enrich communication

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opportunities for all and everyone benefits from their endeavours. Technology and computer-based communication have empowered and mainstreamed people who were previously excluded and not only given them a virtual voice but enabled them to provide positive leadership in the shaping of virtual communities. The literature that we have reviewed (in Chapter 3) shows that a lot of the research studies that aimed to compare the perceived effectiveness of face-to-face with online communication have put subjects into contrived situations for the online study. They usually predefined the subject’s area for discussion, often using group rather than one situation. The results lacked ecological validity, as the subjects did not behave naturally in the experimental condition. We have therefore implemented our CMSI model using an Internet tool as part of the integrated coaching and mentoring programme in the real world rather than as a stand-alone toolkit (see Chapter 9 for a case study). It is our supposition that once the Internet relationship is embedded, the requirements for extra communication in different media probably subsides over time. If individuals see this relationship as second best, then in light of learning theories about expectations and self-fulfilling prophesies, they may perform less well, and satisfaction rates are likely to be reduced as they continue to desire the perceived trappings of face-to-face situations. If they are trained to appreciate the benefits of the online relationship and how to optimise them they may stand more chance of fulfilling their goals for the online relationship. In the long term, as the world of work and youth culture leads the way to accepting the value of internet relationships in learning and working, so the notion of Internet relationships as an advantageous medium will be normalised.

FEEDBACK MECHANISM – PEER RATING 360-DEGREE FEEDBACK To complete our learning cycle within the dynamic coaching/mentoring model (Figure 6.1), the process needs to embed a feedback mechanism. Feedback from others can impact on one’s learning and understanding. This is traditionally illustrated by means of the Johari window (Figure 6.6). Coaches and mentors aim to provide feedback to the coachees/mentees, help them to discover their own blind spots and transfer the knowledge from the unknown to the known area (Luft, 1970; Jones & Pfeiffer, 1973). In our UIF, we have developed a 360-degree feedback mechanism, which tests the perspectives of participants in a coaching and mentoring programme against those of their peers and line managers. This is a ‘systematic collection and feedback of performance data on an individual or group derived from a number of stakeholders in their performance’ (Ward, 1997). It provides a powerful opportunity for them to gain insight and self-awareness of their competence, and shape their behaviour accordingly.


107 Feedback to Self

Known

Known Disclosure To Others

I. Public knowledge

Unknown

II. Blind spot

Unknown III. Hidden

IV. Unknown

Figure 6.6 Giving feedback: The Johari window Based on Jones, J. & Pfeiffer, J.W. (1973). The Johari window: a model for soliciting and giving feedback. The 1973 Annual Handbook for Facilitators. San Diego, CA: Pfeiffer.

The CMSI model has a ‘welcome to the peer review’ section. Coaching/ mentoring colleagues can identify their peers to give a view about them based on their behaviour. The peers can complete a scoring of the statements as follows: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19.

He/she seems at ease with him/herself. He/she seems to accept people rather than judge them. He/she seems able to read how people are feeling accurately. He/she seems to be in tune with his/her own feelings. He/she seems able to manage his/her stress. He/she seems unperturbed by changing conditions. He/she seems to be consistently herself/himself with different people and in different situations. He/she expresses their feelings easily but chooses when and how she/he does it. He/she seems to keep calm when others are angry. He/she tends to trust others but in a way she/he is aware of the risks. He/she tends to have contingencies in place to be surer of a good outcome. He/she seems sensitive to the needs of others from a different ethnic and cultural background. He/she seems to have an understanding of other cultural differences. He/she seems comfortable with others from different backgrounds. He/she seem to be able to motivate others to set inspirational goals. He/she checks how the mentoring/coaching relationship is working from the mentees/coachees perspective. He/she checks the resources at the coaches/mentees disposal. He/she seems to defend his/her own approach when s/he hears a different perspective. He/she uses body language effectively to support his/her communication.

The 360-degree feedback mechanism can map onto our universal framework as shown in Figure 6.7.

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Cultural Social / other Manager

Staff

Customers

Self

Peers

Team

Figure 6.7

360-degree feedback within the UIF

The pragmatic model to assess the impact on individuals’ performance and satisfaction are key to realising the benefits of mentoring/coaching and ensuring that it offers value to the business. Its implementation is described in a case study in Chapter 9 and its impact assessment forms part of our evaluation strategy, which is discussed in Chapter 10.

CHAPTER SUMMARY AND REFLECTION In this chapter we have described a Universal Integrated Framework (UIF), which embeds international cultural dimensions and emotional intelligence. The framework looks like an onion with many layers: self, social, cultural and professional. The core of the framework, self and self-development, is grounded in a dynamic coaching/ mentoring/learning model which we developed in Chapter 3. It is consistent with the psychology of learning where coachees/mentees, and coaches/mentors are all learners within the process. During their engagement, they can learn how to:

• • • • • •

learn reflect become emotionally aware dialogue give and receive feedback self-evaluate

We also described a communication method on how to implement the framework using Internet technology. The CMSI questionnaire with 360-degree feedback


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can be viewed as a snapshot – or a knife slicing through an onion. This enables participants to review their learning across all four dimensions. In the next two chapters, we describe some of the technical know-how in terms of tools and exercises so that you can continue to develop yourself as a competent coach/coachee or mentor/mentee or learner/supervisor.

CHAPTER 7

Techniques and Tools INTRODUCTION In this chapter we recommend a set of tools and techniques that are appropriate to the psychology of learning and the Universal Integrated Framework that have been elaborated in the previous chapters. These approaches are based not only on the current research and literature review, but also on our experience of using them in our coaching and mentoring practice, in the UK as well as abroad. We shall describe the techniques in plain English to ensure that they are accessible to readers from various backgrounds. We shall also describe some of the practical exercises in relation to these techniques that can be used as an aid in coaching, mentoring and self-learning in Chapter 8. From the literature review and our experience, we have found that different emphases from practitioners’ perspectives provide different approach orientations. Broadly speaking, we identify two classes of technique. Those that emphasise outcome are task-focused or goal-oriented; the others emphasise psychological intervention and value transpersonal quality. We also observe that the two are culturally-bound. Western cultures tend to be goal-oriented, while Eastern cultures tend to adopt transpersonal approaches (e.g. gestalt psychology and story-telling). So on searching for the appropriate approaches for inclusion, apart from meeting our dual criteria of being general and cross-cultural, we aim to select specific techniques that are useful to help practitioners in how to:

• • • • •

Identify sources of barriers in the coaching journey Build one’s own meta-model Combine multiple techniques and apply them appropriately Structure a coaching conversation Conduct coaching in one-to-one as well as one-to-many (1:n) group situations.

To achieve these objectives, we first describe a pragmatic principle of empowerment psychology. We describe general cognitive behavioural techniques, gestalt and narrative approaches before we revisit the GROW model to see how various techniques described in this chapter fit into it. The section on the gestalt approach provides readers with our novel reflections on the transpersonal aspects of gestalt approaches that we practise in some of the coaching and mentoring

TECHNIQUES AND TOOLS

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programme (described in the case studies in Chapter 9). Finally, we provide some UIF tools in bite-size chunks to help develop coaching/mentoring skills.

THE PRINCIPLE OF EMPOWERMENT PSYCHOLOGY The psychology of empowerment is based on an understanding of the problem situation and mapping it with the appropriate strategies of intervention. The principle of empowerment psychologyTM consists of two parts:

• The Model of Problem Situation • The Model of Intervention The Empsy Model of Problem Situation This model examines the process of problem development. It takes a rich contextual situation as the starting point, and requires us to have a deep understanding of the issues embedded in it. Before we can derive an intervention strategy, we need to understand the problem under investigation in terms of its:

• • • •

Sources Psychological factors Outcome Reinforcement

The process is represented in Figure 7.1. A source is defined as a stimulus in one’s environment – for example, ‘someone being horrible to me’ may be a source of stress. This affects one’s state of mind and feelings (psychological factors) – for example, ‘I feel bad’ as a result of being treated badly. One then behaves accordingly, starts shouting, say (the outcome). In turn, the negative behaviour has an effect on others, who perceive the person negatively (‘s/he is so aggressive’) and they in turn respond negatively. This establishes a vicious circle, known as reinforcement. Reinforcement is defined as a pattern of action and reaction as it unfolds that can either neutralise or escalate the conflict.

The Empsy Model of Intervention From the above model, if we are to empower individuals and organisations to achieve their aspirations, we must tackle the problem at each stage of the process. This is essentially a problem-solving process and consists of the following stages (Figure 7.2):

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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF COACHING, MENTORING AND LEARNING 1. Sources

2. Psychological factors

3. Outcome

4. Reinforcement

Figure 7.1

Process model of the problem situation

1. Sources

5. Tackling the sources

2. Psychological factors

6. Assisting Psychological aspects

3. Outcome

7. Evaluation and review: expecting new outcomes

4. Reinforcement

8. Monitoring: new reinforcement

Figure 7.2

Empsy model of intervention


• • • •

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tackling the sources assisting psychological aspects expecting new outcomes (evaluation, monitoring and review) new reinforcement (continue monitoring)

We first tackle the sources – identify the psychological states that can become barriers – and then derive a strategy to assist the psychological aspects of the sufferers, ‘victims’ or ‘offenders’. If the strategy works, we can expect new outcomes from individuals and organisations. This in turn creates a reinforcement due to a new pattern of social interaction. We need to continue to monitor and review the outcome, which forms an important part of any evidence-based evaluation. These cycles of events form the Empsy model of intervention.

COGNITIVE BEHAVIOURAL TECHNIQUES As we saw in Chapter 2, the cognitive behavioural technique (CBT) is consistent with the principle of positive psychology which has its roots in Stoic philosophy. It became well known in clinical applications as cognitive behavioural therapy (Beck et al., 1979). The techniques have been widely applied in clinical practice successfully for some years. There is considerable research to support the effectiveness of CBT – the technique is regarded as ‘the psychological treatment of choice’ and is probably one of the best treatments available (Chambless, 1988, p. 12; Rothbaum et al., 2000). Despite offering evidence-based enquiry and economic constraint, the use of CBT in coaching and mentoring is relatively new. Cognitive behavioural coaching enables clients to identify and subsequently modify the cognitive, behavioural and emotive blocks that impede the execution of their goal-directed activities (Neenan & Palmer, 2001; Law, 2003). CBT is based on the assumption that cognition has the power to influence one’s emotion and behaviour – ‘mind over matter’. Like many coaching interventions CBT is future-focused. However, it does take past experience as its starting point and uses the present as an opportunity for planning to change. It consists of three parts:

• Past – review past achievements, experiences and values. • Present – assess current thinking and feelings. Mobilise cognitive capacity and resources to plan for change.

• Present working towards the future. There are seven steps in applying CBT in coaching. These are: 1. Set a goal. 2. Assess the value of the goal.

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3. 4. 5. 6. 7.


Set SMARTER objectives. Assess the emotions of coachees/mentees. Identify possible barriers/problems. Develop strategies to overcome barriers/problems. Review progress.

Set a Goal This step is consistent with the GROW model and makes CBT one of the techniques in applying the model, as described in the previous section. Usually this takes place in the first session when coaches/mentors and coachees/mentees meet. To identify the coachees’/mentees’ goal, the coach/mentor attempts to establish the coachees’/mentees’ aspirations, hopes and dreams. The goal should be ambitious, inspirational and long-term and have a sense of purpose, be it about their life or career. In executive coaching, the goal may be related to organisational objectives or the coachees’/mentees’ personal performance, etc. In life coaching, this may be one’s sense of purpose, work/life balance or personal relationships. There should be considerable overlap between personal and organisational goals, executive and life coaching. If not, coaches/mentors should draw attention to the tension that may arise as a result of the gap between personal fulfilment and the work performance demanded by employers. In this case, some intervention may be required in terms of work/life realignment through change programmes.

Assess the Value of the Goal Coachees/mentees are asked to rate the attractiveness of the goal on a scale of 1–10. This is like project appraisal in an organisational context. However, it is based on the coachees’/mentees’ perception and subjective judgement. In executive coaching, the line manager may also be asked to provide the rating. The values of coachees/ mentees may need to be negotiated between coaches/mentors coachees/mentees and their line managers.

Set SMARTER Objectives From the goal, coaches/mentors help coachees/mentees formulate a set of SMARTER objectives. Objectives should be:

• Specific – describe specifically what is to be achieved. • Measurable – describe how one can measure the output and outcomes when the obejctive has been achieved.


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• Agreed – agree the objectives with all stakeholders. The obvious ones are the coachees/mentees and coaches/mentors. In executive coaching, stakeholders may also include the line manager. In life coaching, the coachees/mentees may like to discuss the objectives with their family. They may also discuss them with their supervisors, etc. • Realistic – the objectives need to be achieveable. This is important as coachees/ mentees may feel frustrated if they fail to achieve the objectives. This may result in their leaving the programme prematurely. • Time-bound – it is important that coaches/mentors and coachees/mentees agree the deadline by when coachees/mentees should have achieved the target. Coaches/ mentors also need to ask coachees/mentees to agree on when they will start working on the task that leads them to achieve the objectives. • Evaluate and review – at the end of the implementation, coaches/mentors and coachees/mentees should evaluate how well the objectives have been achieved and the impact of the action. Coaches/mentors and coachees/mentees should also have a meeting to review progress and possibly set future plans.

Assess Coachees’/Mentees’ Emotion Coaches/mentors should ask coachees/mentees to rate their level of confidence in achieving the agreed objectives on a scale of 1–10. This is the equivalent to a feasibility study, but from a psychological perspective.

Identify Possible Barriers/Problems Coaching is a future-looking practice. Coaches/mentors should encourage coachees/ mentees to look to the future and identify any possible barriers, problems and risks that might prevent them from achieving their objectives. To do this, coachees/ mentees need first to describe potential problems before they encounter them. Some of the barriers may be psychological, for example, lack of self-esteem or confidence to do the job. Neenan and Palmer (2001) refer to cognitive barriers as performance interfering thinking (PIT).

Develop Strategies to Overcome Barriers/Problems Having identified barriers/problems, coachees/mentees should be encouraged to think about possible solutions. Coaches/mentors may work with coachees/mentees to design an action plan or strategies to overcome them or reduce certain risks. Unlike PIT, the coach can help coachees/mentees to develop performance-enhancing thinking (PET) (Neenan & Palmer, 2001).

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Review Progress Coaches/mentors should have regular review meetings with their coachees/ mentees to ensure that they are on target. Coachees/mentees should describe outputs and the outcome of the action plan. Coaches/mentors should ask coachees/ mentees to rate their progress in terms of their confidence or cognitive scales (as described in Step 1) on a regular basis. The seven steps are summarised in Table 7.1. CBT is similar to a personal development plan in the workplace. This makes it an ideal candidate for adoption in organisations. The major difference is that CBT focuses on emotions, such as coachees’/mentees’ perception of their competence and confidence. They need to rate their mood on a 1–10 scale. (Coachees/ mentees working in a technical environment may prefer to use a 1%–100% scale.) This is fine provided that the scales are used consistently throughout the coaching/ mentoring programme. Another important feature of CBT is that coachees/mentees need to identify possible barriers and how to overcome them. If coachees/mentees are prepared for the challenge, they are more likely to succeed. CBT can also be used to increase coachees/mentees’ aspirations. To achieve this, coachees/mentees are usually guided by a coach/mentor to set a goal – for example, a coachee may wish to increase self-confidence. In a self-esteem building session,

Table 7.1 Action plan (adapted from cognitive behavioural techniques)

Objective Recall your main or primary goal – make it SMARTER Purpose Value Rate attractiveness of goal on a 1–10 scale Rate confidence of success on a 1–10 scale

Start time

When by

Possible problems Describe the problem, e.g. performance interfering thinking (PITs)

Strategies to overcome barriers/problems Describe solution. e.g. performanceenhancing thinking (PETs)

Progress Describe output Describe outcome Rate progress 1–10 on a scale Rate confidence of success on a 1–10 scale


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the coachee is encouraged to think about how someone with high self-esteem behaves and achieves, and set as a goal being this type of person. One delegate described her experience of the process as ‘capturing the moment of aspiration’ and it opened up an opportunity to take positive action.

GESTALT APPROACHES A lot of gestalt theory initially came from our understanding of how the brain operates and processes information and as such determines structural groupings. The idea was first put forward by Max Wertheimer in 1912 (Hergenhan & Olson 1997). The need to categorise information is well known but there have been some recent developments that suggest that there are other ways we categorise in addition to proximity, similarity, closure and simplicity. It seems that rather than having a central storage area in the brain there may be a gateway to storage and thereafter memory, emotion and facts about an event, where circumstance may be stored. What this means is that we are less restricted by the gestalt categories of structural representation than we first thought. This suggests that we have more processes working to fill the gaps in our perception. More recently, a deeper structural view has been developed, involving changes in functional meaning, the grouping, etc. of the items. Directed by what is required by the structure of a situation for a crucial region, one is led to a reasonable prediction, which, like other parts of the structure, calls for verification, whether direct or indirect. Two directions are involved: getting a whole, consistent picture, and seeing what the structure of the whole requires for the parts. Gestalt theory offers some useful explanations of individual interaction with the environment. The focus of the theory is the idea of ‘grouping’, i.e. the characteristics of certain stimuli cause us to structure or interpret a visual field or problem in a particular way. The primary factors that determine grouping (the laws of organisation) are: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Proximity – elements tend to be grouped together according to their nearness. Similarity – items similar in some respect tend to be grouped together. Closure – items are grouped together if they tend to complete some entity. Simplicity – items will be organised into simple figures according to symmetry, regularity and smoothness.

The humanistic-transpersonal revolution in psychology (e.g. the human potential movement) has provided gestalt psychology with a ‘quantum leap’ onto the philosophical and practical platform. Within Western culture, like many other useful approaches such as CBT and narrative approaches, its earlier applications were found in therapeutic settings, as pioneered by Fritz Perls. However, as we shall see, the foundation of the gestalt approach is firmly grounded in its ‘attitude and practice’, which resonate with Eastern philosophy, rather than ‘theory and

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practice’, which have been advocated in Western societies. In this sense, the gestalt approach is both transpersonal and cross-cultural. This is unique among many techniques because of the extent to which it is built on intuitive understanding rather than theory. Gestalt practice resonates with Chinese philosophy – a form of meditation that aims to achieve a state of mind characterised by purposelessness (wu hsin). In this state, one maintains a state of consciousness and at the same time lets go of it all. The practitioner watches the ebbs and flows of their consciousness without being carried away. Gestalt techniques can be practised in everyday life. This creates an opportunity to make every waking moment the occasion for personal growth (see the gestalt exercises in Chapter 8).

The Transpersonal Aspect of the Gestalt Approach Unlike other transpersonal frameworks, which emphasise the collective unconscious, gestalt approaches focus on the primacy of awareness. For gestalt practitioners, awareness itself associates the transpersonal more with the visionary realm. Awareness is transpersonal and spiritual, awakening as a result of the transpersonal impinging on the personal beyond ‘spiritual state’. It is thus more conceptually precise to describe gestalt techniques as ‘transpersonal’ rather than ‘humanistic’ as they are commonly known (Naranjo, 1993). The gestalt approach has the following characteristics:

• An act of expression that stretches one’s awareness. • The presence of a witness, which enhances attention (in a narrative approach, it enhances resonance).

• The presence of interpersonal relationships, i.e. at its minimum a one-to-one interaction, which defines the coaching/mentoring process. In this sense the coach and coachee are together creating the present. • Organic – the coach and coachee switch attention from one issue to another rather than according to a set of procedures/formulae (cf. CBT). From our practice, we believe that the gestalt approach is relevant in the twenty-first century not so much for its therapeutic application, but in coaching. In the previous chapters, we have established that it is the personal relationship between coaches/mentors and coachees/mentees that is important in the coaching process. Translating gestalt psychology into coaching can be summarised in the formula: Gestalt coaching = (awareness + coaching support) coach/coachee relationship

The Primacy of a Present-centred Attitude Coaching/mentoring is an interactive process. In this process, gestalt coaching/mentoring can be defined as the transmission of experience from coaches/mentors to


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coachees/mentees. It is based on the assumption that experience can be passed on. This depends on an implicit attitude, the Weltanschauung (world-view) or philosophical posture of the coaches/mentors, who transmit the quality to their coachees/ mentees. This is communicated by means of a set of exercises without the need to explain them. Thus gestalt psychologists talk about using oneself as an instrument. Coaches/mentors are like artists who transform with their arts. In this context, the content of transformation transcends the instruments (coachees/mentees) through other instruments (coaches/mentors) in a form of expression. Thus gestalt psychologists value action more than words, and experience more than thought, during coach–coachee interaction – ‘action speaks louder than words’. Gestalt coaches also share some of the qualities of counsellors such as being non-judgemental. This entails positive acceptance of a person, i.e. that there are no good or bad people, only their behaviour/response or performance in the context of executive coaching. Thus gestalt practitioners make the following distinctions:

• • • •

being vs. knowledge action vs. utterance experience vs. understanding effectiveness and acquisition

However, in their practice, they attempt to blur the following boundaries:

• • • •

feeling vs. thinking intuition vs. judgement awareness vs. morality spontaneity vs. intention

Third, it is consistent with our learning wheel (described in Chapter 3). Gestalt psychologists regard experience as their source. Attitude is formed through reflection and expressed in action/style. Experience is self-replicating. Thus the ebbs and flows of experience ensure the continuous movement of the learning wheel. Gestalt coaches regard themselves as ‘naked’ in the sense that they see their practice as an art-form, which, like music, is communicated from heart to heart. The meaning of gestalt techniques is an artistic expression, an embodiment of a living understanding. Coaches/mentors are grounded in living experience, from which they communicate their understanding through action. Gestalt psychology gives primacy to the present. Gestalt coachees/mentees practise living-in-the-moment. All issues are reflected in present-centredness. Gestalt practitioners regard ‘present-centredness’ as a technique. Within the GROW model, present-centredness is the goal itself.

The Paradoxical Theory of Change According to gestalt theory, change is a continuous learning process. The gestalt approach to change is to focus on here-and-now – who or what you are now. Change

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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF COACHING, MENTORING AND LEARNING 0. Sensation

6. Withdraw

1. Aware (emergence) a figure of interest

2. Direct your energy

5. Resolve (destruction) 3.

Act 4. Contact

Figure 7.3

Gestalt cycle of continuous flow of experience: a complete cycle

occurs as a natural phenomenon. This is illustrated in Figure 7.3, and is known as the gestalt cycle of continuous flow of experience. According to the cycle, we become aware of our perception from our sensory input. A figure of interest emerges from the background within our consciousness. We direct our energy and effort to act on the area of interest/concern – the point of contact. We concentrate our effort and attention on the contact point until we lose interest or the issue is resolved. Then we withdraw our effort and redirect our energy to the next area of interest, and so on, as the cycle repeats itself. (Can you see the similarity/difference between the gestalt cycle of continuous flow of experience and the learning wheel?) This paradox of change is central to gestalt thinking. According to the gestalt cycle of the continuous flow of experience, change happens naturally. However, it can only happen in the here-and-now. Paying attention to what is (e.g. thought, emotions and behaviour; conflicts and contradiction within oneself and between people) in the here-and-now, helps us see meaning and direction, and make choices. Change emerges and unfolds organically.

The Nature of Resistance Sometimes, resistance is a defence mechanism, when an interruption to the gestalt cycle of experience occurs. If there is an interruption or resistance to the process of the emergence and destruction of figures of interest, one gets ‘stuck’ and cannot learn or change. For instance, in a state of emergence, in response to fear (e.g. of being hurt), one may get stuck in the area of interest and fail to direct energy to act accordingly. The classic example of the fear/freeze response occurs in a


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life-threatening situation such as a fire. One may experience resistance (interruption) to contact (to engage with action). (See Figure 7.4.) Sometimes, resistance is healthy, for example a child needs to resist the urge to have a temper tantrum as this may incur its parents’ disapproval. Short-term resistance may even be desirable – for example, resistance to hunger until a meeting is concluded. However, prolonged interruption may cause a conditioned response so that one fails to act appropriately, for example, becomes reluctant to let go for fear of the withdrawal of love or support from another person, etc. In this case, the person gets stuck at the point of contact (Stage 4) and fails to let the issue resolve. (See Figure 7.5.) 0. Sensation

6. Withdraw




Act 4. Contact

Figure 7.4

The nature of resistance: interruption at awareness stage 0. Sensation

6. Withdraw




Act 4. Contact

Figure 7.5

The nature of resistance: interruption at point of contact

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Resistance or interruption causes concerns when it is unconscious and leaves unfinished business (a lack of equilibrium, an incomplete gestalt). This may restrict contact and growth in new situations. Negative experience may stand in the way of change and create a blockage or interference (e.g. fear, lack of confidence, stress) due to cross-cultural experience. The gestalt techniques described next may be helpful in cross-cultural coaching.

Tackling Resistance Paradoxically, when the resistance/blockage happens during a coaching/mentoring session, if coach/mentor can help the coachee/mentee stay with it, it allows the coachee/mentee to experience the issue fully. It will then dissolve/transform naturally after which the coachee/mentee can move forward. The role of a coach is to help the coachee to focus on here-and-now and see what they are doing that might be causing the psychological blockage. The gestalt coach/mentor advises coachees/mentees to stay with the ‘resistance’ until its nature is experienced, understood and accepted. Change can then take place. In the form of self-acceptance, facilitated by coach/mentor, this leads to personal growth.

Gestalt Techniques In gestalt psychology, there are a number of techniques and exercises to help practitioners develop a present-centred attitude and ensure that the cycle of experience continues to flow. Techniques include:

• suppression • expression • integration We describe the principle of the techniques next and leave their practical exercises to Chapter 8.

Suppressive Techniques Suppressive techniques are based on the principle that if one can stop blocking/ resisting the nature of change, change will happen. In other words, suppressive techniques aim to undo what one has done wrong – unlearn the bad habit. The starting point of the technique is surprisingly simple: Do nothing – experience nothingness.


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Once we accept nothingness, everything is given to us. Nothingness becomes a ‘ground’ (background) against which every ‘figure’ (foreground) freely emerges.

Expressive Techniques As the name suggests, expressive techniques are the opposite of suppressive techniques. While suppressive techniques aim to prevent coachees/mentees from doing something, expressive techniques attempt to encourage them to initiate or complete an action. In this sense, the coach acts as ‘midwife’, helping to bring the hidden voice into expression. Furthermore, the gestalt coach invites the coachee/ mentee to maximise their expression. This can be achieved by providing prompts during the coaching session. For example:

• • • •

What are you experiencing now? Ask the coachee to make an open posture when it is closed. Breathe deeply when breathing is shallow. Use the left hand to draw instead of the right (or vice versa).

Expressions can be intensified by:

• • • •

simple repetition exaggeration and development explication and translation identification and acting

The effect of repetition or exaggeration by asking the coachee to repeat the same exercise or exaggerate their behaviour (voice or movement) is obvious. The practice of explication/translation and identification/acting can be quite complex, which we shall expand on next.

Explication and Translation There is a big difference between ‘thinking about’ a certain behaviour and empathising with it. Explication and translation techniques aim to help practitioners make implicit expression explicit by translating non-verbal expression into words. For example:

• • • • •

Give words to your action. If your tears could speak, what would they say? What would your left hand say to your right hand? Give a voice to your loneliness. If your business were a cereal, what would it be?

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The process of explication leads to the desired end of interpretation. It is not the role of a coach to tell the coachee the meaning of their action. Coachees are guided to contact their message themselves.

Identification and Acting The techniques of identification and acting are based on the assumption that we can understand other people or things better by being them rather than by analysing them. Acting in gestalt coaching functions as a form of role-play. The unique difference in this exercise is that the only ‘actor’ is the coachee/mentee her- or himself. Acting in a different role forces one to experience oneself as another person. Coachees are encouraged to imagine themselves as possessing the attributes/actions of other beings – here-and-now. Having identified psychological barriers such as anxiety, guilt, shame or lack of confidence, CBT practitioners attempt to devise a strategy to overcome them. Gestalt coaches help coachees overcome these barriers in role-play – for example, a rehearsal to overcome stage fright. Unlike psychoanalysis, the gestalt approach emphasises recovery of awareness of the blockage, the feeling that one is doing it and how one is doing it. Self-awareness, not introspected, can continue to exist after the role-play. One of the functions of identification and acting is to undo retroflection – from being ‘done to’ to become a ‘doer’.

Techniques of Integration An interesting twist of a gestalt coaching exercise occurs when coachees are asked to imagine themselves in the future. The future self is brought back to the here-and-now. Acting in this special case is a way of completing one’s own (future) expression. In gestalt terms, the past, present and future are all ‘sub-selves’. The exercise of acting in and acting out brings the coachees’ ‘sub-selves’ into contact with each other by instructing them to play their parts and have their characters talk to each another. The actor identifies with the character being played. The ‘present self’ becomes one with the ‘future self’ that one is acting, recognises the future attributes as present. The same role-play can apply to any other characters. For example, in a three-chair exercise, the coach instructs coachees by making the following suggestions:

• • • •

Image your future self sitting in the other (empty) chair (the ‘hot seat’). When you move and sit in that chair, be her. When you are ready, move and sit in that chair. With some visualisation exercise, the coachee moves to the other chair and sits down.


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• Now you start speaking like her. • Be your future voice. The acting out of the two selves is known as an intra-personal encounter. Coachees are encouraged to switch from one chair to the other to reinforce the reality of their identification with alternating sub-selves. These tend to have a dialectic quality between ‘I should’ and ‘I want’. Perls calls these internal selves ‘top dog’ and ‘underdog’ respectively – the ‘I should’ critics versus the hopeless ‘I want’. The ‘top dog’ may reflect the attitude of an influential adult or educator in the past that one may not have come to terms with in the present.

The Top dog/Underdog Dichotomy The ‘top dog’ has the following characteristics:

• • • • •

authoritarian bullying persistent primitive righteous

The top dog tells us:

• how we ‘should be’ • how inadequate we are • to try harder to change The ‘underdog’ has the following characteristics:

• • • • •

complies half-heartedly feels guilty finds excuses passively resists says, ‘Yes, but . . .’

‘Top dog’ and ‘underdog’ are two clowns performing inefficiently and ineffectively on the stage of the ‘tolerant and mute self’. The top dog/underdog dialogue is like an internal mediation service. One needs to invest oneself fully in each role with all the uncomfortable feelings that go with it before one can really hear the points put forward by the other. If one can overcome the ‘top dog/underdog’ conflict, integration can be achieved. The two selves come to their senses and listen to each other.

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Dos and Don’ts in Gestalt Coaching There are a number of dos and don’ts in gestalt rules. Dos:

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Do nothing – experience nothingness. Focus on the here-and-now. Focus on what is, e.g. who or what you are now. Focus on your senses, e.g. smell and taste, etc. Focus on how it is experienced. Experience the real. Pay attention to the moment. Be aware of what is going on around you in the present and all the time. Redevelop the innate awareness of oneself and the environment. Be aware of the ebb and flow of your consciousness of sensations. Stay or work with any ‘resistance’ (‘resistance’ is regarded as healthy and positive). Encourage the externalisation of the internal debate. Open yourself up to your environment. Be receptive. Trust your own nature/intuition. Accept positive experience as well as negative (e.g. pain, imperfection, etc.). Accept who you are – ‘surrender to being’. Express yourself. Take responsibility for your actions, feelings and thinking. Insist on the rule of engagement. Initiate action. Maximise expression. Choose between doing nothing (emptiness) and doing something (expression). Be direct.

Don’ts:

• • • • • • • • • •

Focus on past or future. Deal with what is absent. Imagine. Question why it is. Preoccupy yourself about what it should be. Theorise about events. Try to change. Lock into one of the client’s roles (e.g. support the ‘trying’ to change). Work with what should be, could be or must be. Work against ‘resistance’. (This may create new mindsets, e.g. take account of everyone’s needs.)


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• Manipulate, e.g. explain, judge and justify. • Talk ‘about’ . . . • Emphasise ‘should’.

NARRATIVE APPROACHES Narrative therapy has been systematically developed by Michael White at Dulwich Centre (White, 1995a and 1995b, 2006). Its adaptation as a narrative coaching technique was introduced to the UK by Ho Law in one of the community coaching programmes (Law, 2006a; Law et al., 2006; CIPD, 2006b, p. 10; see also the case study in Chapter 9). Following a similar historical-cultural trend, the narrative approach has been applied in therapeutic practice and advocated by White at Dulwich Centre as narrative therapy (White, 1995a, 1997, 2000, 2006). Like CBT, its clinical application has been widespread, including respecting people’s stories as a route to recovery from psychotic episodes (Hartley Whomsley & Clarke, 2006). However, narrative therapy was originally grounded in cultural anthropology (Turner & Brunner, 1986), in particular in the work of Myerhoff (1980, 1982, 1986), and the psychology of learning (Vygotsky’s proximal development), which are concerned with non-clinical populations with specific sensitivity to cross-cultural issues. We feel that it is appropriate that we relocate narrative applications within the mainstream arena of diversity coaching. In developing the Universal Integrated Framework in Chapter 3, we discussed constructive-developmental theories and how they link developmental growth to meaning construction. In particular, we outlined Vygotsky’s idea of proximal development as a possible candidate for scaffolding the coaching practice. In this section, we expand this concept and show how it fits into White’s narrative practice, which is transported into our coaching and mentoring context. Applying Vygotsky’s levels of learning (distancing tasks) to the coaching practice, we devise the following steps: 1. Description – encourage coachees to characterise specific objects/events of their world (characterisation of initiative). 2. Relation: initiative in relationship – develop chains of association through establishing relations between these objects and events (analyses/pattern-matching). 3. Evaluation – reflect, draw realisation and learning about specific phenomena from the chains of association. 4. Justification – judge above evaluation. Abstract the realisation and learning from their concrete and specific circumstances in the formation of concepts about life and identity. 5. Conclusion/recommendation – formulate planning for and initiation of actions. Predict the outcome of specific actions founded on this concept development.

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The narrative approach is based on the following assumptions (White, 2006): 1. Meaning shapes our lives. (See Chapter 3 for detailed theoretical discussion.) 2. Life is multi-story, not single-story. However, some stories are more prominent in a coachee’s life while other stories may be neglected. This may be important to their development. 3. Primary meaning-making frame: story lines – narrative practitioners regard the story line told by the story-teller as a primary meaning-making frame, which enables them to construe meaning from it. This in turn gives meaning that shapes our lives (as described in assumption 1). 4. Individuals and communities have strengths, knowledge and skills that come into contact with us, although they may not be noticeable to themselves. Following on from the last point, the forgotten/hidden strengths that individuals have may appear as thin traces in their stories. The role of the coach is therefore to develop these strengths, skills and knowledge. The tasks of the coach/mentor are therefore to locate the significant moment in the client’s life journey and help clients take stock of their living experience which they tend to have neglected (thin traces). Viewed from the narrative perspective, coaches/coachees and mentors/mentees can be regarded as ‘meaning-makers’. Narrative approaches in coaching and mentoring enable clients to become aware that they have more knowledge and skills to cope with the situation than they previously realised. Through the coach–coachee or mentor–mentee engagement, the coachees/mentees redevelop the account from the story they have told of what they give value to in their lives. This account may embody concepts about their life and identity, hopes and dreams, etc. The new story, developed through narrative practice, provides a foundation from which they can proceed. The coaching/mentoring task is to contribute to the scaffolding of the proximal zone of development. White (2006) has developed a systematic method of scaffolding the proximal zone of development through mapping the steps of distancing tasks on to the so-called ‘landscape of action’ and the ‘landscape of conscious’. In developing this scaffold, one takes a conceptual journey, travelling through the ‘landscape of action’ and ‘landscape of identity’ (which links to one’s consciousness via effective questioning) to help coachees develop the stories of their life and personal identity. As White puts it, ‘It is through scaffolding questions that these alternative landscapes of the mind are richly described.’

Landscapes of Action Landscapes of action are composed of events described by the story-teller. These events are likely to be interwoven or linked in sequence through time, which provide an autobiographical/historical journey of the story-teller’s life. Like any story, the sequence of events told by the coachee/mentee is likely to develop a theme/plot that


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reflects their coping strategy, success or failure. In other words, the landscape of action consists of the following elements: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Time line – the time of the events in terms of recent, distant or remote history. Events – a number of singular events. Circumstance – in which the event takes place. Sequence – events are interrelated in clusters or sequences. Plot/theme – the events have consequences (e.g. strategy, success, loss or failure).

Looking at the landscape of action through the Johari window (Figure 6.6, see p. 107), the stories that coachees/mentees choose to disclose during the coaching or mentoring session represent the known and familiar knowledge to themselves, but some of the theme may have been hidden from the coach/mentor previously (quadrants I and III).

Landscapes of Consciousness Landscapes of consciousness are composed of the storyteller’s identity, conclusions of their actions and events that are shaped by their identity and contemporary culture. The landscape of consciousness represents the understanding that the listener has gained from the story. These understandings may be intentional or internal:

• intentional understandings – value, purpose, aspiration, personal agency and restoration

• internal understandings – realisations (self-awareness) and learning In terms of the Johari window, the landscape of consciousness may highlight the story-teller’s blind spot, which usually appears as thin traces in the plot, which the coach/mentor needs to understand and develop further. There are many techniques to the narrative approach. The combined narrative approach consists of the following techniques or stages: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Externalising conversations (1 : 1). Re-membering/re-authoring (1 : 1). Outsider witness retelling (1 : 1 : n). Definitional ceremony (community) – retelling of retellings.

Any narrative technique is a form of externalising conversation, where the coachees are speaking their inner experience in the form of a story. Externalising conversation is a starting point for any coach/mentor to learn what can be known about the coachees’ hidden identity and possibly identify some of their blind spots. Storytelling is a good way of externalising one’s life experience during a

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conversation. However, there are subtle differences in how the conversation is conducted as the story unfolds. Which technique is used depends on the content of the story that the coachee/mentee brings to the coaching session. Some may be the story of a loved one in the distant past (e.g. one’s great-grandmother), and the coach may facilitate developing the story using re-membering techniques; or it may be about traumatic events, failures and loss of confidence and learned hopelessness. In this case re-authoring the story offers a possibility to develop an alternative story which may redevelop hopes and dreams. Outsider witness and definition ceremony are powerful tools in facilitating group discussions in sharing the stories of their experience and resonating the theme of the storyteller who takes the centre stage. In addition to the conversation that takes place between coaches and coachees, other forms of communication can be used – for example, emails, diaries or letters, and issuing certificates to honour coachees’ stories in a conference situation. As the nature of narrative coaching relies heavily on the articulation of stories, the approach is limited to verbal communication. If the clients have a language problem or poor verbal communication skills, a different mode of communication, such as drawing or drama, may be more appropriate. The approaches can easily be adapted for children and young people. In fact, most of White’s original practices were based on family therapy with children (see White, 2006). In doing so, coaches need to be more creative and use metaphors that are suitable for children. For example, if a child has talked about a toy that s/he was fond of, instead of asking, ‘What does the story tell me about your values and belief?’ the coach could say, ‘If you were this toy, what would you be thinking about?’ or ‘If the toy could hear you now, what would you say to it?’ (As well as observing the British Psychological Society’s Code of Ethics and Conduct, coaches working with children and young people should refer to the Children Act 2004 and its guidance on sharing information.)

Externalising Conversations Vygotsky’s distancing tasks for the proximal development, combined with White’s narrative inquiry, constitute externalising conversations in coach–coachee dialogues. These dialogues map onto the following steps in our scaffolding: 1. Description – coachees/storytellers describe recent experiences. In particular, coaches may like to guide coachees to talk about any unique outcome of their problem-solving skill, and identify any barrier to their learning or achieving their goals. 2. Relation mapping – the coach maps the effects/influence of the barriers/problem identified through the various domains of the coachee’s life-story in which complications are identified. The domain may be about their home, school, workplace, peer contexts or familial relationships, including friendships and the


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relationship with themselves (self-identity), purpose, their life’s horizons, including future possibilities, aspirations, values, hopes and dreams, etc. We do not encourage coaches to map the effects/influence of the problem through all domains of the coachee’s life. The coach should focus on those that seem most significant to the coachee’s goal and aspiration. 3. Evaluation – towards the end of the conversation, coaches should evaluate the effects/influence of the themes/plots that emerge from the stories within the given domains. 4. Justification – judge or justify the above evaluation. 5. Conclusion/recommendation – although this step is not part of the narrative map, we add this step to complete our coaching session. In practice as a consultant/ coach, we would recommend that coachees should formulate a plan of action for overcoming their performance barriers and achieving their objectives. For meta-methodology, an experienced coach can link to other approaches such as CBT at this stage. As a result of the coaches’ explorations shaped by the five stages of inquiry, coachees are guided and verbalise valued conclusions about their lives and identities. These may be about their beliefs, values, commitments, desires, preferred purposes, longings, wishes, pledges, hopes, dreams, etc.

Re-authoring When coachees tell coaches their stories, apart from listening empathetically, one of the skills of a narrative coach is to link the events of the story in sequences that unfold through time according to a theme/plot. As the story unfolds, coachees may refer to significant figures who feature in the story, and share with coaches their conclusions about the identity of these figures. During re-authoring conversations coaches assist coachees/storytellers to identify the more neglected events of their lives and any unique outcomes or exceptions in those alternative story lines. These unique outcomes or exceptions provide a starting point for re-authoring conversations – a point of entry into the alternative story lines of coachees’ lives. At the outset of these conversations, these unique outcomes or exceptions are only visible as thin traces. There are usually gaps between these story lines. Thus narrative coaches need to build a scaffold by asking questions that encourage coachees to fill the gaps. As White puts it, ‘This is a scaffold that assists people to recruit their lived experience, that stretches and exercises their imagination and their meaning-making resources, and that is engaging of their fascination and curiosity.’ As a coaching outcome, narrative coaches need to help coachees develop alternative story lines and thicken the plot. Usually coaches discover that these story lines are more deeply rooted in the coachees’ history. In developing this scaffold, coaches conduct a series of narrative questions. As on a journey, the coaches/coachees ‘walk-the-talk’ through ‘landscapes of the mind’

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(following Bruner’s metaphor). In narrative terms, we call them the ‘landscape of action’ and ‘landscape of identity’. Through this conversation, supported by scaffolding questions from the coach, alternative landscapes of the mind become richly described.

Re-membering Conversations Re-membering conversations are not about fragments of passive recollection of people that one remembers. The figures to be re-membered and retold in a story are significant figures from one’s history or with the identities of one’s present life. Using ‘re-membering’ as a metaphor from the work of Myerhoff (1980, 1986), White (2006) describes re-membering conversations as conversations that: 1. Evoke ‘life’ as a ‘membered’ club, and ‘identity’ as an ‘association’ of life. 2. Contribute to a multi-voiced sense of identity, rather than the single-voiced sense of identity, which is a feature of the encapsulated self of contemporary Western culture. 3. Open possibilities for the revision of one’s life: for the upgrading of some memberships and the downgrading of others; for the honouring of some memberships and for the revoking of others; for the granting of authority to some voices in regard to matters of personal identity, and for the disqualification of other voices in regard to this. 4. Describe rich accounts of preferred identity and knowledge of life and skills of living that have been co-generated in the significant memberships of people’s lives. In reviewing memberships, the coach can further explore the accounts of the storytellers’ own identities, knowledge and skills. From the rich description, many significant outcomes, conclusions, learning and problem-solving practices may be discovered. They may make a significant contribution to the storytellers’ sense of identity, knowledge and skills. This awareness provides a foundation for coachees’ personal development. As a result, it enables coaches/coachees to draw up specific proposals about how they might go forward.

Outsider Witness Retelling Externalised conversations can be applied in group or team situations, where one or more members are asked to act as a witness to the story. Participants are provided with the option of telling the stories of their lives before an audience. The selected outsider witnesses can also act as assistants to the narrative coach as they can provide extra support to the coachees beyond the tradition of acknowledgement. After they have listened to the story, the outsider witnesses are asked to re-tell the story. In


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particular, they are guided by the coach’s questions on which aspects of the story resonate with their own experience. The retellings by the outsider witnesses do not necessarily constitute a complete account of the original story, but focus on the aspects that have most significantly engaged their fascination. The outsider witnesses respond to the stories by retelling certain aspects of what they heard. Depending on the culture of the place in which the outsider witness retellings take place, these activities may be shaped by certain traditions of acknowledgement. According to White (1995a, 1997, 2000, 2006) there are four categories of reflective responses from outsider witnesses. Narrative practitioners can ask or guide the outsider witnesses to: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Identify the expression of the storyteller. Describe the image that the story has evoked. Embody responses in their own life experiences. Acknowledge any ‘transport’ of knowledge from the story to their own life.

Definitional Ceremony (Community) – Retellings of Retellings Within the context of the narrative practice (and within the broader context of poststructuralism), a person’s self-identity is not governed by private and individual achievement, but by the following social, historical and cultural forces:

• • • •

one’s own history one’s own sense of authenticity public and social achievements acknowledgment of one’s preferred claims about one’s identity

From the above reference, we can see that the definitional ceremony is a powerful way to provide social acknowledgement of the storyteller’s self-identity, which may have been previously denied access from their social condition (in particular cross-cultural situation). In narrative terms, a definition ceremony thickens many alternative themes or counter-plots and amplifies the empowerment that the storytellers received, which would not otherwise be available to them. A definitional ceremony is multi-layered and has the following structures: 1. 2. 3. 4.

Storytelling – undertaken by the storyteller who is at the centre of the ceremony. Retellings of the story (first retelling) – by the outsider witnesses. Retellings of retellings (second retelling) – by the initial storyteller. Retellings of retellings of retellings (third retelling) – by the outsider witnesses, or by a secondary group of outsider witnesses.

Theoretically speaking, the process of retelling could continue indefinitely. In practice, the layers of retelling depend on physical and time constraints.

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Definitional ceremony is the ‘moving’ of all participants and therefore is ideal for group or community work in conference styles or community gatherings. It provides an opportunity for storytellers to become who they want to be rather than who they were. Metaphorically speaking, the storyteller is ‘being moved/ transported’ from one place to another in life (here and now) as a direct consequence of the participation.

The Narrative Coach’s Attitude and Posture In response to specific developments in coachees’ stories, it can be very tempting for coaches to construe a unique positive outcome prematurely. Coaches should guard themselves against committing the error of ‘false positive’ identification by observing the following rules. Do:

• Let coachees discover the unique positive outcome themselves. Don’t:

• Convince coachees that they should take more notice of certain developments. • Point out the consequences or potential implications of, or possibilities associated with, the developments of certain story lines.

• Take a strongly positive position on these consequences, implications and possibilities.

• Justify your position on the recommendations by giving your voice to a range of positive conclusions about the coachees’ lives and identities. White advocates maintaining a ‘decentred posture’ in narrative practitioners that can contribute to the scaffolding of externalising conversations. We can transport this posture to the training of the coach’s attitude which may provide the opportunity for coachees to attribute significance to various personal developments that might otherwise be neglected in their stories (see Table 7.2). Table 7.2 Narrative coaching attitude (adapted from White’s (2006) therapeutic posture) Attitude/effect

Decentred

Centred

Influential

Decentred and influential (potentially invigorating of coach/coachee) Decentred and non-influential (potentially invalidating of coach)

Centred and influential (potentially burdening of coach) Centred and non-influential (potentially exhausting of coach)

Non-influential


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Coaches in narrative practice should adopt a ‘decentred and influential’ posture when they are in conversation with coachees (the top-left quadrant in Table 7.2). The notion ‘decentred’ does not refer to the intensity of the coach–coachee engagement but to the coachees’ achievement in according priority to their personal stories and to their knowledge and skills. By taking a decentred but influential stand, coaches allow coachees to have a ‘primary authorship’ status with regard to the stories of their lives. The knowledge and skills that have been generated in the history of the coachees’ lives are the principal considerations in narrative coaching. Coaches are influential but not in the sense of imposing their own agenda. The role of coaches in this process is to build a scaffold by means of questions and reflections. This makes it possible for coachees to construe their own problematic stories as well as discover solutions. The aim of narrative coaching is to help coachees to: 1. Describe alternative stories of their lives (hopefully more richly). 2. Explore some of the neglected areas of their lives (by following up and developing the thin traces of their story lines). 3. Become more significantly acquainted with the knowledge and skills of their lives that are relevant to addressing their past or present concerns, predicaments and problems, as well as their aspirations, hopes and dreams.

THE GROW MODEL REVISITED In this chapter, we have introduced four major approaches. Each has its own school of thought, different attitudes and styles that it expects from coaches/mentors, as well as tools and exercises. Readers who are coaches/trainers from a specific orientation may be familiar with some of the techniques, such as CBT or gestalt psychology, while others may find that the techniques are entirely new and be overwhelmed by their diversity. In this section, we aim to bring readers from the unknown to the known and familiar territory, while at the same time, bring together all the different strands. In Chapter 2, we described the GROW model, which is one of the best known and practised model in the coaching industry. So a key question is, ‘How do different techniques fit into the GROW model in coaching and mentoring?’ We mapped the major coaching approaches onto a time line with the present (here-and-now) as the pivot (Figure 7.6). We believe that the learning wheel of transformation turns on the pivot in the centre of the timeline. We have loosely located different approaches with each element of the GROW model as follows: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Topic – Initial understanding. (Psychodynamic → Gestalt) Goal – What do you want? (CBT) Reality – What happens now? (Gestalt) Options – What could you do? (Gestalt → CBT) Will – What will you do? (CBT)

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THE PSYCHOLOGY OF COACHING, MENTORING AND LEARNING Psychodynamic

0. Topic

Gestalt

CBT

R

Figure 7.6

G

Here-and-Now O

W

Mapping different coaching techniques along the time line

An exercise for the reader: Where would you locate the narrative approach in the map? While we hope that readers who are learners/coaches/mentors will find the map a useful pointer to guide them to apply different techniques in different context, in practice, one needs to be flexible and guided by the aspiration, knowledge and skills that are brought to the interaction by the coachees/mentees. For example, during a session, a coach may set out a CBT framework for a coachee, and find s/he is stuck in a past worry and cannot move forward. In this case, the coach may apply a gestalt exercise within the CBT session to bring the coachee back to the here-and-now and focus on the solution in the present.

UNIVERSAL INTEGRATED FRAMEWORK (UIF) TOOLS Our Universal Integrated Framework advocates:

• Flexibility in design of and transparency of process. • Contextualising the person in their story. • Aspects of positive psychology in identifying history, strengths and track • • • •

records/strategies of successful transitional boundary crossing and management of complexity. The importance of systematic consideration of the cultural and contextual landscapes from a variety of perspectives. In-depth planning for application of strategy in specific context. Flexibility of learning reviews and focus at boundaries. Basic training and supervision for coachee/mentees as well as coach/mentors.

Coaching Off-Piste As coaches/mentors we need to enhance our focused exploration into the multiple contexts of experience and optimise the scope for creativity and learning at the


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intersection of transitions across boundaries. A good description of coaching and mentoring beyond boundaries is ‘coaching off-piste’. We describe coaching off-piste as meaning:

• Creating momentum and change, a passion for learning that goes beyond goals and targets.

• Establishing an evolving purpose and sense of the longer journey where conscious and unconscious strands of life can be considered in new ways.

• Involving new exploration, new means and new collaborations. In the UIF, the simple ability to use our existing skill set with a different emphasis goes a long way. We have addressed these areas for emphasis in the exploration stage as questions. You can encourage people to use pictures, tell stories or use challenges to get them to extend their thinking. The UIF can help develop in the following areas:

• • • • • • •

cultural agility – individual differences on the universal concepts bridging the collective and individual purpose learning to live with temporary states and delay in gratification beyond goals beyond language to meaning life stages – universality in the framework prophesy and spirituality for creativity

We provide below some questions as tools for each area.

Developing Cultural Agility Different contexts gauge time and timeliness differently. Questions include:

• • • • • • •

How does time work for you? What does it mean? How much value do you put on time? How much value do others put on time? What does it mean in this context? How does it work? How does business work generally?

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• What specific elements are important to you? What are the differences in this setting?

• How do you know? Questions can be used in a funnelled and probing approach moving across personal, social and cultural domains. For example, from your perspective:

• • • • • • • •

What skills, knowledge do you have in your situation? What role do you take in the situation? Why do you take that role? What beliefs do you have that inform what you do in the situation? What beliefs do you have about yourself in that situation? What issues do you have with time? How does time affect how you work/live? How do the seasons impact on you?

From the environmental perspective (You might want to separate some of these questions):

• What are the significant features of the environment that impact on your scope to use your knowledge and skills?

• How do the beliefs and rules impact on you here? • What are the bigger picture issues-history, threats, opportunities, impetus for change?

• What are the beliefs of the majority in the environment that impact on how you /believe/work?

• What are the beliefs of the minority in that environment that impact on your beliefs /how you work?

• How aligned do you feel to the context in which you operate? Or how happy are you here? To be culturally agile as coaches/mentors and coachees/mentees, we need to be able to recognise the opportunity for movement and learning and be able to make the shift. The questions below can stimulate that momentum (in terms of adaptability and agility from one’s own perspective):

• • • • • •

How effective are you in monitoring what is going on in your environment? What senses do you use to keep abreast of fine changes in your environment? What indicators do you use to track changes and movements? How in tune do you feel you are with adjustments in your environment? How adaptable have you been in the past to changing situations? What has gone less well?


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• What example have you of adapting to change in a timely way? • Where have you instigated change successfully? • How do you judge when to respond quickly? Adaptability and agility–environmental perspective

• What are the features and characteristics in the environment that make it slow to react to change? Beliefs, policies, systems, rituals and ways of working, etc.

• What are the features and behaviours of the players that make the environment less receptive to change?

• What are the features and behaviours of marginalised or minority groups who are slow to react to change? Receptive to change?

• What are the features/characteristics of the collective players that make the environment quick to change?

• What are the features/characteristics that make minority or marginalised groups receptive to change?

• What stops the environment responding in a timely way? • What enables the environment to respond quickly?

Bridging the Collective and Individual Purpose Family members as well as parents can use visioning to consider the kind of family life they want and then work down to the frameworks and roles and responsibilities and behaviours that support that vision. For example:

• • • • • • • •

How do you visualise your family? What distinguishes your family from others? What values does it have? Who do you relate to in the wider community? What traditions and behaviours are important in this family? How realistic is that? Where are the challenges to achieving that? What knowledge, skills and resources will you need to enable that to happen?

For those people who have a longer view of life, visioning can embody eternal life as well as earthly life.

Learning to Live with Temporary States One of the challenges to mental agility occurs within our own mind. Many of us struggle with temporary states within ourselves and in our contexts of operation.

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Typically those might be boredom, frustration, fear, releasing control in ourselves. In the external world we might struggle to cope with temporary destabilization, uncertainty and chaos. We might feel we want to give up when there is a delay before the benefits of our actions show up. The certainty about temporary states is that you know that you are on the cusp of something new. For example:

• Can you think of a time when you have had to work a long time before you • • • • • • • • •

experienced the benefits? What were the particular challenges? How did you get through them? What kept you going? How did the benefits manifest themselves? How does this help you to prepare for discomfort now? Why are you so dissatisfied with how you are thinking? Why do you feel so uncomfortable? How can you make some small but significant impact/shifts to the situation? Where are you in the bigger picture?

Beyond Goals We can consider other alternatives a part from goal and objective setting to establish a longer-term direction. The notion of hypothesis setting and opportunity spotting may be more congruent with us as learners and inherently more collaborative with our total context. Unlike goal setting, which limits the outcome to success or failure, the hypothesis encourages us to be explorers of learning. Examples of questioning that takes individuals beyond goals, focus on the exploration itself:

• • • •

What are you enjoying learning at the moment? How can you transfer that learning to other areas? What thinking interests you? What unexpected connections have you made between different elements in your experience? • What ideas excite you?

Beyond Language to Meaning When we are working with people who are in business we often ask them to use metaphors and language of their work world to describe themselves and then ease them into translating these back to their personal selves. They often find they are more able to express themselves in that language and have become more separated from their ‘personal selves’. For example:


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• What are the demands upon you? • Where have you positioned yourself on this? • Who are the stakeholders in this? We can also find metaphors for family and community life such as a football team and ask members to identify who they are with in that team.

Life Stages We can help people get in touch with their universality by focusing on those common elements. For example:

• • • •

Where do you feel you are in your life stage? How would you describe it? How does this life stage impact on how you see the world? What are you expecting to learn in this life stage?

We can use life roles (including spouse/lover as well as child, parent and adult) to explore wider issues from different perspectives. How would you perceive this team issue as a parent?

Prophesy and Spirituality for Creativity The nature of prophesy has roots in a range of faiths and cross-cuts traditions. Using prophesy and understanding of their spirituality in people’s stories (seeing spiritual evidence or signs of being on the right track and fulfilment of vision and destiny) is a way that we can motivate ourselves to ensure we are on track. It enables individuals to cross time planes, consider the bigger picture and draws in new perspective and old learning into the exploration of current issues. Useful questions might include:

• How does this experience add to your sense of how the world works? • What patterns and themes can you see in your experience that now have • • • •

meaning? Where does this fit in with the plan for you? Where is this taking you to? How much are you meant to be doing this? (to check commitment) How much do you feel propelled to do this?

In each of the above areas, we hope you extend exploratory emphasis around the integration of cultural factors across personal, social and knowledge areas for the

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coachee/mentee. Coaches/mentors might also want to challenge themselves to remember their own last creative thought or intervention.

• • • • •

How did that thought change the situation? How did that thought change the relationship with the coachee/mentee? What did you learn about your self? What did you learn about the bigger picture? How did it change the world?

CHAPTER SUMMARY AND REFLECTION While CBT is regarded as a powerful tool in executive coaching, it needs to be refined to adapt to the context of individual coachees/mentees within organisations. To make it effective, coaches/mentors need to pay attention to other factors, such as interpersonal relationships (Safran, 1990). Common ground exists among different coaching approaches; they are a collaborative intervention between coaches/ mentors and coachees/mentees. In this journey, participants attempt to explore meaningful interpretations and modify them in order to reach their destiny, the end game, the goal, which may, for example, be to improve performance or achieve a work/life balance. In this chapter, we have considered the application of the UIF in strengthening those CBT and gestalt applications. For Gestalt practitioners, where we have used probing questions, coaches might focus on expanding the coachee’s own awareness instead. For practitioners of the 3-step or 5-step coaching/mentoring process and GROW there are ideas to extend your exploration. We also describe a range of techniques and tools. Gestalt focuses on the present but acknowledges the past. The coach/mentor draws attention to the client’s posture, voice, gestures etc. to build awareness and work through emotional blocks. It addresses contact boundaries and uses three main techniques to facilitate learning namely – surpression, expression and integration. Gestalt identifies the interconnectedness between our environmental field and ourselves, where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. The aim of gestalt is to accept our complete selves. They fit within the meta-framework of the Universal Integrated Framework (UIF) developed in Chapter 6 as well as the model of empowerment psychology. For example, gestalt approaches support genuine self-expression systematically by means of negative reinforcement of insincerity. The values of gestalt approaches that are consistent with UIF are courage and authenticity. In the positive psychology terms, these are the signature strengths of the gestalt coach and mentor. For the perspective of UIF, tolerance of difference does not equate with cultural agility and learning is likely to be minimal when only homogenous relationships in familiar contexts prevail. At the edge of our own boundary of experience, lies the opportunity for learning (boundary crossing) and if several of those boundaries are


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crossed concurrently (maximum complexity) then we demonstrate cultural agility. As a coach/mentor we can help coachees/mentees tell their stories in new ways, explore new thinking and a new sense of self. In the UIF we call coach/mentors to share frameworks, techniques and insights with the coachee/mentee so that the process is transparent and that positions in the relationship are not fixed. Chapter 8 includes exercises so that readers have an opportunity to practise them.

CHAPTER 8

Continuing Development, Learning Resources and Practical Exercises INTRODUCTION Following on from Chapter 7, we are considering some of the particular aspects of UIF that need to feature in coaching/mentoring training and some of the resources and exercises to support those main areas. We do not attempt to cover a training course here, not least because every programme needs to be different. As a starting point we describe a supervision approach that fits in with the UIF, followed by a consideration of ‘receptiveness’ approach to coaching/mentoring, as a precursor to selection for training. We then go on to consider exercises from CBT and Gestalt that can strengthen any coach/mentor’s practice whether you are using a simple 3step approach to coaching/mentoring or the GROW model. We then address storytelling exercises, which can also inform generic coach/mentor practice and one aspect of narrative psychodrama for those who want to experiment. We went into specific techniques and questioning areas, which readers can readily adapt for exercises. Similarly the other techniques we discussed in Chapter 7 are easily adapted for triad work, where one participant observes the dialogue between the participants in training and gives feedback.

UIF TRAINING AND CONTINUOUS DEVELOPMENT UIF training can be mapped into your own training provision for coaching/mentoring. On the whole it advocates that all participants in the process receive basic training in coaching and mentoring (ideally at least one to two days) so that coachees/ mentees have enough information on the process to know how to steer it. The process should also be transparent so that all players can access information and techniques to self-coach and coach others. We see coaching/mentoring as a partnership where the roles of the helper and helped are fluid. Sometimes individuals might be coached/ mentored by one person and another, coaching/mentoring someone else. We advocate all participants can attend basic training together and learn together. There is

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usually a need for those who feel they can offer more as mentors to do more training but that specification will vary depending on the type and level of coaching/mentoring required. Often training is differentiated by the extent of training, as an indication of introductory, intermediate and advanced level proficiency. Executive coaching/ mentoring might require higher-level skills and greater knowledge of how organisations work and the nature of management in a complex environment. Advisory coaching might be a short-term intervention with coaching elements amongst information giving, for example, mentoring/coaching for re-employment. Social or supportive coaching/mentoring might require significant empathy and might have more counselling features. So training programmes might have some core elements in common but differ in their contextualisation. Supervision or continuous professional development is an important part of coaching/mentoring to ensure personal development, accountability, collective practice and shared learning. It builds mutual understanding of the universal elements in the process and its benefits. It eases the flow of information between individual and the collective entity, to shape policies, steer priorities and assure levels of practice. The UIF process is transparent and as such any player within it, can potentially develop to perform coach/mentor roles from coachee/mentee roles, from coach/ mentor to supervisor roles, to co-ordinator. In coaching/mentoring the emphasis moves away from hierarchical supervision to continuous professional development (CPD). In the UIF we train coach/mentors to supervise or facilitate CPD as part of their development as a coach/mentor and wider role development. Working with colleagues in this role, in a range of settings, improves their competency and extends their learning. In organisations that employ external coach/mentors and internal ones, CPD provides an opportunity for everyone to get together and review and learn together. The UIF proposes that CPD should be open to all players in group or individual settings to help them consolidate their learning. These sessions can look at experiences of learning in coaching and mentoring and help those with problems in transition, between one stage or context in the process, to another. Where there is mystery in the process, participants can share learning and insights. Participants are offered a range of opportunities via e-chat-rooms for facilitated CPD with a community of learners backed by email, mixed workshops or just workshops either coach/mentors or for coachee/mentees. Depending on the aptitude and experience of the personeach of these methods has much to offer. We suggest that they do participate in one of these, every six months to a year. Additionally, we propose that participants have appropriate individual based CPD in line with their caseload, complexity, professional and organisation requirements. Sometimes those conditions necessitate hierarchical supervision. Coach/mentors may also require CPD on a one-to-one level. In our experience, some organisations who have adopted this type of CPD approach have run ‘action learning’ type CPD groups in different combinations, alongside one-to-one sessions as necessary. CPD is important from every perspective but inclusion, options and flexibility is the name of the game.

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CPD also serves as a forum to share personal learning in the sense of learning about the process. Individual coaches/mentors can arrange completion of the CMSI tool (http://www.morphgroup.net/csi/) to derive their own learning needs within a whole system approach to evaluation. Coachees/mentees and their coaches or colleagues in training, or the wider CPD community, can use these lists as prompts for discussions to review their learning. They can identify the main areas of learning and the ebbs and flows of areas of learning over sessions, outcomes for distinctive phases in the process and whether the learning areas are synchronous between the coach/mentor and the coachee/mentee etc. In summary this framework enables the learning partners separately, together or in their wider community of learners to explore their journey into development. Much learning comes after sessions, between sessions, and at points of change in stages of exploration.

Journey Log Where is my learning happening in each of the sections below? Personal – Self-awareness

• • • •

Self-belief Confidence Motivation and passion Self-Management

Social – Awareness of others

• Empathy with others • Assessment of difference and universality Professional – Skills and techniques as a coach/mentor

• Skills and techniques that I can use as a leader • Skills, knowledge and techniques that I can use in new situations • Knowledge and skills that I can use as a universal learner Cultural – Increase in knowledge of how systems work

• Application of new knowledge and thinking into familiar situations • Application of new knowledge and thinking into new situations Adaptation for Baseline Assessment for All Players Organisations can use the above format alongside a rating scale of 1–4 (where 4 = always, 3 = sometimes, 2 = rarely, 1 = never) as a baseline assessment, interim and

DEVELOPMENT, LEARNING RESOURCES AND PRACTICAL EXERCISES Table 8.1

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UIF baseline assessment

Rating scale

1

2

3

4

Personal – self-awareness Self-belief Confidence Motivation and passion Self-management Social – awareness of others Empathy with others – seeing things from others’ perspective. Assessment of difference and universality Professional – skills and techniques as a coach/mentor Skills and techniques that I use as a leader Skills, knowledge and techniques that I use in new situations Knowledge, skills that I use as a universal learner. Cultural – Knowledge of how systems work Application of new knowledge and thinking into familiar situations Application of new knowledge and thinking into new situations Total the rating scores

• • •

A score between 15–30 indicates that there is room for significant development. A score of 31–40 indicates that there are strong tendencies that can be built upon. A score 41–52 shows there is significant strength.

final assessment of the coachee/mentee, as appropriate. If this is kept as a running record, you can evidence improvement and learning over the process with in a coachee/mentee-driven process. It is best that the coachee/mentee completes it but they may wish to ask others to complete it too. This is not a psychometric test and the scoring breakdowns are adapted from our experience see Table 8.1.

Receptiveness and Role Fluidity How do we select people for coaching/mentoring training? How do we identify whether people might be receptive to wider roles? We have compiled a simple inventory as a precursor to training in the coaching/ mentoring process and also to identify aptitudes in other roles. Individual co-ordinators might want to adapt this inventory for their own needs in assessing the match between potential participants and the process. It is not a very refined instrument, for that reason. However it is derived from the UIF personal, social and cultural dimensions. We suggest that you use such an instrument as a discussion starter to assess fit for the range of possibilities in coaching/mentoring. Individuals will change over time and with experience.

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Part 1

Coaching/Mentoring Process Receptiveness

Rate your agreement with these statements on a scale of 1–4, where 4 = strong agreement, 3 = agreement, 2 = disagreement, 1 = strong disagreement 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

I want to be more self aware. I find that talking helps me clarify things. I want to learn new things and do things differently. I want to take responsibility for making my decisions. I like to think things through aloud and develop new ways of thinking. I want to understand more about how I learn. I want to be more in touch with my strengths and successes. I want to understand how I relate to others and how they relate to me. I want to understand more about how things work in the environment around me. I want to understand others’ perspectives.

Take the total rating score and divide by 10. A score between 3 and 4 shows there is broad receptiveness to coaching/ mentoring.

Part 2

Coach/Mentor Role Receptiveness

Rate your agreement with these statements on a scale of 1–4, where 4 = strong agreement, 3 = agreement, 2 = disagreement, 1 = strong disagreement 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20.

I like to listen to others. I like to share experience. I like to question. I am aware of silence. I am interested in others’ stories. I want to give something back. I have a trackrecord of facilitating others’ development. People use me as a sounding board. I like to understand how different people behave in different contexts. I am aware of how others see me.

Take the total rating score and divide by 10. A score between 3 and 4 shows there is broad receptiveness to the coach/mentor role.

Part 3

Co-ordinator Role

Rate your agreement with these statements on a scale of 1–4, where 4 = strong agreement, 3 = agreement, 2 = disagreement, 1 = strong disagreement.


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21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28.

I like to use an evidence-base to promote coaching/mentoring. I am able to support mentors and mentees. I can project manage. I value people from diverse backgrounds. I believe that most people move between the helped and the helper. I am experienced in coaching/mentoring from two perspectives. I am able to see others’ point of view. I appreciate others’ different backgrounds and a range of different cultures of operation. 29. I have facilitation skills. 30. I can create synthesis between other people. Take the total rating score and divide by 10. A score between 3 and 4 shows there is broad receptiveness to the co-ordinator role.

EXERCISES IN LEARNING To refocus our emphasis on the nature of learning as a foundation for coaching and mentoring, we recommend the following exercises. You will notice that they relate to the framework and principle of empowerment psychology described in Chapter 7. The exercises can be carried out individually or in groups in a training session. If conducted in a group, the coach may like to instruct each group to nominate a facilitator/spokesperson to summarise the common key points and feedback to the larger group.

Identifying Sources of Negative Learning Exercise 1.1 List any negative experiences you have had in the past that may stand in your way for change. If you have difficulty recalling any such experiences, think about a significant person associated with the time when you had difficulties learning something new. This person/experience may be recent or from the distant past. From our experience, participants often mention one of their school teachers.

Identifying Psychological Factors Exercise 1.2a List the attributes of the poor coach/mentor. If you do not have any coaching experience, think about a trainer or a teacher.

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Exercise 1.2b List the attributes of the good coach/mentor.

Identifying Intervention Describe how you overcame the barriers/difficult situation that you described in Exercise 1.1. You may find it helpful to consider the following questions:

• • • • • •

After you have experienced this, what will your next goal be? What are the expected outcomes? Did your intervention consist of some kind of strategy? What form did the strategy take? If you were a coach, what coaching techniques would you use? What are the resources required?

GESTALT EXERCISES Gestalt techniques can be practised as a series of exercises to increase awareness and as a continuum of awareness. Gestalt exercises aim to help practitioners to be fully aware in the present – the here-and-now. It is a practice of ‘living-inthe-moment’. The task of the coach in the exercise is to bring coachees back to the present if they are distracted from it. Coachees/mentors are coached in persistent attention to their ongoing experience. They are reminded when they are failing at the task of expressing their awareness. Remember, in the previous chapter we talked about using the self as an instrument. In the following exercises, you will find that your presence, the way that you use your ‘self’, is an essential part in the change process. These exercises aim to help you increase your awareness of continuum and asceticism. In other words, the exercises directly access the realm of your personhood and presence beyond any biological input and output. The demand for directness increases clarity and reduces message-to-noise ratio. There are three levels in gestalt exercises. These progressively increase participants’ self- and social awareness and engagements. They are:

• I/You exercises • The awareness of continuum • Top dog/underdog exercises Level I: I/You Exercises These exercises help you to develop awareness that is implicit in gestalt psychology.


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Exercise 1.1: Presence This exercise focuses on the sense of presence. It can be done alone, in pairs or in a group. If working in pairs, ask each pair to sit face to face – and close their eyes. Then follow these instructions:

• Be as you want to be. • Pay attention to your body sensations, posture and facial expression. • Make any necessary adjustment in your posture based on your awareness, moment • • • • • • • • • • •

by moment. When you feel comfortable and ready, open your eyes while remaining still. Relax your eyes. Relax your body. Focus on the sense of being in the present – the ‘I-sense’. I sense that ‘I am here’. Relax. Focus on this ‘I-sense’ for a moment. Be aware of your breathing. Silently say to yourself, ‘I am here’. Synchronise this inner speech, ‘I-am-here’, with your breathing. For example: – Breathe in and focus on ‘I’. – Pause and think of ‘am’. – Breathe out and focus on ‘here’.

• Continue the breathing exercise until you fully achieve a sense of presence or it feels right to end.

Exercise 1.2: You-ness This exercise helps you become aware of the presence of others and develop a sense of personhood of others, the sense of ‘you’ instead of experience of ‘it’. Working in pairs, follow these instructions:

• • • •

Sit face to face – and close your eyes. Be as you want to be. Pay attention to your body sensations, posture and facial expression. Make any necessary adjustment in your posture based on your awareness, moment by moment. • When you feel comfortable and ready, open your eyes while remaining still. • Focus on the person sitting opposite you without making a conversation. • Be conscious of the fact that you are seeing this person as a person who truly exists.

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Exercise 1.3: I–You This is an extension of exercises 1.1 and 1.2. The procedures include:

• Do exercise 1.1. • Do exercise 1.2. • Now focus on both ‘I’ and ‘you’, at the same time evoke a sense of infinity around ‘I’ and ‘you’.

• Say silently, ‘I-you-infinity’. Exercise 1.4: I–You–I Work with a different partner and write down three traits of a person you admire and three traits of a person you don’t admire. Then, in turn, say, ‘I am . . .’ followed by the traits you have listed. You may find it hard to identify the traits for either person for different reasons. For example, it is hard to say ‘I am brave’ as it feels like boasting but it is also hard to say ‘I am rude’ as it feels very critical of oneself. Saying the negative traits helps you realise that maybe you are also some of those things.

Level II: The Awareness of Continuum These exercises help to heighten awareness of actual needs so they can be acted on. They help to bring to your attention things that you might otherwise not have noticed, such as the way you are sitting. In group exercises, pay particular attention to the moment of silence. A deeper silence may attract to it a deeper communication.

Exercise 2.1: Perception This exercise takes a few minutes. Choose a time when you will not be disturbed. Have a piece of paper and a pen to hand and try to focus on the following sensations:

• • • • • •

Sight Sound Texture Taste Smell Bodily sensation.

Jot down each item (figure) as you become aware of it. Stay with it until the next one develops and comes to the fore. For example:


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• • • • • • • •

The colour of the wallpaper The paintings on the wall The voices of other people The pressure of your clothing against the skin on the back of the thighs A jagged tooth against your tongue A sour taste in the back of your mouth Slight discomfort in your ankle Moving your leg and relief of discomfort You need to empty your mind of preoccupations and be as receptive as possible. You don’t have to do them all. You may find your receptivity and reverie incline you to be aware of certain senses (e.g. sight) rather than others (e.g. smell). Note that you become aware of one thing (the figure) and then it fades into the background (ground) and another figure takes its place. You become increasingly aware of the boundary between yourself and the outside. Try not to think of what the noise, smell or sensation is or why it is. Just be aware of the ebb and flow of your consciousness of the sensations. Open yourself up to your environment. Be receptive.

Exercise 2.2: Living-in-the-Moment Repeat exercise 1 without writing anything down. You can do it anywhere where you can concentrate for a few minutes – for instance, in the bath or sitting quietly outside.

Exercise 2.3: Monologue –Self-reports This is a group exercise. Working in a group of three, each person switches roles after 10 minutes. There are three roles:

• reporter/actor • listener/witness • coach/supervisor The actor and witness sit face to face with the coach next to them. Repeat exercise 2.3 in a group. The actors in turn recite what they are aware of externally and internally.

Instruction for the ‘Actor’ There are three basic realms of awareness: perception, feeling and action. In this exercise, you emphasise your feelings on the occasion that is grounded in perception,

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and use your action to mirror your feeling. In other words, feel what you perceive and express your feeling by action. Report your perception to the ‘listener’ – what you see, hear, smell, etc. – but emphasise how you feel about those perceptions. For example, you may say:

• • • • •

I can hear my own breathing and I feel relaxed. As I speak, I can hear my own voice and I feel self-conscious. Now I’m aware of my heart beating. Now I’m aware of the sound of the air-conditioning unit. Now I feel distracted by the sound of traffic outside, etc.

Instructions for the Listener • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Listen to what is being said. Observe body language. Act as a witness. Do not offer any cues. Do not respond to the speaker. Do not express approval or disapproval – for example, don’t smile or shrug your shoulders, etc. Keep still. Be non-judgemental. Adopt a meditative stance. Do nothing. Be present. Relax your face. Relax your tongue. Don’t try to understand what the reporter is saying. You will notice that by not trying you will understand better. Put your effort in attending, both inside and outside. Focus on your perception – what you see, what you hear, the voice and words of the speaker. Focus on how you feel as well, moment to moment.

Instructions for the Coach The coach acts as the gestalt coach. The role is to ensure that the actor and witness observe the rules. Point out any infringements of the rules. For example:

• Point out what is said is not an expression of experience (e.g. telling a story). • Point out the posture of the witness (e.g. if he or she does not appear to be relaxed).


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• Draw attention to what they should not do in the exercise (e.g. nod, smile, etc.).

Level III: Top Dog/Underdog Exercises This exercise is also known as the empty chair technique or three-chair exercise. It takes at least 20–30 minutes and consists of four stages: 1. Self-accusation as a top dog. Let the words, voice and gesture of emotion flow. 2. Underdog reversal. Ask the actor to impersonate the underdog, in personality, attitude, etc. The underdog tells the top dog off with a full display in words and gesture. 3. Top dog reversal. 4. Working towards an agreement. Work in pairs, with one acting as a coach (sitting in one chair) and the other as a client (sitting in another chair, with the third chair left empty) (see Figure 8.1) If there are three or more participants, the others can act as observers. Coach:

• Ask clients to express their concerns, objections and doubts directly rather than in an abstract and generalised way.

• Ask questions beginning with ‘How do you experience that now . . .’ or ‘Tell me directly how you feel about this . . .’

• Get the clients to act out an unfinished situation, either imagining the others in the room or using actors. This helps clients to experience the psychological block and then complete it in the present. The coach’s assessment of what is happening followed by active involvement is essential. For example, Client B describes his or her relationship with another person, P, and how B felt about P. The coach then asks the client to move to the empty chair and become P. B describes P’s personality and life in the first person, such as ‘how “I” felt about P’. B then moves back to his or her chair and describes

Coach

Client

Figure 8.1

Three-chair exercise

Empty Chair

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his or her feelings towards P. Throughout, the coach should pick up on aspects of how the clients change in their attitude as well as behaviours. For example, the coach may say to B, ‘The way you’re sitting as P, you’re almost looking down at people.’ This kind of feedback helps clients see how they portray themselves and others. The exercise helps clients understand the relationship differently, why others act in certain ways. You may notice a change in tone of voice when clients are P and how clients become much more aware of the environment when they are P rather than themselves.

STORY-TELLING EXERCISES Narrative approaches typically involve coaches/mentors asking coachees/mentees to tell a story by recounting an experience, prompted by following questions, to connect the story with a concept they would like them to consider. The story development may consist of the following plots:

• • • •

re-authoring conversation – rich story development in skills and knowledge re-membering conversation – rich story development in skills and knowledge group exercise: outsider witness retelling definitional ceremony (community) – retellings of retellings

Re-authoring Conversation – Rich Story Development in Skills and Knowledge The goal of re-authoring conversation is to redevelop coachees/mentees’ skills and knowledge by re-authoring the stories of their life experience. Re-authoring conversations provide a platform for participants to step into the near future of the landscapes of action of their lives. Questions are introduced that encourage the storytellers to generate proposals for action, accounts of the circumstances likely to be favourable to these proposals for action, and predictions about the outcome of these proposals. Note that the narrative coach first needs to scaffold the rich story development in the landscape of consciousness before proceeding with the re-authoring questions. This exercise helps you to develop some of these questioning skills. At first, participants are likely to respond to landscapes of consciousness questions by talking about various categories of their self-identity, such as attributes, characteristics, deficits, drives, motives, needs, resources, strengths, traits, etc. However, these conclusions may provide an inadequate basis for the coachees to proceed. In other words, they get stuck. Narrative coaches need to guide the storytellers with alternative identities that are more positive and relevant to the empowerment of their lives. Try to discover the storytellers’ beliefs, commitments, intentions, purposes, values, visions, hopes and dreams.


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Exercise 1: Developing Your Skills and Knowledge with a Re-authoring Conversation Technique Note for coaches/mentors Use the following questions as a guide only. Remember, this is an informal conversation, not a formal interview, so talk as naturally as possible and develop your own questions as necessary. Pay particular attention to the answers and follow their lead. 1. Thank you for volunteering to talk to me. Can you think of a skill that you have acquired recently or something that you have learnt? If you are happy, we shall explore it a bit further. 2. Please tell me what happened. 3. If I had been there, what would I have seen? 4. Was it easy or difficult to learn? 5. Was there a significant moment or ‘turning point’ when you felt that you had overcome the difficulty? 6. What did you wish to happen in accomplishing this? 7. Can you help me understand your intentions or purposes in learning this skill? Did this reflect any particular values or beliefs you hold in high regard? If so, what are they? 8. Are those values/intentions/purposes important to you? 9. Why is it important to you to have these sorts of intentions or purposes for what you do now? 10. If you think about these values/beliefs, what hopes and dreams might they be connected to in your life? 11. When these values/beliefs are present, what would you be hoping for now? 12. Can you give a name to the story that you have told me about? If you have time, ask the following questions: 13. Is there anything else you’ve done recently that fits in with the same theme of what we’re talking about? 14. Were there times in your life when these themes/intentions/values/hopes/dreams also stood out? 15. What would I’ve seen you doing in the past that would show me these themes/intentions/values/hopes/dreams? 16. Can you give me an example from your earlier life that reflects these themes/ intentions/values/hopes/dreams that are important to you? 17. What is it like to look at your recent experience in light of this past event? Finally 18. What has it been like for you to have this conversation? 19. What does it make you think about in your own work?

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20. What will you be able to do? 21. Are these themes/intentions/values/hopes/dreams sustainable? If so, what will your next step be? Will it support your themes/intentions/values/hopes/dreams?

Re-membering Conversation – Rich Story Development in Skills and Knowledge Re-membering conversations as an inquiry are initiated through two stages. Each stage has two steps. During the first stage, the coach invites the storyteller to:

• Recount what the significant figure contributed to the person’s life (figure’s contribution to person’s life),

• Enter the consciousness of this figure on matters of the person’s identity, initiating a rich description of the ways in which this connection shaped/had the potential to shape the person’s sense of who they are and what their life is about (person’s identity through the eyes of the figure). In the second stage, the coach invites the storyteller to:

• Recount what the storyteller contributed to the life of this figure (the person’s contribution to the figure’s life).

• Enter the consciousness of this figure on matters of this figure’s identity, initiating a rich description of the ways in which this connection shaped/had the potential to shape this figure’s sense of who they were and what their life was about (implications of this contribution for the figure’s sense of identity).

Exercise 2: Developing Clients’ Skills and Knowledge with a Re-membering Conversation Technique Choose a theme around which the conversation will take place. Ask the clients to think about a person in their life who would not be surprised to see them reflecting on their work in the way that they have been telling you their stories. Note for coaches/mentors Use the following questions as a guide only. This is an informal conversation, not a formal interview, so try to talk as naturally as possible and develop your own questions as necessary. Pay particular attention to the answers and follow their lead. Establish intentions/commitments/principles/values/beliefs/hopes/dreams, etc. Remember: the significant figures and identities that the participants describe do not have to be directly known to them as long as they have been important to the storyteller (e.g. film stars, authors, comic book characters). The figures need not be people, e.g. they may be favourite pets or stuffed toys from their childhood memory, etc.


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1. Thank you for volunteering to talk to me. Please take some time to name and talk about one thing that is important to you. This may be part of the way you approach your work or life, your intention or commitment. 2. Tell me a brief story that might help me understand your everyday experience of this approach/intention/commitment. 3. What beliefs/values about this way of working are important to you? 4. Can you think of someone in your life who would be least surprised to hear you talking about what is important to you, someone who would recognize and appreciate these things? (If clients have difficulty thinking of someone, tell them that it can be someone from their early life – an aunt or uncle, grandparent or parent, teacher or a friend. This figure may no longer be alive and doesn’t need to be someone they have actually known if they can’t think of one – they may be a character from a favourite book, or a movie. They may be a figure from history. They can choose a pet or a favourite toy that accompanied them through childhood. Any of these is suitable for this re-membering conversation.) 5. Tell me a bit about this person as if you were introducing them to me, for example, their name (X), when and where you met, etc.? 6. Tell me something about what X may have brought to your life, or in what ways your life was influenced by him or her? 7. What do you think X invited you to be a part of or share in? 8. How did X go about that? 9. Is there an example that comes to mind of the sorts of things you and X did together that captures something of what you shared? 10. What might X have recognised/appreciated in you that others failed to notice? 11. Thinking back, what might you have done to deserve their appreciation? 12. Did you respond to their appreciation? 13. Did you acknowledge its contribution to your life? 14. Did it bounce off you, or did it resonate with what is important to you? 15. What do you think it might have been like for X to have you join them in what was important to them? 16. What do you think it contributed to X’s life that you, in particular, were available to their interest and appreciation? 17. What effect do you think your contribution has had on X’s sense of purpose or sense of what life is about? 18. Did it reinforce their purpose or detract from them? 19. Can you imagine how X would feel if he/she were here now listening to this conversation? Finally 20. What has it been like for you to have this conversation about you and X? 21. What do you think might be more possible for you in your work/life in remembering your connection with X? 22. What does it make you think about in your own work/life in this re-membering?

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23. What will you be able to do now? 24. Are these themes/intentions/values/hopes/dreams sustainable? If so, what will the next step be that supports your themes/intentions/values/hopes/dreams?

Group Exercise: Outsider Witness Re-telling This exercise can be carried out when you have three or more participants in the group. Repeat exercises 4.1 and 4.2, but invite one or more participants from the group to act as outsider witnesses. After the storyteller has told his or her story, ask the outsider witnesses the questions under the following headings: Don’t:

• • • •

Express opinions about the storyteller. Make declarations about the storyteller’s self-identity. Hold up your own life and actions as examples to the storyteller. Introduce moral tales.

Do:

• Listen. • Talk about what you have heard. Remember: the initial storyteller should always be at the centre of the definitional ceremony. If the outsider witnesses are carried away and begin to talk about themselves and their own stories, remind them to re-focus on the primary storyteller (T). For example, ‘Can I interrupt you there. Do you think that is relevant to T’s life?’ Or ‘How do you think T would feel about that?’, etc.

Identifying the Expression As you listen to T’s story, which expressions catch your attention or capture your imagination? Which one’s strike a chord for you?

Describing the Image What images did T’s expressions of his/her life, identity and world evoke in your mind? What did these expressions suggest to you about T’s beliefs, commitments purposes, values, hopes and dreams?

Embodying Responses What is it about your own life/work that the story has accounted for? Why have these expressions caught your attention or struck a chord for you? Do


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you have a sense of the images evoked by these expressions in your own experiences of life? Which aspects of your own experiences resonated with these expressions?

Acknowledging Transport How have you been moved on account of being present to witness this story? If you weren’t present as an audience to this conversation, where has this experience taken you to that you would not otherwise have arrived at? In what way have you been moved, other than who you were on account of witnessing these expressions? In what way have you become who you are on account of responding to these stories in the way that you have?

Definitional Ceremony (Community) – Retellings of Retellings This exercise is suitable for a large group, conference and community gatherings. A definition ceremony may consist of the following stages: 1. At the outset, the participants sit in a large circle. Introduce and address the chosen themes. These may relate to personal stories or community folklore. 2. Participants who have spoken about the theme invite those in the large circle to form smaller groups, for the purposes of conversations that will contribute to the linking of the stories of other participants to these themes. One or two team members join each of the small groups as outsider witnesses to the conversations. The participants of each small group negotiate what aspects of the story should be reported by the outsider witnesses. 3. The large circle is reconvened. Now team members sit together, either at the centre of or in an arc of this circle, with the outsider witnesses. In turn, the outsider witness of each group retells what they have heard and experienced in the small group conversations. (This may take up to 30 minutes per group.) 4. Having retold the story, the outsider witness rejoins the large circle. The storyteller then reflects on what he or she has heard.

NARRATIVE PSYCHODRAMA – PHYSICAL EXERCISES As mentioned in Chapter 7, narrative coaching relies heavily on the articulation of stories by the clients, but the approach may be limited if coaches/mentors depend on verbal communication only. Narrative psychodrama offers a powerful alternative, through which unspoken stories may find physical expression. Narrative psychodrama has a transpersonal psychological dimension too. Through the authentic movements, coaches may develop certain attitudes and postures. The

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exercises described below are based on the experience of performance coaching. The concept has been adopted from the philosophy of paratheatre (Alli, 1977). The approach is invaluable for coaches/coachees as it focuses on both mind and body. It offers a novel way of preparing one’s readiness for change both psychologically and physically. The exercises can be performed on one’s own as well as in a group. If the group exercises are conducted with a coach/facilitator, the coach/facilitator should take the responsibility to ensure that health and safety aspects are observed. The following sequence of exercises is outlined in the next sections: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Preparation/initiation. Physical warm-up cycle. Breathing and balancing exercises. Flow movement. Acting out.

In paratheatre, Alli (2003) named the last three stages as No-Form (towards intimacy with void), the Contact Point (the concept-free zone of direct intuitive engagement) and Polarizations (towards emotional flexibility and strength), respectively. This initial stage is explored in an ‘asocial, non-performance’ environment. According to the paratheatre concept, an ‘asocial’ attitude relates to the vertical sources of energy, which has a spiritual/transpersonal quality. An assumption here is that each person has inner energy and a hidden agenda. These vertical sources of energy are above, within and below the body itself and can be felt as a stream of inner impulses. From the perspective of the ‘asocial’ attitude, these inner forces can be witnessed, experienced and served to discover one’s innate intentions. The quality of these intentions may be symbolically characterised by certain elements. For example, one’s innate agenda to generate heat or to illuminate may be expressed as an element of ‘fire’. With practice, this stage becomes invaluable for increasing awareness of our social conditioning and the underlying forces that govern our existence (so-called archetypes). It also helps one to assess one’s vertical sources of energy and be authentic. Alli (2003) regards this as ‘building [one’s] vertical integrity’. The next stage involves a cycle of physical warm-up exercises. The overall objective is to feel one’s body deeply. The quality of your performance depends on the level of personal commitment to the exercises. The breathing and balancing exercises help one to achieve a state of psychological emptiness by consciously directing attention to exhalation in a standing position.

The Flow The concept of the flow has a resonance with Csikszentmihalyi’s (1991) idea of flow. Indeed, this may be a physical way to allow one to have direct access to optimal experi-


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ence. It also has resonance with the saying ‘go with the flow’. The approach is nondirectional and has no social intent. Here you give your body primacy to direct your movement; allow the energy itself to guide direction. To achieve this, you need to relax. This creates a space for expression of your physical energy. You are moved by the energy rather than move according to your will. Alli says, ‘Like clay in the hands of a sculptor, we learn to be shaped before we start shaping. Allow yourself to be “created” before you start creating.’ This statement relates to gestalt psychology too.

Acting out The overall objective of a coaching exercise is to enable change to take place. Like gestalt exercises, this final stage effectively provides a ‘physical rehearsal’ for one to act out fear as well as the agenda for change. Like cognitive behavioural coaching, before you perform change, you need to identify barriers and make a strategy to overcome them. Acting out physically, the exercise invites you to make two lists. The first is a ‘dirt list’, which comprises emotionally charged, embarrassing/difficult experiences and their opposites. Very often, people live through their inner embarrassment/psychological barrier helplessly. The exercise provides a way to allow you to act out these experiences in physical drama and movement. The acting out of the ‘dirt list’ is an important prerequisite as it clears space, renders the ‘emotional ego’ more flexible and allows you to prepare to face up to reality. The exercise also helps you to realise that the ‘self’ has more than one facet. What comes after the above exercises depends on the direction suggested by the coach/facilitator. Coachees may like to discuss the new list with the coach as an agenda for change (the dirt list remains private and safe). Other techniques, such as CBT, etc., can follow depending on the context and preferences. In a group situation, such as a team-building exercise, the group may decide collectively on a change agenda that fits into their organisational or social context.

Exercise 1: Preparation and Initiation The object of preparation is to initiate in participants an asocial intent of spatial awareness. (If this is carried out alone, it becomes a self-initiation.) This stage provides two sub-stages to increase accountability for your own creative states: 1. Take responsibility. 2. Find your own way. Take responsibility Instructions: take the following unspoken vow:

• ‘Each individual takes responsibility for his/her safety and creative states.’ • Take responsibility for your own safety. • Take responsibility for raising your energy level.

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The vow ensures your personal commitment to pay attention to your fears, needs and personal limitations as they emerge. If you overlook these, you may become dependent and expect to be looked after by others for your safety, etc. Ensure you have a ‘safe space’. This prepares the ground for creativity – ‘When a child feels safe, it can play.’ Creativity flourishes in a state of trust. Paradoxically, feeling safe also allows you to take risks. Now, consciously divert your attention from yourself (and from others if in a group, or objects, such as furniture, etc.). Redirect your attention to the ‘space’ itself as a ‘value’. This literally means relating to the space, i.e. the setting (which may be a conference room, dance studio, etc.). Find your own way When you are ready, move through the space of the actual setting in such a way as to continually relate to the space itself, rather than to the people or objects in that space. Before you begin your physical warm-up, you may need to find your own space. This can include the following steps: 1. Physically move through the space within the setting. 2. Locate a small region of that space to claim as your personal warm-up area. When you have discovered your personal space, make a conscious effort to ‘own’ it. Mark it with your territorial instincts – in Alli’s (2003) words, ‘like animals stalk and claim turf . . . Find your own idiosyncratic ways to mark the outer boundaries, the centre and then proceed to take charge of this area.’

Exercise 2: The Physical Warm-up Cycle Physical warm-up exercises consist of a cycle of steps: keep still, flex, stretch and move. Each step lasts 5–10 minutes. Repeat the sequence in a cycle for about 20–40 minutes, depending on your time constraints. 1. Keep still – adopt any posture that allows you to be physically still. Engage internal thoughts, and then empty them. You may choose to meditate or pray silently, depending on your belief or religion. 2. Flex your spine. 3. Stretch and take a deep breath at the same time – feel your body deeply. Try to locate any ‘numb’ areas and stretch them. Perform the exercise within the limit of your physical comfort. 4. Move – now move freely within your personal area, with the objective of generating enough body heat to work up a sweat. Continue to move to contain the heat and to mark your boundaries with your movements. Stay within your personal warm-up area. This helps accumulate and contain the vital energy, heat and presence within your own space.


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Exercise 3: Breathing and Balancing Exercises In a standing position: 1. Watch your own breath; emphasise your exhalation. 2. Relax. Do not try to control or direct your body. Adjust your physical stance as necessary in order to maintain a balance and support the spinal alignment. Allow your body to stand and rest in a state of vertical posture. 3. Stay empty – try to approach a psychological state of emptiness. Bypass any distraction such as ‘internal chatter’ or ‘disassociated imagery’.

Exercise 4: The Flow Movement This consists of free movements that go with the flow: 1. Remain relaxed. 2. Become aware of your physical energy. Follow it. Do not resist it. When you feel the force of this energy is strong enough to move your body, follow its direction. Do not have any desire to control or direct the energy. 3. Go with the flow.

Exercise 5: Acting out This involves acting out some of your emotional difficulties. This may take the following steps: 1. Examine your most personal experiences. 2. Make a ‘dirt list’ – in your mind, draw up a list of difficult experiences, especially those that you regard as ‘not socially acceptable’, or the opposite of your normal ‘good nature’. These may be very private and emotionally highly charged. 3. Make an expression (acting out) – select an item on the list and give it an expression in a physical form. Act it all out. Do not take yourself too seriously. Do not be afraid of making a fool of yourself. If you do feel too afraid to act out or become too self-consciousness (this could happen in particular in a group situation), express this awkwardness by giving it physical form, in movement or posture if you feel immobilised by it. 4. Make a new list. Repeat step 3, but now make a list with items that are directly opposite to those on the ‘dirt list’. Some of these items may be based on your experience. If they are not, you can make it up as long as it is directly opposite to the one in step 3.

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5. Make a change – repeat step 3, but this time select the item from your new list in step 4 and give them a physical expression.

CHAPTER SUMMARY AND REFLECTION In our exercises we reveal that the emphasis is universal but the techniques can be mutually exclusive. Gestalt mentors never ask mentees ‘Why?’ while narrative coaches question every thin trace of a story. However, it is important to realise that both approaches are transpersonal in nature. Also, both approaches perform the transformation at the moment of being present, though the gestalt approach primarily emphasises the moment-to-moment of being ‘here-and-now’. As in the development of any skill, be it about competence in the gestalt expression or the scaffolding questions in narrative approaches, it is acquired through practice, more practice and then more practice still. On the other hand, narrative psychodrama relates to gestalt psychology very well. It regards the body as an instrument – in this case a vessel – ‘for containing, mixing, transforming and refining the ongoing union of opposites’ – that ‘top dog’ and ‘underdog’ are in interplay as the movements unfold. The approach also has an alchemic quality. As Alli says, ‘This important transition from “mental time” to “body time” cannot be taught; you find your own way into your body through your five senses, your impulses and rhythms.’ We advocate that with a background in the principles of psychology, individuals can adapt their own coaching/mentoring approach to suit their circumstances and meet the needs of the learner. Whilst techniques might vary, the UIF as an emphasis is consistent with all approaches. Whether you are a Gestalt, CBT or narrative therapist or a coach/mentor working with executives or ex-offenders, we hope there is something you can take away and put into practice. After all, it is about thinking and doing things in new ways. We illustrate the above exercises in some of the case studies in Chapter 9.

CHAPTER 9

Case Studies INTRODUCTION This chapter provides a number of case studies derived from various mentoring and coaching programmes. In each case we aim to link theories to practice and, wherever possible, provide a reflection on lessons learnt, as well as the successes and challenges of the experience. We hope that readers will gain insight into what makes successful coaching and mentoring. We have taken care to select case studies from applications that have either an international/cross-cultural dimension or a sociocommunity element. The case studies include:

• • • •

Health and social care coaching/mentoring programme (Case study 1) E-coaching – a transatlantic coaching pilot project (Case study 2) Narrative coaching in communities (Case study 3) Beyond coaching/mentoring to the coordinator role (Case study 4)

Case studies 1 and 4 are based on our coaching/mentoring programme from which we developed the Universal Integrated Framework (UIF). The cross-cultural Coaching/Mentoring Social Intelligence (CMSI) tool. The contexts for development were the NHS and Social Care in the UK and a multi-national programme involving West African, European and Asian businesses. Case study 2 describes a transatlantic coaching pilot project undertaken in 2005, which was coordinated by Frank Bresser as part of his MBA research (Bresser 2006a and 2006b). The case study is based on an interesting collaboration between the British Association for Coaching and Rice University, Houston, Texas. It also demonstrates the advantages and difficulties in telephone coaching using Internet technology or traditional telephone systems. It includes encouraging feedback from the coordinator, coaches and coachees, based on a quantitative questionnaire and qualitative reflection. Case study 3 describes how we can apply the skills and knowledge in narrative approach that was acquired from the International Narrative Therapy workshop and conference in Adelaide, Australia and used with the diverse community in Peterborough, England. The case study demonstrates the power of storytelling using the metaphor of a journey and definition ceremony in bringing together diverse communities. It also depicts the challenges and difficulties coaches/mentors face when transporting

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ideas across places, spaces and cultures. This includes the sameness and difference of opinions, interpretations, interests and values among the diverse multipartnerships and stakeholders as well as socio-geographical factors – including the weather! Readers may find it useful to see how common threads in transpersonal aspects in coaching and mentoring can be drawn from diverse practices, including art, drama, film, performance, song, fiction and poetry (as shown in the previous case study in narrative coaching). We believe that by documenting the experience using Gibb’s (1988) six-stage model of reflection, we can demonstrate how the theory of learning can be linked to practice. This forms a connection between the application of the reflective theory of learning (Chapter 3) and the diverse approaches to evaluation (the core of Chapter 10). Case study 4 addresses the role of the co-ordinator in building sustainability in the coaching/mentoring process. We look at the building of mainstreamed sustainable coaching/mentoring systems, the co-ordinator role and the manifestations of working in a cross-cultural and complex setting. We consider the importance of a strategic perspective for embedding coaching/mentoring, and the nature of transference and counter-transference in a cross-cultural coaching/mentoring context. In our experience the co-ordinator and championing of coaching and mentoring in an organisation is key to its endurance over time. The selection of a person for that role, how the role is mainstreamed into core business activity and the requirements of the role has been under-developed.

CASE STUDY 1: HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE COACHING/MENTORING PROGRAMME The coach–mentoring progamme was part of an agreed leadership development strategy, to develop leadership capability in one region. There were two main prioritised, targeted streams within the leadership cohort: 1. The black and ethnic minority leaders who remained under-represented at senior levels (BME leadership stream). 2. Those leaders who were acting as change facilitators, to accelerate the spread of good practice in an ambitious improvement programme. (Change or coaching for change stream). The aim was to train delegates from the cohort groups in coaching and mentoring in a way that was relevant to their context. Each delegate was selected for training over five days and agreed to commit to mentoring/coaching for up to four days over a twelve-month period. They were introduced to the UIF via a spectrum of coaching/mentoring techniques and practical exercises. The change facilitators learnt about change theories and approaches and practiced their techniques in a relevant context. They focused on the cross–cultural implications

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of transferring good practice from one environment to another. This concept of transferring practice had been shown to be particularly problematic, evidenced in the variation of performance on key health and social deliverables across the region. This was the case, despite knowledge about good practice being readily available and centres of excellence well cited locally. The BME leaders looked at the cross-cultural context for the application of their skills, so that they could work with other minority leaders to support them in their career development. At the same time a national programme trained senior managers to coach/mentor BME leaders in more junior positions. This extended the participating pool of coaches/mentors. In turn, each of the coaching/mentoring delegates in both the streams or cohorts was offered a coach/mentor of their own. After some months coaches/mentors were offered the chance to undertake supervisor training and then widen their roles as supervisors too.

Matching After the training, individuals were matched with coachee/mentees who had received training in the process. Despite the use of a criteria based matching approach, the co-ordinator noted that much of the process required brokering between the two parties involved. Those individuals that selected a coach/mentor on mentor status alone, were least satisfied three months later. Experienced coaches/mentees were most able to be independent at this stage and those who had relied on just the paperled matching service were less likely to end up in a coaching/mentoring pairing after the first session.

Core UIF Training Both cohorts received five days core training. This covered basic coaching/mentoring skills and extended periods of context awareness building, so that they could appreciate their environment of application and the particular issues and barriers to effective movement across boundaries. In the Change project, this related to the transfer of practice across geographical boundaries, professional boundaries, political boundaries, technological and structure and self limiting belief boundaries. The training focus in context was around techniques to draw a deep understanding of the environment of operation including the main players, recognise the risks to successful change implementation at each stage and develop mindfulness at each transition. In the BME leadership stream, the boundaries were considered as inclusion (political, structural, policy, communication and knowledge boundaries and self limiting beliefs). The added training emphasis incorporated the notion of personal acculturation, story telling, developing wider system knowledge and understanding of others’ perspectives, political awareness and personal confidence.

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Supporting the Process When individuals started the process they signed contracts with one another and both parties agreed to come to CPD. The coordinator offered a range of developmental opportunities to suit all tastes-from all coachees/mentees to mixed groups of coaches/mentors with coachees/mentees to coaches/mentors. As many people were in both roles at different times, their choice of event was interesting. All events were supported and everyone undertook supervision in some form over 12 months. The most stimulating events, which blended formal CPD with informal chances to discuss areas of interest or concern, were the mixed role events. Some delegates used their experience of one role to inform another. Other individuals talked to other coaches/mentors and vice versa (not their own learning partners) and transferred the knowledge back into their own coaching/ mentoring relationships. Most senior coaches/mentors described the CPD sessions as ‘unexpectedly insightful and extremely useful to my leadership and coaching role.’ As CPD was rolled out across settings, different patterns emerged but probably the most successful type was action learning based. This was probably because as action learning as a development method, was already embedded in the organisation. Coaching/mentoring and action learning are natural partners and together can bridge the individual and collective learning gap.

Early Learning Typically there were some early teething problems. Some participants went into the process looking for a quick fix to problems and having experienced some ‘quick wins’ on points of information struggled to adjust to the process. They were encouraged to review expectations, redefine goals and to be open to learning in unexpected ways. In many cases these blocks mirrored the delay in gratification concept described earlier and a natural resistance to new ways of learning. Co-ordinator support at these points and a focus on building up coachee/mentee knowledge and skills to lead the process, ensured that few people quit or changed coaches/mentors. Those that experienced problems early on tended to describe the process even more positively, having overcome those difficulties. The other learning, was that the Eureka or Aha moments were very likely to arrive outside coaching/mentoring sessions in later reflection and that the time lag before the benefits showed up could run into weeks and months. In the BME stream of leaders, we found that those coachees/mentees who selected BME coaches/mentors often sought a change of coach/mentor or an additional coach/mentor sooner than expected. This emphasised that initial homogenous matching had a significant but limited value to many participants.

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Twelve Months Later There were quite a few surprises at a number of levels. At an organisational level, the major change programme became a vast re-organisation and the formal, funded coaching and mentoring programme for both cohort groups was delayed (indefinitely). However, the informal infrastructure in place based on training, multiple roles and a network of supervisors ensured that, where there was a champion of coaching/mentoring, the programme became an embedded development process to support change. It had become integrated in the mainstream of leadership and change in some areas, aligned with their core business and inherently sustainable without funding per se. In areas where there were no champions, the programme fizzled out rapidly. The BME cohort was now well established. Individual coachees/mentees described expanded job roles and half of the delegates in the first training programme had been promoted. The learning from the programme emphasised the importance of a flexible understanding of culture in all its forms. All the individuals be they coaches/mentors, coachees/mentees or both, identified with different parts of the process. Gender perception, inter-racial perceptions and issues about how power was perceived, the value of career succession in hierarchical terms – were experienced differently by them all. This was as a result of their unique identities, in many cases self-determined, in a context of different socialisation experiences. However, for the most part a shared experience of a rather standard British education or training system generated a common understanding. Likewise working for the National Health Service (NHS) or social services develops a strong sense of alignment with the community of service users and with it an understanding of majority culture. There were some far-reaching alliances between people and some successful pairs managed to find common values and ways that worked from some precarious starting points. Mentor coaches in the BME stream, drawn from senior management (and who were not from BME backgrounds) seemed to benefit enormously. The stated that they had found ‘Coachees/mentees challenging, probing and exciting to be with’. This impact was, no doubt, enhanced by the empowerment BME coachees/ mentees had experienced as a result of their training, which helped them to steer the process to meet their own learning needs. In the on-line assessment centre to measure competency in leadership, BME leaders scored consistently above their pay scale expectations and also showed higher change orientation than the rest of the sample. This same group also received the highest coach/mentor performance feedback in a bespoke 360-degree feedback tool – We will discuss this in Chapter 10. There may be a link between undertaking coaching/mentoring training as a route to improving general leadership effectiveness because coaching/mentoring is in itself a style of leadership. This notion fits in with the coaching culture concept put forward by Clutterbuck and Megginson (2005). Universally, the scores for coach/mentor performance feedback from both BME stream coaches and the change project stream were above the scores for those who

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had received other coach/mentor training. This could be down to the length of training or the UIF emphasis but an insufficient sample size prohibited further analysis. BME leaders got more involved in wider roles and became more generic coaches/ mentors working in the area of change. They also got involved in coaching/mentoring senior managers on how to make the most of the diverse talent pool in their own organisations. They continued to supervise others from the mixed cohort of coaches/ mentors. Directly or indirectly, the involvement in coaching/mentoring ensured that a so-called marginalised group became closer to the core and power-base of the organisation. Those individuals were also more able to work on the change and improvement agenda which the organisation valued and as a result became more valued for their contribution. The BME coaches/mentors and the coaching for change cohort exchanged knowledge and diversified into universal areas.

Two Years On Two years on where there are champions from the original cohorts, coaching/mentoring still flourishes and is delivering evidence-based improvements to patient care and the leadership capability of a stretched service. It took some champions (who are already named in the acknowledgements of this book), a BME leadership group with real drive and a desire to do things differently, and a shared commitment to go beyond goals, targets, hierarchical structures and ring fenced budgets. However, in the most part of the Health and Social Care region, general coaching/mentoring is uncoordinated and sporadic as there is no specific funding assigned to it. The BME coaching/mentoring programme expanded beyond the region and was adopted nationally with funding assigned to its continuing development.

Funding Dilemma One thing that this case study shows is the importance of planning for coaching/mentoring and ensuring that any programme is capable of sustainability beyond timelimited funding. External and internal funding and resourcing entities can work in partnership with coaching/mentoring agencies. At the outset they can emphasise the transitory nature of funding. They can focus the organisation on mainstreaming the coaching/mentoring process as part of key service or business delivery. They can –

• Help them set up sustainable plans for coaching/mentoring which are built round identification of informed and strategic champions

• Develop strategic alignments on core business or service areas that they support

• Encourage flexibility in programme design which is contextualised in key improvement areas

• Promote fluidity between roles so that coaching/mentoring can reproduce capability and capacity organically

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• Embed supervision into existing organisation learning practices to work towards the promotion of organisations as coaching cultures (Clutterbuck and Megginson, 2005) as an extension to the learning organisation model discussed in Chapter 5. Such a strategic alliance between the funder or the funding arm and the agency encourages the agency to focus on the sustainability of the coaching/mentoring process as a condition of the receipt of funding. As we will see in Chapter 10 there is still a need to evaluate the outcomes of coaching/mentoring to all stakeholders.

CASE STUDY 2: E-COACHING – A TRANSATLANTIC COACHING PILOT PROJECT We will now describe the transatlantic coaching pilot project (Bresser, 2006a and 2006b). A pilot project was set up to offer one-to-one coaching sessions via email and telephone for the leadership students at Rice University, Houston, Texas, by members of the Association for Coaching (AC) in the UK. The project was monitored and evaluated by four regular questionnaires – both pre- and post-evaluation.

Aims and Objectives of E-Coaching Apart from satisfying the organisational objects of the hosts, the project aimed to match the goals of coaches/coachees, so that the students being coached could:

• Intensify/support their learning experience at Rice University. • Leverage their maximum potential with regard to personal development and leadership issues.

• Help them develop an active, responsible and self-managed role to facilitate their development/leadership skills.

• Be inspired by the international dimension of the coaching programme. • Widen their horizons and make them sensitive to their cultural and individual characteristic features. As part of an international coaching team, the coaches participating in the programme would benefit from:

• Learning and gaining experience in e-coaching across cultures. • Having the challenge/pleasure of working with high potentials. From the organisational perspectives it was hoped that through the coaching programme, Rice University would:

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• Improve its overall organisational performance by optimising students’ learning through coaching.

• Become more familiar with coaching as a modern tool to leverage human potential and making use of it in the university context. The Association for Coaching could benefit by:

• Gaining new perceptions in the area of coaching research. • Increasing the public’s knowledge about and popularity of coaching. • Supporting its members to be part of a leading edge, highly prestigious international coaching pilot project. The co-ordinator, was able to conduct his coaching research, which aimed to:

• • • • • •

Analyse the efficiency of external coaches. Evaluate the impact of culture on coaching. Analyse the possibilities of an organisation to increase its overall performance. Analyse the necessary preconditions to set up a successful coaching system. Evaluate the effectiveness/efficiency of telephone and Internet coaching. Develop a concept for implementing coaching successfully.

As this was a research project, it was agreed that the pilot should be free of charge. Only the telephone costs for the coaching sessions were to be paid by Rice University. Rice University and the students agreed that the pilot project and the research findings from it could be used in the research and publications would be accessible by the public. Confidentiality and anonymity were guaranteed with regard to the students being coached.

Scope of Coaching The scope of coaching contents was predefined to be related to the personal development/leadership issues of the student. It aimed to enhance the learning outcomes of the leadership studies. It was up to the students to take the initiative to contact their coaches by e-mail or phone to arrange the dates of the coaching sessions. Each student was given a coaching ‘budget’ of a maximum of twelve hours over a twelve-week period. With this time frame, it was up to the coaches and coachees to agree the regularity, duration and dates/times of the sessions. Coaches and coachees were also given information on using free Internet phoning software (Skype) for those who preferred Internet access. Initially, it was planned to offer eight student places. In fact, owing to demand, 19 coaches and coachees were paired up. As part of the AC complaints procedure, coachees were informed that any complaints could be made to the AC board via their student co-ordinator (US) and the UK co-ordinator of the programme. The

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coachees had full control of both the process and the evaluation of coaching at all times. As Bresser put it, ‘The coachee is always the “king” of the coaching process.’

Selection The coaches selected to participate in the programme were members of Association of Coaching. At the start of the programme, the co-ordinator sent a task profile to all potential candidates (AC members) via the AC e-mail system. Before the confirmation, the list of selected coaches (including their qualification profiles) was sent to the student co-ordinator, Susan Lieberman, so that the students could select their preferred coaches.

Results from the E-Questionnaire of the Evaluation The results of the evaluation from the transatlantic coaching pilot project were most encouraging. All the coachees who responded to the questionnaires (84% response rate) said that they would like the pilot to continue and reported that:

• The coaching programme had added value to their leadership studies. • The coaching was different from other experiences available to them. The majority of coachees indicated that increased self-awareness and reflection as value added to their leadership studies (>40%). What made coaching different from other experiences was that:

• • • •

The coaching was fully personalised and focused. It provided an independent, objective setting for developing thought. It was an interesting way to ‘step out of the box’ and get a wider perspective. Coaches were trained professionals with a lot of expertise, experience and knowledge to share.

The coachees especially liked the coaching experience because:

• It was tailored-made and personal. • The coaches were ‘great’. • The diverse viewpoints. The results also showed that external coaches, especially from other cultures or geographical locations were highly appreciated. They said that it was very beneficial to the whole coaching process, in particular in terms of bringing new perspectives

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and ensuring confidentiality. It provided a virtual space where coachees felt ‘safer’. The coaches who participated in the pilot project also reported that they had benefited from the experience in the following aspects:

• Coaching internationally and cross-culturally. • Coaching people with high potential. • Diverse viewpoints. A significant number of coachees preferred face-to-face coaching. Most found using phone cards more difficult than using the Internet phone (80% vs. 20% who reported difficulties). According to the feedback, the e-coaching programme could be improved in the following major aspects:

• Running the coaching sessions during term time (rather than between the two academic years. Providing help with scheduling to manage different time zones. • Providing more guidance at the beginning of the project. • Overall, all respondents (excluding the 24% of ‘don’t knows’) rated the coaching programme ‘very good’ or ‘good’. The majority (66%) of the coachees believed that having a permanent coaching programme would increase the attractiveness of the university as a place to study.

Long-Term Benefits – One Year on . . . One year after the transatlantic coaching pilot project ended, the coaches on the project formed a network and were still keeping in touch over the Internet, via emails, etc. We assessed the impact and legacy the pilot had on the coachees and Rice University. It was a pleasant surprise that we still received very positive feedback from some of our coachees. For example, one of the coaches reported that, Coaching in some form has remained [in Rice University] a year on and Rice is exploring the possibility of co-coaching for students. My coachee has been inspired to explore training in coaching for himself, as an important aspect of his future work. He told me fellow students were grateful to have had this experience, one they could not have afforded financially otherwise. He stressed how good it was for them to have this opportunity at a young age. His eyes were opened to another way of working with people and he continues to both develop and share his learning. A year on and the impact is still being felt, the young students have taken the gift we gave them and utilised it in their own leadership work.

CASE STUDY 3: NARRATIVE COACHING IN COMMUNITIES As described in Chapter 8, narrative coaching is adopted from Michael White’s therapeutic applications, which was originally drawn from Myerhoff (1982, 1986),

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a cultural anthropologist, who developed the definitional ceremony metaphor. The metaphor was applied to develop a community network as part of the coaching and mentoring programme in the UK. We chose to adopt the narrative approach because we found that clients who migrated to live and work in another country would find this approach most helpful. The typical problems for clients who suffered from a dislocation of place and hence culture include taking for granted their own signature strength, values and beliefs. The goals of the approach in this case were to develop the coachee’s skills and knowledge by re-authoring the stories of their life experience.

The Vision The vision was to create: A network of highly inspirational, skilful, talented leaders from diverse communities who come together to empower each other, thereby making each other even more inspirational, skilful, talented; and the communities become sustainable and more vibrant. (Law, Aga & Hill, 2006)

The aim was: To create a Community Network that empowers all the members within the Network, who in turn empower the diverse communities.

The objective of the conference was that, by the end, delegates would:

• Understand the nature of the community network and their role within the network and the communities.

• Form a foundation to proceed to the next phase. • Create a list of volunteers, with contact points, to sign up to be champions of the community network.

• Consider developing a social contract. The first step we took was to develop the skills of the members of the network to become leaders, so that they could:

• • • •

Lead the leaders. Train the trainers. Coach the coaches. Mentor the mentors.

We hoped that this would create a domino effect. During the initial session in the community network development, the delegates were coached in using facilitation skills. During the second session, the participants were introduced to the concepts

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of coaching, mentoring and the psychology that underpin their practice, including key definitions and a wide range of coaching and mentoring techniques.

The Conference – Definitional Ceremony The conference was held on a Saturday to ensure participants from diverse communities could attend. Over 40 people from the mixed community of Peterborough attended. The conference celebrated the successful completion of the Positive Image project. Applying narrative coaching to diverse communities is particularly challenging. Snowy Aga described the characteristics of the diverse community as follows: It sounds like a hundred drummers with different drums, each beating their own rhythm. It sounds like the cacophony of a hundred tribes, each speaking their own tongue. It sounds like a hundred calls for the same purpose.

The Camp Fire As an introduction to facilitate the definitional ceremony, a story was retold that had been acquired from the International Narrative Therapy Festive Conference, Adelaide, Australia (Combrink, Maree & Mabolo, 2006). The story went: In Karos and Kambro, drama, dance, stories, mime, creative writing and sharing life stories around the camp fire were all woven into an intricate pattern of hopes and dreams: Around the camp fire, They sang and danced It’s freedom from all things. Because children could talk freely About the good moments All the good things in life They’re able to know . . .

The storyteller then took out a stick, passed it round the group and asked them to try to break it. One man broke it in two with ease. The storyteller then presented a bundle of sticks and asked the the group to break it. The bundle was passed round, and some tried to break it with their hands and others across their knees. One by one each member of the group tried and failed. The storyteller pointed out that the bundle of sticks was a metaphor, the point of which was Alone, we are weak. United we are strong. Social collaboration is our strength.

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Acting as an outsider witness to retell the story, the facilitator revealed that this story had a particular resonance for him as a similar story had been told in China down the centuries. At the conference, a chopstick was passed round and the audience was asked to try to break it. The first participant broke the chopstick without any effort. Then a bundle of chopsticks was brought out, and no one could break it. The essence of the story was unchanged. A facilitative workshop was then carried out to redevelop their skills and knowledge using the narrative approach. This is based on the principle of re-authoring the stories of participants’ life experience (as described in the earlier chapters). Each group was asked for a volunteer storyteller and a volunteer interviewer. The storytellers were asked to recall a skill or knowledge they had recently acquired and talk to the interviewer about it. The others acted as outsider witnesses. Each outsider witness group was asked to have at least one volunteer to perform the retelling later at the plenary session. The theme of the exercise focused the participants to produce:

• • • •

A list of relevant skills and knowledge for the community network. A list of values relevant to a social contract. A list of actions to proceed to the next phase. A list of volunteers (with contact points) to sign up to be champions of the community network, who would take the above actions forward.

The audience in the plenary session became a large outsider witness group and acted as a community for witnessing and honouring the retelling and retelling of retelling of the various stories. The outcome was both enlightening and empowering.

The Story of Line Dancing At the feedback session, Group 1’s spokesperson (an outsider witness) retold a story of someone’s experience in learning line dancing. Another outsider witness in the group described the resonance she had by listening to the story which made her feel like joining the storyteller’s line dancing class. When asked (having listened to the retelling of her own story) what resonance she had in terms of her own values, hopes and dreams, the storyteller reported a sense of reassurance about her own values and thinking about learning new skills, for example, another language, etc. One participant from another group pointed out the link between food, music and dance. As universal values, they had the potential to engage and communicate across cultures.

The Youngest Leader It was very moving that an eight-year-old girl had the confidence to be the storyteller in Group 2. She told us about her experience of learning to speak English. She

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reported that when she and her family first arrived in England she could not speak a word of English. Two years later it was very encouraging to hear her addressing the audience in English. Interestingly, once she started, her younger brother joined in, speaking about his experience too. His resonance was transported into the courage to speak.

The Story of the Future Group The outsider witness in Group 3 introduced the storyteller who had lived in England for 16 years. This story-teller also spoke about his experience of learning to speak English in his case by talking to English people. One of his hopes and dreams for the future was to set up a group to help people from different cultures to learn English. This could act as a means to unify different cultures, he said, and to discover ‘the truth to be human’.

‘The Rise and Fall of a Yorkshire Pudding’ The Group 4 spokesperson titled the story of their group ‘The rise and fall of a Yorkshire Pudding’. (A Yorkshire pudding is made from a flour and milk batter. It used to be popular in England as an accompaniment to roast beef for a traditional Sunday lunch.) The story described how a woman learnt to make Yorkshire pudding as a young wife and mother. Initially, it did not work – the Yorkshire pudding collapsed rather than rising as it should. She interpreted this as a failure to perform her role (of mother and wife?). In the end, she learned that it really did not matter whether the Yorkshire pudding was flat or not as long as she had done her best. (This has a resonance with Csikszentmihalyi’s (1991) concept of optimal experience – the flow.) The story demonstrated that something as simple as cooking could review one’s value, role and identity. When listening to her story being retold by the outsider witness, the storyteller felt that the story confirmed her sense of self and identity and her value. It gave her a sense of pride. She would like to take further action to go out and talk and listen to more people’s stories. (We later received the feedback that the story was actually told from a feminist perspective. This threw light on the hidden thread of the storyline. Viewed from a feminist discourse, it might suggest the original storyteller was trying to express the gender inequality in society; the different power relationship operates not just in the workplace, but also at home as an expression of society’s wider cultural expectations.)

The Story of Disillusionment Not all stories were positive. As the conference members came from diverse communities, some of them had suffered discrimination and social alienation. The

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spokesperson in Group 5 described the storyteller whose family originally came from the Caribbean. She was a fourth-generation child born in Britain. She depicted her story as ‘a long struggle to mainstream equality and a feeling of disillusionment’. She described many skills and ideas she had to help people suffering from drug abuse and withdrawal symptoms, such as setting up a drug abuse centre, volunteer groups, etc. However, she felt that over the last 22 years she had remained on the margins, received very little or no help and was not in the ‘mainstream’. She said listening to the story from Group 3 about the hopes and dreams to set up a group to help others break down cultural barriers resonated with her own past struggle. She did not want them to experience disillusionment as she had. The discussion quickly evolved into a political debate about what the government and local authorities should do. This is a good example of the risk of following a negative story line, which requires re-centring by the facilitator to the central theme.

The Story of Ice Skating and Ice Hockey The outsider witness retold the story of how the storyteller learned to ice skate, and as a result injured her back. However, she did not give up. Instead of ice-skating she learnt a new skill and found a new hobby in ice hockey. The retelling of the story gave the storyteller a sense of pride and self-esteem. It confirmed her value – the courage of taking action to ‘get out of one’s own comfort zone’.

Landscape of Consciousness Mapping Landscape of Action To summarise, the resonance of listening to the retelling of participants’ own stories generated the following emotions/values (landscape of consciousness) and actions (landscape of actions):

Landscape of Consciousness • • • • • • • • • •

a sense of pride respect reassurance realisation of self and new skills a sense of self-achievement realisation of the past sacrifice self-awareness self-realisation moral considerations happy memories

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• • • • •


a sense of trust a sense of responsibility courage motivation commitment

Landscape of Action • • • • • • • • •

communicate get involved with others break down barriers make decisions make stronger commitment overcome hostility overcome prejudices translate theory into action take positive action

Action Plan From the conference, the groups generated a number of concrete actions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

Join the community network. Be part of the community network. Be involved, don’t just ‘talk’; take ‘action’. Share and participate at all levels. Create and foster opportunities for the involvement of others especially minority groups. Discuss and take forward the ideas of the ‘camp fire’ and storytelling in their organisations. Ensure contact details and interests are shared. Ask, ‘What can we bring to the party?’ Get involved with networking opportunities. Help the community network to regenerate deprived areas.

Follow-up Feedback The conference report was published in the form of a newsletter – The Cutting Edge – and was sent to all the participants, stakeholders and wider communities in the form of an e-journal (Law et al., 2006). Some of the feedback was encouraging:

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I was very inspired to read about how [the workshop] . . . created ways to share your learning to further community development. What stood out to me was the expansiveness [of the] diversity of people and projects together, to empower them to be able to use the knowledge you gained from Narrative training. [The] story gave me the image of drawing together many different people – of diverse ages and cultures, ideas and resources to create communities – in a way that involved lots of noise, movement, laughter, and maybe mess! One thing that resonated with me, was the way that children and older peoples voices were heard (I gleaned this from the retelling and photos), as the inclusion of generations in any community development seems very important to me. Your ‘telling’ has got me thinking how I might include the voices of older and younger people in the lives of the adult women I work with, who have often become very isolated as a result of abuse.

Outcome It was a pleasant surprise to see the idea of telling stories around the campfire in Karos and Kambro had caught the community’s imagination. A participant at the story retelling session asked, ‘Where is the campfire in Peterborough?’ Many others were inspired to create a camp fire in their own communities. As a part of the outcome, a new community network was set up.

Difficulties Encountered Difficulties included:

• The validity, reliability and representation of the primary authors who told the stories. As a narrative practitioner playing an ethnographer’s role to retell, report and disseminate the stories of individuals and groups from the diverse communities, we felt an ethical dilemma about whether we had done justice in honouring and respecting those people. Some of the stories were very personal and politically sensitive. Questions raised include: Are the retold stories a fair representation of the intention of the storytellers? Are the retold stories valid, and do they reliably represent the meaning of the originals? • Acknowledgements to the stakeholders – in order to maintain confidentiality, the names and identities of the storytellers are kept anonymous. In doing so, acknowledgements to those individuals in honouring the source of the stories became difficult. • Our responsibility as coaches, consultants and researchers in disseminating those stories. On one hand, like academic researchers, we felt that we had a professional duty to publish those stories, to share skills and knowledge among our colleagues. On the other, this had to be balanced against the sensitivities and honouring of those individuals who contributed to those stories and knowledge. • Ownership of the stories – some of the stories were highly idiosyncratic and personal, yet once they were told and retold at the conference, and published in the

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public domain, skills and knowledge were shared amongst communities. While some may be very happy for their stories to be disseminated in this way, as it embeds and transports the knowledge, some may feel their stories are too private to share in a wider domain. This raises questions of ownership and authorship. Do the writers who write and report the stories own the authorship, or should the storytellers own their stories. Who has the power, responsibility and control for disseminating the stories and knowledge, and for whose benefit? • Rules and regulations – owing to the rules and regulations of the organisation, setting up the fire at a nature reserve was judged to be highly undesirable by the management. In the end, we had to use a metaphor: lighting a candle and setting up a marquee instead of creating a real fire. • The weather – setting up a camp fire and telling stories outdoors in England turned out to be very challenging. Even though the follow-up event was held in the summer – the hottest week of the year – it had to be cancelled at the last minute due to a thunderstorm!

CASE STUDY 4 – BEYOND COACH/MENTORING TO COORDINATING The final case study addresses the role of the coordinator in leading and supporting the UIF approach in practice. It considers issues of selecting coordinators, their competence and qualities and role in working across a global programme. The project relates to a multi-national programme involving West African, European and Asian businesses, which is still embryonic.

Background The programme relates to a network of businesses, which want to trade more effectively in the global market place. All have access to the Internet. Their common vision is that they want to form new collaborations, which enable them to access markets that they might otherwise be unable to enter, based on their size and productivity limitations. The instrument to bring about this network was union membership and membership of Chambers of commerce world-wide. The number of participant organisations already spans hundreds. The project is still at the stage of continued strategic planning and development within a partnership framework. The coaching/mentoring input currently is strategic, to identify an integrated approach to whole systems thinking for the achievement of shared business aims and so that coaching/mentoring benefits can be realised in the longer term as part of leadership and collaboration development. The nature of the coaching/mentoring support for this endeavour will be varied and flexible depending on the capacity, capability and technology of the partner organisation. There has also been an emphasis on system and infra-structure

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development to support a core universal approach to coaching/mentoring using the web as the point of access for each registered co-ordinator. The system development in progress spans database development, electronic matching of pairings, training materials for cascading training on coaching/mentoring and frameworks for supervision. In particular the CMSI tool and UIF framework have been universally adopted as a system for monitoring the impact of coaching/mentoring in the spread and development of shared practice to develop new methods of working together. Progress in the project is sporadic as the needs and priorities of investors, stakeholders, partners, computer programmers and project leaders in this very complex context, ebb and flow. The nature and scope of the undertaking means that the project remains fragile and vulnerable.

The Recruitment and Selection of Coordinators of Coaching/Mentoring Unlike many schemes in the UK, the international programme has not set up specific coaching/mentoring co-ordinators. A business case for coaching/mentoring was put forward. As a result, coaching/mentoring was adopted as an integrated developmental process to support the strategic aims of the network. When the focus of growth is about new collaborations to share practice in order to work together, rather than hierarchical development, the development process needs to be fast, informal, flexible and accessible. As such, the coaching/mentoring co-ordinator function was absorbed as a core business management role for regional project managers in the network, across countries and regions. In terms of developing a person and role specification for partners in the network in this area of leadership, a list of requirements was generated to compliment or blend in with local project manager specifications, as follows:

• emotional intelligence • interpersonal skills evidenced across a range of media (technology skills was • • • • •

already a competency requirement) networking skills receptiveness to coaching/mentoring and some trackrecord of developing others cross cultural understanding influencing and negotiating skills facilitation skills

The assessment of receptiveness to coaching/mentoring has been supported by online tools. Information was supplied to build up awareness before training commenced. The coaching/mentoring aspects of the co-ordinator role was required to perform the following tasks and processes.

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• • • • • • •


identify beneficiaries of coaching/mentoring identify particular areas of experience where individuals are seeking partners match participants in pairings using databases and facilitation supply formats for contracting offer awareness training using a range of media as appropriate offer opportunities for CPD via e-supervision, forums and workshops/meetings manage the on-line coaching/mentoring systems for their region and share their learning with the wider network

Training Plan The plan is to have access to training programmes for the network from mid-2007 for co-ordinators with on-line e-coaching and mentoring programmes also available. The training will develop general coaching/mentoring skills, specific e-coaching and mentoring skills and development for the co-ordinator role. However in the interim, there are always those agencies that are ahead and need supporting, until some universal frameworks are available. These are the players whose experience will shape the process for those that follow.

The Eager Players There are a few co-ordinators in place who have enthusiastically embraced the possibilities of coaching/mentoring already. They already have experience of it. They are working hard to embed sustainable coaching/mentoring practice in the relationships that they are cultivating. Some of these sustainable elements include:

• Setting up groups and sub-networks that use coaching and mentoring principles to extend learning and share practice.

• Spotting coaches/mentors with interest, credibility and commitment and preparing them to take on delegated co-ordinator duties such as brokering matches between pairs and match making. By setting up distributed leadership capability for coaching/mentoring they are investing in succession planning for co-ordinator roles in the future. • Involving participants in resource and system piloting and adaptation for regional needs. • Encouraging people who have experienced coaching/mentoring to become coaches/mentors too.

Cross Cultural Supervision Issues Whilst players adapt the coaching/mentoring process for their own needs, supervision and continued professional development, across cultures and contexts brings

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its own challenges. They are no more, and probably no different, than the challenges facing the wider project in terms of building new collaborations based on trust and mutual respect. One of the issues experienced in e-supervision relates to the exploration of transference and counter-transference in the coaching/mentoring relationships and the coach/mentor/supervisor roles, as derived from the psychodynamic tradition of psychology. Transference is seen as the enactment in the relationship (often by the client or coachee/mentee) of historical, child-like patterns or relationships that took place with key childhood figures such as parents and now is extended to the coach/mentor. Counter-transference in a coaching/mentoring relationship describes behaviour (and feelings) shown by the coach/mentor when a client or coachee/mentee triggers memories of someone else from the coach’s/mentor’s real or fantasised experience. In a cross-cultural context, transference and counter-transference go beyond individual experience of relationships with parents and teachers to their experience of being part of a collective group and their dealings with other collective groups. In a minority of these coach/mentor and supervisor relationships the endurance of the colonialist legacy of the west, is evidenced in how they initially respond to one another. Some individuals have been reluctant to share practice with European colleagues. Other individuals have underestimated their Asian and African colleagues, at the level of individual, business and national capability and capacity. Although it might not be appropriate in the context of these micro-relationships, the historical experience of unfairness and the continuation of Western exploitation in some parts of the world explains such reticence and stereotyping. For the most part, individuals have worked eagerly across cultures with tremendous input on all sides. Building trust is essential. This takes longer than expected. Being prepared to be coached/mentored by someone else from a different culture evidences a willingness to be open to new learning and the fluidity of roles and positions in this process. For those who have experienced the unfairness of fixed systems, where there are barriers to entry, this provides reassurance of something different.

CHAPTER SUMMARY AND REFLECTION In this chapter we have taken coaching/mentoring beyond the micro-level experience (one-to-one relationships). We have addressed some of the collective and strategic issues that inform the establishment of sustainable coaching/mentoring systems. The process needs to embody the flexibility and informality required to make learning happen at the micro-level of experience but also ensure that an infrastructure is in place to support its continuity. At the micro-level of experience, perhaps coaching/ mentoring is practised as an art form. At the level of strategy and system development, it has to become more scientific and systematic. Coaching and mentoring cannot stay still. It has to be capable of growing and expanding to take root. As Carl Jung said, ‘Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.’ We hope that, having read the case studies, readers

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will see that the coaching/mentoring process is a transformation from unconscious to conscious – whether through CBT, story-telling or self-reflection. In these cases, coaches/mentors performed multiple roles, sometime as a leader to inspire participants, at other times as facilitators or simply as participants where they take a back seat (decentred position); and at yet other times, they may be thinkers/writers to reflect on the lessons learnt. Throughout these different engagements, coaches/ mentors use themselves as a vehicle for change (in terms of gestalt philosophy). We have observed and experienced that coaches/mentors seem to share a common attitude, posture and values, though their forms of expression, languages terminology, styles and techniques may vary, depending on clients, contexts and cultures. A competent coach/mentor seems to be able to bring coaching/mentoring alive by holding on to this core common passion and yet be equipped with diverse experience, techniques, skills and knowledge for even more diverse applications. That calls for a systematic/scientific approach to learning and evaluation of coaching/mentoring as well as practising it creatively. We discuss this further in Chapters 10 and 11.

CHAPTER 10

Evaluation INTRODUCTION The literature in coaching tends to illustrate different techniques or psychological approaches. There is a need for evidence-based evaluation of the effectiveness of coaching. We advocate in this chapter impact assessment as a methodology to evaluate the effectiveness of a coaching programme. The key question is: How will we realise the benefits? This chapter provides a detailed evaluation of the theories, tools and techniques we have developed in our coaching and mentoring programmes. This emphasises the evidence-based evaluation. It provides an evaluation framework, its implementation process and the results in terms of the outcome and impact. The generic evaluation methodology described in the first section can be used to assist evaluators and managers in the development of plans for evaluating and monitoring coaching and mentoring programmes. It sets out the core elements that should be covered in an evaluation plan. From an organisational perspective, an evaluation plan can be established before implementing for a coaching and mentoring programme. Evaluation is an important part of the business process to improve the success of coaching and mentoring programmes in achieving organisational objectives, assist resource allocation and provide accountability.

EVALUATION METHODOLOGY This section provides a detailed description of the methodology to be used as well as the result of some coaching and mentoring programmes based on our Universal Integrated Framework (Chapter 6). We have developed an effective evaluation methodology based on 20 years’ experience in research and evaluation. The impact evaluation methodology was developed from Ho Law’s work on a large-scale evaluation of the Home Office’s £30 million Safer Cities Programme (see Ekblom, Law & Sutton, 1996, http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs/hors164.pdf). This is now regarded as the standard for best practice. The evaluation methodology that we have developed is also consistent with the ROAMEF Framework in accordance with the Department of Trade and Industry

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(2006) and the Treasury’s ‘Green Book’ guidelines (HMSO, 1997). The ROAMEF Framework consists of the following components: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Rationale. Objectives. Appraisal. Monitoring. Evaluation. Feedback.

The framework can be embedded in our reflective learning wheel (Chapter 3) which yields an integrated ROAMEF framework (Figure 10.1):

Step 1: Rationale The first step is to carry out an overview of the programme to ensure that two prerequisites are met: 1. Needs – the needs of individual coachees/mentees as well as the needs of organisation as a whole. These must be clearly identified by the person who proposes the programme: the coach/mentor or coachee/mentee or the project manager. 2. Benefit – the benefit of any proposed coaching/mentoring initiative is likely to outweigh the cost of the programme itself.

6. Feedback

1. Rationale: abstract conception 2. Objectives (in action plan)

5. Evaluation Internal transformation: consciousness emerges

3. Appraisal

4b. Analysis

3a Implementation

4a. Cognition and emotion

4. Monitoring:

External transformation: towards behaviour

Data from external source

Figure 10.1 Integrated ROAMEF Framework (from http://greenbook.treasury.gov.uk/ chapter02.htm)

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The overview should also include both pros and cons, which consists of two negative perspectives:

• Negative consequences – list any negative consequences that may arise from the coaching/mentoring programme. In other words, will there be any adverse effect on the organisation as a result of running the programme? For example, what if the coachees leave the organisation after the coaching sessions? • Do nothing option – what are the consequence of not intervening with coaching/mentoring? For a coaching/mentoring programme to take place within an organisation, the benefit must outweigh both of these risks. The research involved to answer the questions above will provide scope as well as the rationale for the coaching and mentoring programme.

Step 2: Objectives The second step is to set out clearly the objectives of the proposed coaching/mentoring programme and its desired outcomes. The objectives should state clearly what the coaching/mentoring programme is intended to achieve. There may be a hierarchy of outcomes, outputs and targets that will have been identified during the introduction of the programme (see Chapter 5). Outcomes are the eventual benefits to the organisation, coachees/mentees or whoever funded the programme. Outputs are the deliverables – for example, the number of coaching/mentoring activities that can be clearly stated or measured. Objectives can be expressed in terms of desired outcomes. However, some outcomes may not be quantifiable – for example, increased job satisfaction, motivation and aspirations. In this case one can specify outputs as intermediate steps, and link them to an indirect outcome, such as an increase in productivity and a decrease in absenteeism, etc. It is important to demonstrate how the output and the desired outcomes relate to each other. In a hypothetical diverse coaching/mentoring programme, the overall objective may be described as: To address the major gap in leadership and equality within in the organisation by introducing a coaching and mentoring programme so that the senior professional composition reflects the number of diverse employees who have demonstrated their professional competences.

The targets set according to the described outputs and desired outcomes may include:

• An optimal level of performance • Human capital

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• The number of coaching/mentoring places that will be provided by the end of the programme (with a specific date)

• Increased productivity for coachees/mentees • Proportion of workforce achieving professional competence • Reduction in the dropout rate Step 3a: Appraisal From the executive’s perspective, the most significant part of the business process is an appraisal of the coaching/mentoring proposal. There may be many options (apart from the coaching/mentoring programme) to be reviewed in order to meet the objectives identified. This provides the parameters of an appropriate solution to the need of the organisation as well as the individual stakeholders. A manageable number of proposed options can then be short-listed. The ‘do minimum’ option should always be included as a baseline against which to assess alternative interventions, such as coaching/mentoring. Executives who own the budget for the coaching and mentoring programme provide an appraisal of whether the programme is approved at the outset, or not. The decision-making includes an assessment of whether the proposal is beneficial to the organisation as well as to the coaches/mentees. The assessment is done by project managers or the coaches/mentors who have been recruited for the programme. The conclusions and recommendations are clearly communicated to all stakeholders. The essential technique of assessment is to evaluate the available options, whereby the coaching/mentoring programme is validated, objectives are set and options are created and reviewed, by analysing their costs and benefits. Within this framework, cost–benefit analysis (CBA) is recommended, as contrasted with cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA), with supplementary techniques to be used for weighing up any costs and benefits that remain unvalued. The process of appraising a coaching/mentoring proposal is iterative – that is, it is repeated a number of times before the best option is selected. This is sometimes referred to as sensitivity analysis, where the question ‘What if . . . ? is raised in the decision-making process. For example, ‘What if option A is £x cheaper or option B can increase £y of benefit after five years instead of two?’ Thus CBA and CEA techniques may also be repeated. The ROAMEF cycle may not always be followed sequentially. It is recommended that the evaluator review the impact of risks, uncertainties and inherent biases more than once. This prevents spurious accuracy, and provides good value for money assurance despite changing circumstances.

Cost–Benefit Analysis (CBA) In the appraisal stage the coaching/mentoring programme evaluator needs to quantify the benefits the coaching/mentoring will bring to the coachees/mentees and the

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organisation as well as the costs that will be incurred. The former may include increases in productivity while the latter may include the consultant’s fee as well as staff time in participating in the programme. The former may also include items for which the market does not provide a satisfactory measure of economic value – for example, an increase in job satisfaction and employees’ motivation.

Cost-Effectiveness Analysis (CEA) CEA compares the costs of alternative ways of producing the same or similar benefits. For example, can an increase in productivity and performance be brought about by formal training instead of coaching/mentoring?

Step 3b: Implementation We have introduced a sub-step – implementation that follows appraisal within the ROAMEF framework to complete our learning cycle. After the best option has been selected, it should be translated into action. Implementation should include consultation, and include all the stakeholders, as well as an impact assessment before procurement takes place.

Step 4: Monitoring Like any successful project management, a coaching/mentoring programme should be monitored to ensure that it progresses according to the plan. This usually involves a monthly management meeting with key stakeholders – the programme executive, senior suppliers and user representatives. In our coaching and mentoring programme, we asked coachees/mentees to keep a journal to describe their coaching/mentoring experience. This enables both coaches/mentors and coachees/mentees to monitor their development as well as address any barriers or difficulties encountered during the coaching/mentoring journey.

Step 5: Evaluation Evaluation examines the outputs as well as the outcomes of the coaching/mentoring programme against what was expected. It also ensures that the lessons learnt are fed back into the decision-making process. This ensures that the future coaching/ mentoring programme is refined to reflect what best achieves the objectives and promotes the coachees’/mentees’ as well as the organisation’s interest. For evaluating the effectiveness of coaching/mentoring programmes, one may find it useful to refer to the established model by Kirkpatrick (1959). The model examines four levels of impact:

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1. 2. 3. 4.


Reaction to the programme and planned action. Learning. Behavioural change. Business results such as return on investment (ROI).

Techniques for evaluation are similar to appraisal techniques in terms of how they link to the programme objectives – its outputs and outcomes. However, owing to the obvious timing in the coaching/mentoring journey in the learning cycle, at the evaluation stage (i.e. after the implementation of the coaching/mentoring programme) one should be able to use actual (historical) data rather than estimates from forecasts. Its purpose is not only to check whether the objectives have been met, but also to learn any lessons including analyses of surprise. This will then be communicated to all stakeholders and contribute to the future intervention or proposals. The evaluation typically follows a sequence of steps: 1. Establish what is to be evaluated and how past outturns can be measured. 2. Set new targets, output and desired outcomes, which are the results of implementing the coaching and mentoring programme. 3. Compare the outturn with the target outturn, and with the outcomes of the coaching and mentoring programme. 4. Present the results and recommendations. 5. Disseminate and use the results and recommendations. Key questions in evaluation include:

• To what extent did the anticipated costs and benefits match the actual outcome (‘benefits realisation’)?

• In the light of experience with the target group of coachees/mentees, would better

• • • •

results have been achieved if this group had been more tightly defined, e.g. the alternative option of focusing purely on BME workers or new employees from different cultures? Has any new information about the impact of the coaching/mentoring programme come to light since it was implemented? How effective is it in meeting the organisation’s objectives? Were the assessed risks for completion of the coaching/mentoring programme justified or did they understate/exaggerate the true risk? Control group – how does the productivity of those individuals who undertook the coaching/mentoring programme compare to the productivity of workers of similar skill who were not offered the opportunities?

For our case study in the National Health Service (NHS), we carried out a summative evaluation of the activity to assess its effectiveness and value added in terms of its goals, objectives and scope of the programme as initially defined. This includes both process and impact evaluations.

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The evaluation aims to provide answers to the following key questions: 1. What has the coaching and mentoring programme achieved in meeting its objectives? 2. What impact has the programme had in the region and what is its contribution to achieving the strategy goals of the health services in the region? The principal aim of the evaluation is therefore to assess the direct and indirect impact of the coaching and mentoring programme in terms of its remit to health service mentoring across the region (and in several areas identified in the regional strategy and corporate plan). Impact evaluation requires us to link the input of a project to its output and outcome. It is an effective way to demonstrate value for money and assess the extent to which the project has met it aims and objectives. We understand that in order to understand what works so that lessons can be learnt for future improvement, we need to carry out a process evaluation. This requires us to examine the process of the project implementation and to investigate the success and failures of activities involved in the project as a whole. Impact and process evaluation complement each other. These are two approaches from our complete evaluation strategy and are summarised in Figure 10.2. For our coaching and mentoring programme, we understand that we are given dual evaluation aims that require us not only to evaluate the extent to which it has met its programme aims and objectives and assess its impact, but also to identify the learning points and what works so that services can be improved in the future. Thus we recommend a complete evaluation methodology, i.e. both impact and process evaluation approaches should be used. In the rest of this section, we explain how the above approaches can be translated into the coaching/mentoring programme evaluation in detail.

Process Evaluation The process evaluation aims at compiling good practice information. Since our coaching/mentoring programme began in 2004, we have been able to carry out the Process evaluation

Input

Process

Output

Impact evaluation

Figure 10.2 Evaluation methodology

Outcome

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process evaluation by looking for ‘success stories’ that might teach us something about good coaching/mentoring practice. We can use detailed retrospective case studies of x number of coachees/mentees. We can also conduct an assessment of the successes coaching and mentoring activities have had (e.g. improved quality of coaching/mentoring). We collected brief descriptions of each activity and its impact, and determined what worked by carrying out semi-structured interviews with coachees/mentees (results are given below). We also elicited the views of professional coaches/mentors not engaged with our coaching and mentoring programme but who used our coaching/mentoring selfreview online tool. They provided feedback about the value that the tool might add to their activities and the benefit(s) they gained from it. The data collected from the process evaluation were mostly qualitative. Data analyses usually involve interpreting the interview transcript and text. Usually a number of key themes emerge from the qualitative data analyses.

Impact Evaluation The overall focus in impact evaluation is on the impact of the project as a whole. In practice, the evaluation requires us to drill down to the aims and objectives of the project and assess the extent to which they are met by mapping the project output and outcome of each aim and objective. The objectives of our coaching and mentoring programme include:

• • • •

Support and develop coaching and mentoring. Improve the quality of coaching and mentoring. Increase the performance of the coachees/mentees. Build a coaching/mentoring network.

For each of these objectives, we have identified key performance targets for measurement.

Measuring Outcome The impact evaluation methodology requires us to link measures of the input–output (project action) to measures of outcome. Our first step is to link the coaching and mentoring programme objectives to its aims. For each aim and objective we identify the key performance indicators. These are summarised in Figure 10.3.

Input Data In making our impact evaluation, we drew on the following data sets:

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Feedback: conclusion and recommendations

Choose/define Indicator

Verify Results

Set Targets

Figure 10.3 Impact evaluation

• • • •

Demographic data from the coaching/mentoring database. Process data from lists of participants. Supportive data (e.g. research reports and pilot activity reports). Qualitative data from interviews, discussion and consultation.

The nature of the impact evaluation was mostly quantitative with some qualitative (descriptive data) that would be fed to the process evaluation. Appropriate statistical analyses were performed, as data sets were large enough.

EVALUATION OF UNIVERSAL INTEGRATED FRAMEWORK In this section, we demonstrate how evaluation of the UIF was carried out in one of the case studies described in Chapter 9. In this case study, the coaching/mentoring programme was introduced in a health and social care setting. The programme required delegates to commit to mentoring/coaching for up to four days over a twelve-month period. They were introduced to the UIF via a wide range of coaching/mentoring techniques and practical exercises (see Chapter 8). According to our guiding principle of coach/coachee/mentee fluidity (see Chapter 6), all participants first became coachees/mentees paired with appropriate coaches/mentors within the organisation. They then became coaches/mentors for the others after they became competent. As described in Chapter 6, our UIF aims to help participants get feedback on their performance from their coachees/mentees, so we developed an online tool, the Coaching Competence Self Review (CCSR), which embeds Cross-Cultural Coaching and Mentoring Intelligence (CCCMI; see Chapter 6). This provides assessment of their personal effectiveness and automatically generates a personal development

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plan for them to use in supervision. Individuals were asked to assess themselves on coaching indicators using the online tool. CCSR was developed based on the UIF. It aimed to help mentors/coaches with their development particularly of emotional intelligence from a cultural perspective. In total, the tool consisted of four dimensions (personal, social, cultural and professional) and 18 elements with 110 questions (see Chapter 6). The benefits of the UIF framework were that we were able to embed the core skills and process into the organisation in a sustainable way and as a result of the universality of these core skills this significantly impacted on the way we work. To realise the benefits we measured how supervision and CPD (see Chapter 6) contributed to the success of the leadership programme. The online CCSR tool provided information as well as feedback through supervision which yielded qualitative data. These allowed us to gather the evidence acquired on best practice and make recommendations for future practice. In order to ensure that the CCSR tool was amenable to statistical analysis, we needed to decide the key performance indicator (KPI) for emotional intelligence (EI), evidence of increase in work performance and progress, in terms of:

• • • •

quality quantity personal effectiveness the overall effectiveness of the organisation

For the statistical evaluation of the CCSR tool with the 18 elements described in Chapter 6, a linear multivariate regression can be used. The general equation takes the following form: y = b0 + b1xi + uj where: y = KPI b0 = intercept b1 = coefficients of the EI elements xi = the elements of CCSR x1, x2, . . . x21 uj = random variables The demographic and user ethnicity, as well as their EI scores across the three dimensions of the UIF, could also be used as explanatory variables xi. Thus the CCSR tool should have user categories according to the census. We need to decide what KPI to use for variable y. This may be coaching competence, salary or scores from the 360-degree feedback. As stated earlier, a full evaluation of the mentoring and coaching strategy and its implementation as an approach to support leadership development was carried out

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using questionnaires, focus groups and the coaching competence online CCSR tool, the results of which were published at the time of writing (Law et al., 2006).

Results The data from the online CCSR tool were statistically analysed using the participant competency scores against overall rating scores. Owing to missing values in some data fields, the initial 49 respondents were reduced to 23 (the complete data set after the missing data were excluded in the analyses). The findings supported the survey and the use of the UIF model for coach mentoring. The results are summarised as follows:

• Personal competency with its link with authenticity was the best predictor of allround competency (p < 0.04).

• Competence increased with age/life experience; see Figure 10.4 (ANOVA F = 9.7; p < 0.00015).

• There were no gender differences, see Figure 10.5 (p = 0.5). • There was a significant correlation between personal competence, social competence (understanding, empowering, communication, facilitating conflict, leadership facilitation, team coaching and coaching for change) and cultural competence

100% 90% 80%

Competence

70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% 18–30

31–40

41–50 Ag e

Figure 10.4 Competence increases with age

5 1 a n d o ve r

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0 .8

0 .7

0 .6

Competence

0 .5

0 .4

0 .3

0 .2

0 .1

0 F e m a le

M a le Ge nd e r

Figure 10.5

Coaching competence: female vs. male participants

90% 80% 70% Scores

60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Bl ack

As i a n

W hite

Ethnicity

Figure 10.6

Coaching competence: differences among ethnic groups

(appreciation of, respect for and championing different ways of being or doing) (r = 0.7). • Like the mentee/coachee survey, the highest rated coach mentors were black participants, followed by Asians and then whites in respect of total competency scores, see Figure 10.6 (ANOVA F = 6.6; p = 0.06).

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BENEFITS OF COACHING/MENTORING TO ORGANISATIONS The practical benefits of coaching/mentoring have been widely documented. The literature review undertaken by Garvey and Garrett-Harris (2005) for the East Mentoring Forum describes the main benefits as being broadly in motivational aptitude, knowledge and skills development, managing change and succession, and business performance benefits with both coaches/mentors and coachees/mentees gaining from the relationship. Commonly, motivational benefits for the coachee/mentee in the research literature are cited in terms of career advancement, improved commitment to business and organisation, improved job satisfaction and increased income. Knowledge and skills development for coachees/mentees are cited in terms of improved abilities and skills, faster learning, enhanced decision-making, improved understanding of business and organisation workings (e.g. politics, policies, enhanced positive risk-taking and improved support for innovation). By managing change and succession, coachees/mentees gain in confidence and well-being. This is part of the development of leaders and leadership abilities and behaviours that are supportive of change. For coaches/mentors research studies cite improved job performance through enhanced understanding and knowledge of other perspectives, improved communication, advances of minority groups, improved self-awareness, job satisfaction and loyalty, rejuvenation and an opening up to new opportunities. Business benefits identified through the review of the literature include reduction in staff turnover, improvement in retention, improved flow of communication, opportunity for talent management, improvement of organisational learning, increased knowledge transfer, effective and cost-effective training. The benefits to the health and social care sector have also been cited by research commissioned in 2004 by the leadership centre of the NHS and the Department of Health. They include the impact on doctors of mentoring, identified-improved reflection skills, support for dealing with specific problems, and findings that coaching and mentoring promote nurses’ growth and development to become future leaders (Madison, 1994). Benefits identified by nurses include: enhanced thinking, risktaking, increased self-esteem, greater wisdom, political awareness, job enrichment and performance. Developing strategies to deal with and resolve problems was identified by doctors as organisational benefits. Coachees/mentees stated benefits around support for changing the way things were done, making significant changes in direction, confidence-building in decision-making and improved self-worth and job satisfaction. Mentors stated that their motivation and job satisfaction had increased and reported greater satisfaction in developing talents, improved relations with colleagues and patients through increased awareness of others’ perspectives and enhanced problem-solving skills. In some approaches coaches/mentors may benefit as much or more than the coachee/mentee (often when chief executives are involved), but overall coachees/ mentees benefit more than others. More studies cite motivational benefits, business

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and organisation performance improvement and skills and knowledge development as the primary benefits. In short the main benefits to coachees/mentees are improved performance and productivity, career opportunities and advancement, improved knowledge and skills, and greater confidence and well-being. For coaches/mentors, the primary benefits are improved performance, greater satisfaction, loyalty and self-awareness, and leadership development. Business outcomes are primarily staff retention, improved motivation and relationships and enhanced knowledge and organisation learning. However, mentoring/coaching has a specific contribution to make to a learning organisation dealing with an evolving and complex agenda. The mentor/coach is required to move between the spectrum of coaching/mentoring seamlessly, paying attention to how the individual is responding to change at a personal level and balancing their whole life, the requirement to facilitate the meeting of short-term targets at the same time as constantly reworking longer-term scenarios and planning for them. Participants gain from having time to think, reflect and review their learning in a safe environment to the benefit of the organisation as well as their personal development. A regular focus is useful to ensure that their thinking and action are sustainable. A review of any changes in the environment is essential. In a region-wide NHS survey of the benefits of coaching/mentoring in 2004, 82% of the participants found the experience good or excellent. Benefits to the mentees were grouped in four areas: motivation and positive view of work; learning and skills acquisition; career development; change management and innovation. In the motivation category coachees/mentees described feeling valued and making a positive contribution. One stated, ‘Even in these difficult times, I feel I am learning new things and my morale is high when people around me want to give up.’ Another co-coach described it as ‘life-changing’ and a co-coachee stated, ‘It has enabled me to see where I can go and the route to being the manager that I want to be.’ Under learning and skills acquisition many identified ‘increased political awareness and how the wider system works’ as a key learning area. Six staff identified career development through promotion and attributed it to the mentoring/coaching experience to some degree but many more in group and individual responses identified increased ‘role activity’, such as taking on more and diverse roles, working across boundaries, wider networking, joining new groups and project streams and ‘fuller participation in the work of the Trust as a whole’. Under change management participants identified that they were ‘more likely to take calculated risks to achieve a goal and feel more resilient in this fickle system’. Benefits to coaches/mentors were cited in similar categories. Chief executives and directors reported motivation through an ‘enjoyment of real relationships outside the line, discussions beyond the short term, nurturing talent’ in the motivation category. They described learning about ‘different perspectives and blocks in the system that I didn’t know were there, re-honing my skill base in a way that I can transfer to how I deal with other colleagues and staff and learning from others about implementing best practice on black and minority ethnic issues’. Some mentors/coaches described a ‘buzz of supporting others in leading innovation – helping them get over the

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barriers’. Benefits for coaches/mentors were increased for those who also attended supervision. Organisational benefits were cited as ‘working with new Trustees on the Foundation Trust boards to understand their role and impact more quickly’, ‘development of confident creative leaders’, ‘new out-the-line communication which brings new life into the system and different perspectives’ and ‘value for money because it is working on real issues and a way to spot and harness talent’. The number of coachees/mentees looking for new ways to access e-mentoring has increased enormously. It has been shown to be effective at enabling coaching and mentoring to work beyond boundaries, breaking down cross-cultural barriers, combating isolation and making early links with innovative practice. It has formed part of the organisation fast-track programmes and supported international BME programmes. Sheffield Hallam University (2003) found that 75% of coachees/mentees using e-mentoring stated that they had gained a lot from the experience.

CHAPTER SUMMARY AND REFLECTION This chapter has shown that conducting evaluation of a coaching and mentoring programme can be labour-intensive. It should therefore be carried out collaboratively wherever possible among programme managers, coaches/mentors, coachees/mentees and all other stakeholders. Lead responsibilities need to be defined in the early stages of the programme so that accountability is understood. Although evaluation may seem technical in terms of methods, coaches and programme managers should not regard it as a specialist activity, otherwise the evaluation runs the risk of being sidelined. Our results of the evaluation of the UIF have shown a positive correlation between personal competence, social competence and cultural competence. The results should come as no surprise, as they are in line with the theoretical perspective of EI. When people are more self-aware, they manage social and cultural situations more competently. However, the implication of our study to the current debate in EI research in terms of its concept, measurement and evaluation may be quite profound, as discussed in the final chapter. The finding of our evaluation may also be attributed to the greater training of diverse leaders, especially BME leaders, through the coaching/mentoring programme compared with white senior managers, who relied on previous training and experience. We thus recommend that more coaching and mentoring programmes as part of the diversity training for white staff working with BME groups as coaches/ mentors is warranted. From the feedback of those who participated in the programme, white delegates have much to gain by including BME participants in coaching and mentoring as well as in organisational change. BME participants seem to show an aptitude for a higher cultural appreciation when applied to the context for application as well as in engagement with the players. It adds support to the approach of integrated work streams of coach/mentors to make the most of talent

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pools, and backs the UIF approach of the importance of having black and minority coach/mentors as part of any wider coaching and mentoring initiative. While further research should continue to explore the validity of the individual elements of the UIF using a larger sample size and how it can be utilised to aid coaches/mentors to develop competence, some practical recommendations can be made. To ensure a coordinated approach to conducting evaluation of a coaching/ mentoring programme, organisations should consider how evaluation is integrated into the decision-making processes and corporate governance structures. Coaches and programme managers should:

• Establish a formal evaluation process as part of the coaching and mentoring • • • •

programme. Formalise access to internal and external coaches and mentors. Discuss evaluation methodology with sponsors. Provide incentives for conducting thorough and timely evaluation. Maintain an accessible archive of the lessons learnt.

CHAPTER 11

Conclusion, Discussion and Future Work INTRODUCTION This chapter provides a summary, drawing together the diverse strands of theories and practice in coaching, mentoring and learning processes, discusses the research and development that need to be done and offers recommendations for better learning through coaching and mentoring. From our evaluation report in Chapter 10 as well as our coaching/mentoring practice it has become clear to us that diversity has been and will continue to be high on many organisations’ agenda. From this perspective, our discussion focuses on the following areas:

• • • • • • • •

matching between coaches/mentors and coachees/mentees emotional intelligence and cross-cultural competence evidence-based research and impact assessment supervision training coaching and mentoring standards ethics and code of conducts the broader legal framework

MATCHING BETWEEN COACHES/MENTORS AND COACHEES/MENTEES Viewed through the lens of diversity, matching is an important stage in the coaching/mentoring process. Getting the right match between coaches/mentors and coachees/mentees ensures the success of the coaching outcome. It is an effective way of leveraging cultural change and diversity within organisations. Organisations have therefore focused on the development of sound matching systems, including electronic database access, to deliver close matches in a range of organisational, technological and interpersonal contexts.

206 Table 11.1

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF COACHING, MENTORING AND LEARNING Matching matrix based on UIF vs. CBT

Matching criteria

Coachee/ mentee

Coach/ mentor

Funder/ owner

Team/group/ community

Culture (include organisational)

Objectives Problems/issues Strategies Options Socio-demographics X factor Matching decision

One approach is systematically working through a matching matrix. A matching matrix can be constructed based on the UIF and CBT models described in Chapters 6 and 7 (see Table 11.1). Translating the matrix into the matching process takes the following steps (working through each row and column): 1. Establish the purpose of each stakeholder (coach/mentor, coachee/mentee) and establish the overall objective/priority of the team/group/community, taking into consideration cultural and organisational perspectives. 2. Identify possible issues/problems that all stakeholders may face during the coaching journey. 3. Identify possible strategies to overcome these barriers/problems. 4. Set a number of coaching options in terms of styles, techniques and orientation. 5. Consider socio-demographic factors – age, belief systems/faiths/religions, culture/ race, gender and social barrier/disability. 6. Consider attributes, creativity, emotional intelligence, cultural and professional competence, etc. 7. Put a value on the above elements in your setting and make a relative judgement on matching the rows and columns. Humphrey and Holland (2006) suggest that by working through the matching matrix, one can ‘deselect those coaches whose purpose is not identified’. However, in our view, from a cross-cultural perspective according to the UIF, the community/ organisational culture takes precedence. In other words, decision-makers should tolerate some ambiguity in setting personal coaching goals, provided that the group’s/ community’s/organisational goals are clear. This allows the goal to develop through the coaching journey. Moreover, one should realise that not all the factors in the matching matrix are of equal weight. For example, shared values/goals are more important than individual styles and approaches in effective collaboration. Constructing matching criteria is the first and probably the easiest step in the coaching/mentoring process. There are many ways of designing a matching matrix, depending on individual/organisational requirements (see Humphrey & Holland,

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2006). You can construct your own matrix and be your own matchmaker. We believe that successful matching is as much about the choice of the broker and the training of that person as it is about the criteria of selection. Eastern cultures have long recognised the role of brokers in relationship matching. A broker brings together potential partners, often based on background – education, status and qualities that are compatible. Yet the role and impact of the matchmaker as undertaken by the co-ordinator has rarely been examined in mentoring/coaching research. In terms of our literature review, some studies have particular resonance but underestimate the role of the broker. Successful matching is as much about the choice of the broker and the training of that person as the criteria of pairing selection. Bearing in mind the lack of research on the role of the matchmaker/coordinator, we examine criteria for success in matching. One finding was the importance of the matchmaker in helping the client choose someone different from themselves. There is a widespread assumption that homogeneous pairings produce better results. Interpersonal attraction research has shown that similarity in attitudes, political beliefs and religiosity predicts attraction (Byrne & Nelson, 1965). Veitch and Griffitt (1976) identified that positive emotional reactions increased liking. However, our evaluation points in the opposite direction in matching coaches/coachees and mentors/mentees. We have found that coaching outcomes are more positive if the coach and client have different temperaments according to the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator. We have also found that factors such as geographical proximity of coach/mentors and their coachee/mentees, as well as levels of professional/cultural competence, play an important part in successful outcomes (Ireland, Hussain & Law, 2006). Our finding has an implication in terms of explaining why it is that the ideal self we portray for matching and our actual self may be different (Buss & Barnes, 1986). Thus the tendency to select coachees/mentees with attributes similar to oneself may be mistaken. After all, characteristics that predict initial attraction may not predict long-term satisfaction.

Matching for Success To summarise the lessons learnt from our case studies, the main matching conditions for success include:

• • • • •

location or geography of both partners appropriate distance in the pairing by level commitment of mentor and mentee to each other early interest and affirmation from the mentor to the mentee choice of diverse ethnic and cultural background of mentor to match the mentee • cultural competence of mentors/coaches • active involvement in the pairing process • option generation of at least two possible matches

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All the key points above indicate that the role of the broker/matchmaker was key in less experienced participants. A broker/co-ordinator was able to move people outside their comfort zone to choose options more dissimilar to themselves in order to promote learning. The need for information to fill gaps about potential partners decreased as trust in the broker rose and shared goals or values and mutual commitment became clear. Criteria-based matching using forms alone was rarely sufficient in facilitating a match in mentoring or with inexperienced participants.

The Role of Electronic Mentoring Matching Another implication is the role of electronic mentoring matching. There are some useful elements in such systems. Advantages include:

• Flexibility – coaching and mentoring conversation can take place anywhere, anytime or just-in-time.

• Rich information from on-line search – this encourages involvement in the process through self-directed data search.

• Time – it saves time. It alleviates the requirement for matchmakers to offer this initial service and saves the broker intervention for the later more crucial stages in the process. • Cost – the above advantages also imply a significant cost saving in the matching process. To ensure cost-effectiveness, we suggest that electronic database-driven systems should be part of a whole system rather than a stand-alone, off-the-shelf package (e.g. a web-based programme with mentors/mentees taking responsibility to input their own data). This is in effect a self-driven system. As participants mature, matching programmes need to be capable of meeting their changing needs. Co-ordinators require any system to enable them to keep abreast of matches – types and numbers of registered pairings – so that they can monitor relationship outcomes and engage with participants over supervision and training opportunities. The roles of brokers in mentoring/coaching matching are:

• Negotiation – bringing realism and confirmation of shared values into goal planning and expectation setting.

• Mediation and stretch – managing the mismatch of expectations and reality, challenging self-limitations that reduce the learning potential of the pair.

• Facilitation – building mutual commitment to working together on shared goals, enabling the sharing of enough information and leveraging the mutual benefits to steer the participants to affirm the match. Clarifying confusions and contextualising information, spotting and diffusing barriers to the match at an individual and pair level.


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• Synthesis – mirroring what is agreed between the parties and establishing a framework for moving forward, establishing the psychological contract to work together before the formal introductory letters/emails/agreement are sent. • Ongoing support up to session contract/agreement – after this stage, the coach/ coachee pair move on to collective support system through supervision; the coordinator may then exit at this point.

What to Look for in a Coordinator? From our experience, apart from sharing some of the attributes described in this book for coaches/mentors, a coordinator should have the following attributes:

• • • • •

emotional intelligence across cultures interpersonal skills evidenced across a range of media (computer literate) networking skills credibility in coaching or mentoring leadership (management of people, resources, project management, strategic contextualisation of coaching/mentoring in main purpose of entity, systems planning and development, capability planning) • cultural understanding • influencing and negotiation skills (direct and indirect) • facilitation skills As you may have noticed, many of these skills already exist in effective coaches/ mentors, making it a natural progression for them to move into a coordinating role.

EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE AND CROSS-CULTURAL COMPETENCE Throughout this book, we have been advocating a new coaching and mentoring model known as the Universal Integrated Framework (UIF) which regards the fluidity of coaches’/mentors’ and coachees’/mentees’ roles and learning. Evidence from our evaluation of UIF confirms that mentors learn as much if not more from coachees/mentees as they do from other coaches and mentors. Our evaluation also implies that coaching, mentoring and learning are interrelated as is its measurement (e.g. EI and professional and cultural competence). They should therefore be tackled together in a systemic way, as demonstrated in our UIF and case studies (see Chapters 6 and 10). For instance, the debate about whether EI is a cognitive ability or a trait-like personality (Mayer et al., 1990; Mayer & Salovey, 1993, 1997) has important implications for its measurement and hence evaluation.

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In terms of measurement, academic discussion has focused on two key questions:

• Should EI be measured by self-reporting, as administered in the coaching/mentoring programme reported in our case study?

• Should respondents’ performance be measured instead? Some researchers make a rigid distinction between EI trait and cognitive EI and propose the following conditional rules (see Petrides et al., 2004a and 2004b):

• If one regards EI as a trait-like personality, then it should be measured by self-reporting.

• If EI conceptually is regarded as a cognitive ability, then the measurement should be performance-based. We feel that it is not helpful to adopt a rigid binary position (either/or) when we are to use EI as a learning tool for intervention. Nevertheless, the above distinction may be used to guide us to design and evaluate the research and development of EI and its applications such as coaching and mentoring. For example, many current EI measurements in academic research and commercial markets (e.g. in the form of tests or inventories) can be evaluated according to the following criteria: 1. Do they have a clear theoretical framework? 2. Do they have complete coverage of all relevant dimensions and essential elements? 3. Have they addressed measurement issues, i.e. defining responses, internal consistency, factor structure and construct validity? 4. Have they adequately matched the measurement to the theoretical concept? Our case study has shown that we can use self-reporting complemented by 360degree feedback to assess EI and infer the correlation between self-perception and performance-based ability in our evaluation. The correlation between personal competence, social competence and cultural competence also supports the view that coaching is never culturally neutral. However, we must be cautious in drawing our conclusion from the results, as a correlation does not mean causation. The results may imply that change is culturally sensitive to context and that both the coachee/ mentee and the setting need to be fully understood and engaged with to ensure success. Best practice cannot be established and sustained using techniques not tuned to the context for implementation. The players involved need to feel valued and appreciated. BME participants with a cross-cultural background did particularly well in overall coaching competence ratings. This is consistent with the UIF, which


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identifies the importance of cross-cultural working as it applies to individuals and settings. This is a welcome result, as for too long the focus of research has been on the negative representation of other social groups rather than positive regard for other social groups. For those secure in themselves, comfort lies in the continuity of one’s learning and widening friendships. This is called ‘allophilia’ and may be associated with positive behaviours and or generalisation, but it is always associated with positive regard for another social group. It seems that only those who foster allophilia can be positively curious enough to leverage optimum mentoring and coaching opportunities.

EVIDENCE-BASED RESEARCH AND IMPACT ASSESSMENT Organisations have an ongoing interest in deriving the benefits they are securing from coach/mentoring and establishing benchmarks for coach/mentor performance. As such the CMSI tool has been found to be very effective in helping coaches/ mentors to manage their own development and organisational plan to address areas of reduced mentor/coach performance. The CMSI tool made coach/mentor process more transparent but also ensured it was coachee/mentee-driven throughout. It takes us one more step to helping organisations explore and capitalise on the link between coach/mentor quality and coachee/mentee outcomes. Impact assessment is an important part of the coachmentoring process; not an add-on. It can be developmental in itself enabling all participants to get involved and increase their knowledge of wider agendas and systems. The impact assessment process can provide new opportunities to re-engage with stakeholders in new ways and establish new approaches forward. Evaluation can be done by consultants, by in-house teams or through an integrated impact, on-line management system. The latter is particularly effective when a sponsor wants to establish core baseline assessment and inter-agency comparisons, where there is a cross-cultural and geographical spread of participating agencies in a programme and when participating entities have access to the internet. As coaching/mentoring is still an emerging industry, demonstrating its benefit by evidence-based research and impact evaluation will be increasingly demanded by sponsors, players and buyers in the field. Coordinators need to make the most of opportunities to influence the strategists and sponsors on the key objectives to assess and find new ways to incorporate softer sets of data into a robust mix of evidence. The notion of sustainability needs to be a shared focus for sponsors, stakeholders and coordinators alike. An evidence-base is merely the starting point for wider discussion and a lever to do things better. You do not have to wait for the agreement of a strategic plan to get going. In the meantime, it is also useful to compile case studies (see Chapter 8) or simple examples of how coaching/mentoring has helped individuals/organisations improve their performance. Evaluation of coaching/mentoring programmes is part of the continuous learning cycle to help individuals/organisations achieve their aspirations.

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SUPERVISION Our evaluation of the UIF has confirmed our approach to supervision underpinned by the UIF that attention to the personal, the social and the cultural dimensions of settings and players are required by the integrative professional coach/mentor. In the sister study that addressed the benefits of training, we replicated these results but linked the importance of training (T) and supervision (S) to improved quality (Q) of coaches/mentors. The increase of benefits cited was in direct proportion to the quality of the coach/mentor, i.e. T + S → Q → Benefits Our supervision frameworks have therefore focused on continuous professional development and quality improvement through reflective practice, i.e. S = T(CPD via CMSI tool) + Q(reflective practice). Participants have used their CMSI reports to inform their reflective practice in supervision through peer coaching.

TRAINING Our results indicate that many coaches/mentors feel less confident and prepared for the EI and cultural dimensions of coach/mentoring work. Future training programmes for mentoring and coaching should therefore:

• Include more focus on development of cross-cultural EI. • Incorporate cultural appreciation as a core element. These elements are increasingly important in a world of greater complexity, especially for those who working in unfamiliar contexts with people from a different profession and background.

COACHING AND MENTORING STANDARDS At the time of writing, a lot of work is being done in the development of standards, competencies and kite marks. The requirement for standardisation across the coaching and mentoring profession is one of the hottest topics. David Lane unveiled the European Mentoring and Coaching Council’s (EMCC) kite mark scheme for coaching and mentoring at its 2005 annual conference in Zurich. It aims to provide a benchmark for others to share their standards. The EMCC’s kite mark scheme is


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based on the core competencies. It allows organisations to audit quality in terms of processes, procedures and outputs. The outcome of coaching/mentoring still needs to be evaluated though. While establishing a coaching/mentoring standard may be welcomed by some (especially those involved in establishing it) as a way to professionalise the industry, many coaches/mentors are concerned that this may hinder creativity, diversity and the development of coaching and mentoring. As a commercial enterprise, a lot is at stake for the coaching/mentoring companies and organisations. Apec, Empsy, the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) and the International Coach Federation have developed their own standards, competency framework and accreditation systems. Moreover, like any industrial standard, benchmarking only works if there are sufficient numbers of organisations signing up for it and individual coaches/mentors going through the assessment process. Benchmarking itself does not guarantee a standard or outcome. For instance, the UK’s national standards body ENTO has not included EMCC’s kite mark in drafting its National Occupational Standards for coaching and mentoring. At this early stage, different coaching/mentoring bodies follow competing standards. This has caused considerable confusion among coaches/mentors and clients. However, we feel that this is healthy and indicates the early stage of an evolving discipline. Clients may simply need some information on the diversity of the industry and guidance on how to assess and evaluate the coaching/mentoring supply that will meet their requirements. Just like the revolution in information technology in the twentieth century, it will be the customers (in this case, coachees/mentees) who lead the way in the long run. We would also urge caution in the move to standardisation on a number of counts. First, coaching and mentoring has captured the imagination of its participants because it offers flexibility and variety in how it operates. Whilst there are clear features in the process it is looser and less structured than other development methods. That is its niche. There is room within the mix to operate across contexts and meet the needs of different learners at both the micro and macro level. The standardisation movement has identified that organisations could be audited on ‘quality in terms of processes, procedures and outputs’. This takes scrutiny beyond the level of coach competency to the shaping of a uniform collective development of coaching/mentoring systems. For us, the standardisation goes counter to the UIF and its principles of encouraging creativity and diversity of practice at macro and micro levels. Quality is rarely linked with one process or one ideal set of procedures. In fact, using the evidencebase we have established, in the formula we described earlier Training + Supervision = Quality = Benefits An inputs–based model of impact assessment, which addresses training (rather than accreditation), involvement and flexibility in CPD (rather than forced compliance) and feedback (derived from self assessment, colleague and coachees/mentees

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on universal qualities and competencies) – embodies a loose but transferable model of practice across different contexts and groups. Further, from our perspective, rigid or specified processes and procedures for development are culturally and contextually bound. Any sustainable standard setting movement would have to be able to answer the following questions: • Bearing in mind that such a framework is culturally limited, which culture and individuals would predominate in identifying good practice and defining aligned processes and procedures? • How would power and expertise denote who the standard setters were and how would individuals be selected to be a part of those groups? • In light of global coaching/mentoring programmes, would participation in a predominantly European-centred standards, be a precursor to involvement? • How much opportunity, would there be for distinctive local standard setting? • How would standards be enforced and who would pay? • What would be the impact on small organisations and community groups? • How does a standardised approach, fit with the micro learning-centred coaching/ mentoring ethos of mutual learning, mutual respect, self-determination and partnership? Standards and standardisation pose challenges at the level of contextual variation of coaching/mentoring applications. For example in some settings, the opportunity for coaches/mentors to train and receive certification would attract coaches/mentors to that programme and give credibility to a service. In another setting it would act as a barrier to fluidity of roles in the process and over-professionalise a service that did not warrant it. Coaching/mentoring is universal in so far as it crosses contexts but the levels of coaching/mentoring intervention and the depth of competence of the practitioners varies according to the specific needs of the coachee/mentee. The route towards standard setting has been travelled before in other disciplines with mixed success in complex settings. As such we can predict, that the requirement to be audited and the development of a specialist audit industry to fulfil that need, usually follows. That assessment and audit (and perhaps verification) industry may well be connected to the very agencies that suggested standard setting in the first place!! We recognise the creativity of a thriving coaching/mentoring supply market but there may be real consequences for social enterprises doing very valuable community work, who can not afford to be accredited. Those same agencies might find that front-line service funding allocations are reduced to cover the costs of auditing functions. There is probably a mid–point in this debate where forces (of markets, the requirements to bring greater clarity, uniform status and professionalism to this field, the drive to improve coaching participants’ experiences, the opportunities for crosscultural learning, and a vigorous, competitive supply sector) come to some new realisation of a way forward together. However, a loose inputs-based structure, capable of being flexible to the diverse needs of people and settings and based on


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empirical evidence to ascertain coach/mentor quality, makes a significant contribution to shaping some of this debate.

ETHICS AND CODES OF CONDUCT Apart from the business agenda, the drive for standardisation in coaching/mentoring practices underlines an agenda for professionalisation in the industries. This raises an important issue, which has often been neglected in the debate of professional competence and standards – that is the ethics and code of conduct of coaching and mentoring. Two key questions help us to consider the development of an ethical framework:

1. What form should ethical thinking take? 2. What is the impact of ethical principles on the practice of coaching and mentoring? Ethical thinking and its principles are usually embedded in professional bodies in the form of self-regulation. For example, the members of the British Psychological Society (BPS) are required to commit to ethical standards and a code of practice. The main aim is to protect clients/the public from dangerous practice with the objectives to:

• • • • •

benefit clients ensure safety protect clients manage boundaries manage conflict

Translating the above objectives into the code of practice requires a coach/ mentor to: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

Do no harm. Act in the best interests of our clients and their organisation. Observe confidentiality. Respect differences in culture. Effectively apply best practice in everything we do. Help clients make informed choices and take responsibility to improve their performance and well-being. 7. Recognise our role of a coaching psychologist. There are many common aspects in the above objectives and codes of practice across a wide range of professions (see Barnes and Mudin, 2001; Hill and Jones 2003; and

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the BPS’s Code of Conduct, Ethical Principles & Guidelines). However, many aspects are unique to coaching and distinguish coaching psychology from many other disciplines. For example, a coach is asked by a director (the budget-holder) to coach a team of senior managers (the job-holders) with the objective to improve their performance (see Law, 2003). In this case, the term ‘client’ is very different from how it is used in counselling and psychotherapy. A number of questions arise from such a coaching process:

• • • • • • • • •

Who are the clients? Whose benefit takes priority? Whose interests is the coach serving? What is the coach’s ethical duty? What is the responsibility of the coach to manage different values and interests between all the stakeholders? How are the differences managed? Is there potential for abuse of power? What issues of confidentiality arise? What are the implications of vicarious liability?

Managing multiple boundaries, relationships and conflicts is particularly important in such a situation and in coaching psychology in general. Coaching is different from counselling and therapy. It requires us to adopt different attitudes, knowledge, skills and ethical thinking as part of our professional competence. Ethical principles have an important impact on wide areas of practice (Law, 2005c, 2006b). These include:

• • • •

coaching supervision training teaching

While many coaches are happy to engage with clients in their inspirational journey of empowerment, they tend to feel uncomfortable when faced with ethical dilemmas. In order to maximise the client’s benefit and protect them from dangerous practice, members are required to adhere to ethical standards and a code of practice in coaching psychology. There are many ethical aspects that are unique to the profession and distinguish it from other disciplines (e.g. managing multiple boundaries, relationships and conflicts). These require us to adopt different attitudes, knowledge, skills and ethical thinking as part of our professional competence. As coaches, we are expected to:

• Learn as much as we can about ethics. • Acknowledge others’ views on ethics. • Look at client management and ethical issues.

CONCLUSION, DISCUSSION AND FUTURE WORK Morality

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Rules

Professional judgement

Rationale

Values

Commitment

Figure 11.1 Cognitive process in formulation of ethical principles (Law, 2006)

• Understand the overlap and differences between coaching and counselling on ethical issues.

• Know what to do when things go wrong. While there are many definitions of ethics and ethical principles, we have found the following definition useful as it captures many essential elements as well as opening up some avenues for practical exploration: Ethical principles are defined as ‘the rules which people are committed to because they see them as embodying their values and justifying their moral judgements.’ (Rowson, 2001; emphasis added)

The above definition seems quite straightforward. It can be translated into the following cognitive process (Figure 11.1): Morality → Professional judgement → Rationale → Values → Commitment → Rules For example, considering values requires us to question ourselves:

• What are our values? • What is the relationship between ethics, codes of conduct and practice? In practice it often requires coaches’ ‘conscious struggle’ between conflicting rights and duties (cf. Solomon, 2000 in counselling context), while one may argue that the issues of conflict arise in many professions (e.g. counselling psychology). The

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typical triad relationship between the client’s line-manager, the coach and coachee in executive coaching increases the prevalence, complexity and intensity of the conflicts that coaches may experience (Figure 11.2). For instance, on the subject of disclosure about our coachee’s performance, the following ethical questions arise:

• Should I tell the truth if that will affect the client’s well-being? • Should I respect coachee/line manager/subordinates autonomy even when if it causes harm to the client?

• Should I tell their line manager? In terms of the three-way information flow, the disclosure may come from various stakeholders, which may have a detrimental effect on the coachee. Coaches may need to consider the following questions:

• • • •

What should I do about this information? Why is my coachee’s line manager telling me this about them? Why is the coachee telling me this about their line manager? Should I be encouraging the coachee/line manager to report this to the director or higher authorities?

Line manager/society

Coachee/ mentee

Subordinate

Supervisor/ society

Coach/ mentor

Subordinate

Figure 11.2 A double triad relationship between the client’s line manager, the coach/mentor and coachee/mentee (Law, 2006)


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Similar questions might be asked if the coach is in the supervisor’s position. When making decisions on actions, in the areas of morality versus opinions, professional judgement may become very complex. Conflict resolution depends not only on how we define our meaning in terms of self versus culture, truth versus facts, but also the ethical principles we adopt. If one adopts the principle of duty (deontological concerns of general and specific duties), one may hold the following rules:

• Tell the truth. • Respect confidentiality. • Respect autonomy. If we prefer to apply the principle of utility (teleological concern) in our coaching, we will formulate rules and apply them to achieve the best outcome (rule utilitarianism). This may take the following form:

• Goal: seek the best outcome. • Action: consider all the options/outcomes before taking action (act utilitarianism). • Rule: DO x EXCEPT y. (Note: in the above rule, exceptions are allowed in order to achieve the best outcome. For example, tell the truth unless doing so will harm the client.) There is not enough space for us to address all the above issues here (this is not the primary objective of this book). To unpack the complexity of this area requires further research and development, which would call for another book dedicated to this. In this book we have taken the opportunity to draw readers’ attention to the development of the ethical aspects of coaching and mentoring to our readers. Interested readers may request a copy of the Code of Ethics and Conduct from the British Psychological Society (BPS, March 2006).

ETHICS AS A CROSS-CULTURAL PHENOMENON Ethics and ethical principles do not translate readily to cross-cultural practice for a range of reasons. First our commitment to following rules is leveraged by a belief that the rules are congruent with our values and sense of morality. Our enforcement of rules is also linked with our values. Those beliefs/values are time bound, subjective and not universally held by people in different places and circumstances. The slave trade was seen in the UK as an entirely proper approach to dealing with the consequences and consolidation of colonisation in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries in the UK and Europe. Professions have also indicated their practice was moral or ethical only to overturn that practice later. In modern times the claiming of ethical principles between agencies as a reason not to do something has impacted on the effectiveness of collaboration in multi-agency situations.

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In China, parents are encouraged to have only one child, with sanctions in place for those that do not comply. However in France and other European countries, there are incentives to have more children to help sustain economic growth in times ahead. In China, concerns over population rises also risk economic growth. The cultural differentiation in the employment of strategy to manage population levels can result in different perceptions of morality, depending on the culture from which you view it. There is a view that right and wrong are easily discerned to the moral thinker. However, right and wrong may be less readily discerned in a complex picture, where there are a range of factors at play and knock-on effects of one action that may be potentially damaging or outweigh the benefits. Only a sense of local knowledge, context awareness and experience can help us discern right from wrong in these situations where interacting variables inter-play with changing local conditions. This complex picture needs to address the role of history and the experience of all players in a situation. The history of relationships cross-culturally, informs how the presentation of an ethical position is construed. Where one collective culture has been abused or exploited by another and trust is low, ethical principles might be seen as hypocritical. The diminishment of another culture’s ethical stance, as a platform for raising one’s own standing and capitalising on advantage, further undermines trust and partnership. Ethical principles have an uneasy and unclear relationship with actions. If the intention was ethical but the action was wrong and brought much harm, is that moral or immoral? Are there knowledge and skills that one can acquire which support a developing, growing and adaptable morality? Obviously, the sharing of ethical principles at a broad level is easier than their realisation in practice at a local level. We suggest that ethical codes of practice, at the level of rules of conduct for micro-practice, are best limited to the context of their origin, where point-to-point correspondence on matters of values, systems, equality of access to education and services and work are assured and where hopes and expectations are shared. Within our own operating context, key questions include:

• • • •

Does having codes of conduct and standards make us ethical? On whose terms are we ethical? And how long will it last? Are we flexible and continually changing to keep up with the requirements of new situations and the moral challenges they pose?

To answer these questions, we need to address the process of formulation of ethical principles rather than the output of that process. We need to go back to basics. Our process is driven by the coachee/mentee and as such we need to assess and take stock of their values, their concept of success, their concept of helpfulness and adapt how we work to the local context. We need to consult and be changed rather than assume we will bring change. We need to be genuine, open and humble. Only then can we build trust. And if we are lucky, one day someone might describe us as


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ethical. Perhaps that is the point. The term ‘ethical practitioner’ is a term assigned to us by someone else.

FUTURE WORK/RESEARCH From the above discussion, future work will most likely focus on the following areas:

• Refining the UIF. • Research on coaching/mentoring matching attributes of the coach/coachee and • • • • • •

mentor/mentee interactions as well as the attributes of the matchmaker. Developing ethical principles in coaching and mentoring. Identifying the ethical implications for supervision of coaches and mentors. Developing quality control procedures. Promoting diversity in coaching and mentoring. Developing training in psychology of coaching and mentoring. Embedding ethical principles and psychology of learning as part of the core competence and continual development in our profession.

CHAPTER SUMMARY AND REFLECTION Our ethical discussion shows that resolving an ethical dilemma is a complex decision-making process and that understanding ethical principles can provide us with a decision aid as well as a rationale for our professional judgement. When making ethical decisions, a coach should not rush into action but carefully consider the following:

• Aim to serve coachees well. • Be informed about legal and employment requirements that override limits on • • • • • • • • •

confidentiality for the particular context. Make these limits clear to coaches. Consider supplementing verbal description of limits with a written contract. When practising with extended confidentiality, share on a ‘need-to-know’ basis. Be trustworthy. Discuss with coaches if breaking confidentiality is necessary. Understand that helping coachees to act is much better than the coach having to act. Accept that life and coaching involve taking risks. Discuss the case with a supervisor, coaching colleagues and manager. Where there is a specific duty or legal requirement for disclosure to a third party, warn the coachee during the sessions that if they tell you more, you will be under an obligation to act.

The UIF we advocate in this book requires us to commit to learn based on our direct experience. We believe that to work and to live life this way is both challenging and fulfilling.

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We would like to end this book by echoing what Simon Curtis wrote in the Preface. From reading this book, we hope that wherever you are on your coaching/ mentoring journey, whether you are a coach/mentor, coachee/mentee or both, you now understand that although we have advocated a scientific approach, we believe that there is a magic in the art of coaching/mentoring. To emphasise the spiritual/ magical engagement of coaching/mentoring in action, we recall the exercise that was conducted in a coaching sessions for the diverse communities in Peterborough. Inspired by the Oriah Mountain Dreamer’s poem My Invitation (adopted from Jean Houston, A Passion for the Possible, 1994), the facilitator inverted the poem into questions. He wrote it on a piece of paper and folded it into a paper aeroplane. He threw it to the participants as a ‘message carried by air’. A participant picked it up, unfolded the message, answered the questions silently and passed it on to the next person in the group, and so on. The questions are listed below. Readers may like to participate in this exercise by answering the following questions – they are not another emotional intelligence test! 1. Do you dare to dream of your heart’s longing? 2. Will you risk looking like a fool for love, for dreams, for the adventure of being alive? 3. Have you touched the centre of your own sorrow? 4. Have you been opened by life’s betrayals? 5. Can you sit with pain – mine or your own – without moving to hide it or fade it or fix it? 6. Can you be with joy – mine or your own? 7. Can you dance with wildness and let ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful, realistic or to remember the limitations of being human? 8. Can you disappoint another to be true to yourself? 9. Can you bear being accused of betrayal and not betray your own soul? 10. Can you be faithful and therefore trustworthy? 11. Can you see beauty even if it’s not pretty everyday? 12. Can you source your life from God’s presence? 13. Can you live with failure – yours and mine – and still stand on the edge of a lake and shout to the silver moon, ‘Yes!’ 14. Can you get up after the night of grief and despair, weary, bruised to the bone, and do what needs to be done for the children? 15. Will you stand in the centre of the fire with me and not shrink back? 16. Can you sustain yourself from inside when all else falls away? 17. Can you be alone with yourself? 18. Do you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments? If your answers to all of the above questions are ‘Yes’, congratulations! After all you know, the distance between cross-personal/cultural and spiritual intelligence is only a quantum apart.

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Index 360-degree feedback mechanism 104–6 abstract conception, learning wheel 34, 35 Naturalistic Knowledge Engineering 65 academic institutions 8–9, 10 accreditation of coaches/mentors 164–5 accretion, schema theory 42–3 acting in gestalt approaches 122 acting out, narrative psychodrama 156, 158–9 action, learning wheel 34, 35 Naturalistic Knowledge Engineering 65 actors 35, 36 Adaptive Control of Thought (ACT) model 42 Aga, Snowy 171, 172–3 Alli, A 155, 156, 157, 162, 179, 184 alliances, learning organisations 74 allophilia 209 Anderson, RC 42 Apec 211 appraisal, ROAMEF framework 188, 190–1 appreciation of beauty and excellence 23 of other cultures and religions 99 ARCS model of motivational design 31 Armagh College, Northern Ireland 7 articulation, knowledge transfer by 63–4 assimilating projections 136 assimilation theory of meaning processing 41–2 association, principle of 29 Association for Professional Executive Coaching and Supervision 8 Association of Coaching (AC) 4, 8 case study 163, 167, 168, 169 Ausbel, David 41–2 awareness of continuum exercises 145–7

of other cultures 98–9 of others 96 axiomatic knowledge 60, 61 balancing exercises, narrative psychodrama 158 barriers, identifying and overcoming 113 beauty, appreciation of 23 Beck, Aaron Temkin 19 belief-based coaching ix belief systems, psychology of learning 32 Bell, Jill 64, 65 benchmarking 211 benefits of coaching/mentoring to organisations 199–201 black and minority ethnic (BME) people diversity in practice 84 emotional intelligence and cross-cultural competence 209 evaluation of coaching/mentoring programmes 201–2 psychology of learning 32 see also cultural issues Bockler, Jessica 179, 180, 181–2, 183, 184, 185 bravery 22 Breakthrough & Beyond Ltd 49 breathing exercises, narrative psychodrama 158 Bresser, Frank 163, 167, 168, 169 British Psychological Society (BPS) Code of Ethics 128, 212 expert witnesses register 217 market for coaching/mentoring/training 8 Special Group in Coaching and Psychology (SGCP) 4, 9 definition of coaching psychology 52, 53 videoconferencing 13 videoconferencing 13

236 Bruner, Jerome 38–9 business case for introducing a coaching programme 66–7 business consultancies 9, 10 camp fire metaphor 173–4, 178, 179 career development 200 Carroll, M 80 case studies 163–4, 185–6 e-coaching 167–71 health and social care coaching/ mentoring programme 164–7, 189, 192–8 narrative coaching in communities 171–9 performance coaching and reflection 179–85 causal knowledge 60 championing equality and diversity 100 change benefits of coaching/mentoring 200 coaching for 98 paradoxical theory of 117–20 Chartered Institute of Management (CIM) 8 Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) 8, 211 children 88, 128 Children Act 2004: 128 China, matchmakers 16 Chinese philosophy 116 citizenship 23 classical conditioning 29 Clutterbuck, David 12, 87 coaching 1–6, 11, 24–6, 218–19 application of psychology of learning to 43–7 belief-based ix benefits 199–201 definition 49–50 diversity of coaches/coachees 3, 4 matching 14–16, 203–7 e-coaching see e-coaching and e-mentoring emotional intelligence and cross-cultural competence 207–9 ethics and code of conduct 211–16 evidence-based research and impact assessment 209 future work/research 217–18 introducing a programme 66–9 learning organisations 56–7, 65, 75–6

INDEX introducing a coaching programme 66–9 managerial competencies 66 social support 70–2 as learning process 28 legal framework 216–17 linking learning to 27 market 7–10 and mentoring, differences between 48–9 psychology 17–20 definition 52–3 reflective learning 38 standards 210–11 supervision 210 zones of proximal development 39–41 Coaching Competence Self Review (CCSR) tool 163, 165, 195–8, 209 supervision 210 coaching psychology, definition 52–3 code of conduct 128, 211–16 cognition 93 cognitive behavioural diaries (CBDs) 139–42 cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) 19–20, 134 GROW model 133–4 matching matrix 204 and narrative approaches 129 practical exercises 139–42 techniques and tools 111–15 cognitive interest, levels of 38 collaborative learning 74 combination, knowledge transfer by 63–4 combinatorial learning 41 Commission for Equality and Human Rights (UK) 3 communication diversity in practice 87–8 Universal Integrated Framework 97, 103–4 community groups case study 171–9 social support for matching 71 competence cultural 91, 98–103, 207–9 of organisations 57–9 competition and globalisation 5 conceptual development 40 concrete experience, learning wheel 34, 35 Naturalistic Knowledge Engineering 65

INDEX conditioning, classical 29 confidence improvements from coaching/ mentoring 199 conflict resolution, facilitating 97 conscientiousness 94–5 conscientisation 36 constructive-developmental learning theories 38–41, 43 meaning-making 41–3 narrative theory 125 constructivism 38 consumers, and learning communities 72–3 continuous professional development (CPD) cycle 78–80 diversity in practice 86 evaluation 196 supervision 210 continuum exercises, awareness of 145–7 control locus of 33, 83–4 Universal Integrated Framework 94 co-ordinators, matching coaches/mentors and coachees/mentees 15–16, 205, 206, 207 corporate curriculum model 72 corporate social responsibility 17 cost–benefit analysis (CBA) 190–1 cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) 190, 191 counselling skills 75 courage 22 creativity positive psychology 22 Universal Integrated Framework 95 cross-cultural coaching definition 52 gestalt approaches 120 cross-cultural coaching and mentoring intelligence (CCCMI) see Universal Integrated Framework cross-cultural competence 91, 98–103, 207–9 cross-cultural emotional intelligence 90–1 cross-cultural techniques and tools 116 Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly flow 155, 175 positive psychology 20, 26 cultural awareness 98–9 cultural competence 91, 98–103, 207–9

237 cultural issues 3 inter-cultural coaching psychology, definition of 52–3 matching coaches/coachees and mentors/ mentees in diversity 14, 16 meaning-making 45–6 multiculturalism 25–6 organisational culture hard-to-shift 54–7 Universal Integrated Framework 100 positive psychology 21 prejudice 44 psychology of learning Expectancy Valence Theory 32 locus of control theory 33 self-fulfilling prophecies 32 significance 82–3 Universal Integrated Framework 77, 80–3, 91–103 see also black and minority ethnic (BME) people; cross-cultural entries curiosity 22 declarative knowledge 60 deep dialogue 41 definitional ceremony (community) 127, 128, 131–2, 137 case study 172–3 practical exercise 154 demographic similarity 15 deontological concerns 215 Department of Trade and Industry 187–8 development intention model 102–3 diaries, cognitive behavioural (CBDs) 139–42 dictionary knowledge 60, 61, 74 directory knowledge 60, 61, 74 ‘dirt list’, narrative psychodrama 156, 158 disabilities, people with communication methods 103–4 diversity in practice 84 discrimination 32 diversity of coaches/coachees and mentors/ mentees 3, 4 matching 14–16, 203–7 of coaching, mentoring and learning 1, 4 market 8 evaluation of coaching/mentoring programmes 201–2 introducing a coaching programme 67 of top team 62 see also Universal Integrated Framework

238 double-loop learning 89 Downey, M 49 Driscoll, Marcy 50, 51 duty, principle of 215 dynamic coaching/mentoring/learning model 45, 46–7 Universal Integrated Framework 78–80 Dyson, James 11 Eastern Mentoring Forum (EMF) 4 market for coaching/mentoring/training 9 importance of mentoring 11 Ebbinghaus, Hermann 29 e-coaching and e-mentoring 12–13 benefits 201 case study 163, 167 aims and objectives 167–8 evaluation 169–70 long-term benefits 170–1 scope 168–9 selection 169 diversity in practice 88 Inflated Expectations Theory 13–14 matching coaches/coachees and mentors/ mentees 14–15 see also Internet effect, law of 29 electronic mentoring matching 14, 206–7 emancipatory learning 36 Embedded Figure Test 65 e-mentoring see e-coaching and e-mentoring emotion coachees’/mentees’ 113 Universal Integrated Framework 92–3 emotional intelligence (EI) 207–9 components 100, 101 cross-cultural 90–1 diversity in practice 85 evaluation 196, 201 training programmes 210 empathy 96 empowerment cross-cultural emotional intelligence 91 diversity mentoring 85 learning organisations 70 Universal Integrated Framework 96 empowerment psychology, principle of 109 Empsy model of intervention 109–11 of problem situation 109, 110 practical exercises 138 techniques and tools 136

INDEX Empsy Ltd 171, 211 Empsy model of intervention 109–11 of problem situation 109, 110 empty chair technique 147–8 end-of-session questioning 161 enlightenment 98–9 environment psychology of learning 32–3 Universal Integrated Framework 80–3 epistemological approaches to learning theories 28–9 Equality Act 2006: 3, 216–17 ethical issues 211–16, 218 children, working with 128 legal framework 216–17 narrative approaches 178 European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) 216, 217 European Mentoring and Coaching Council (EMCC) 4 e-mentoring 12 importance of mentoring 11 kite mark scheme 210–11 market for coaching/mentoring/training 8 evaluation 30, 187, 201–2 benefits of coaching/mentoring to organisations 199–201 case studies 164, 165, 169–70, 192–8 methodology 187–95 ROAMEF framework 188, 191–5 of Universal Integrated Framework 195–8 evaluators 35, 36 evidence-based research ix–x, 187, 209 see also evaluation evolution, organisational learning based on 58 excellence, appreciation of 23 Expectancy Valence Theory 14–15, 32 experimental approaches to learning theories 28, 29 expert witnesses 217 explication and translation in gestalt approaches 121–2 expressive gestalt techniques 121–2 externalising conversations 127–9 facilitative style cognitive behavioural therapy 19 popularity 50 fairness 23 family culture 80–1

INDEX feedback case studies 170–1, 177–8, 184 ROAMEF framework 188 Universal Integrated Framework 86, 105–6 Field Dependence/Independence 65, 66 first impressions, matching coaches/coachees and mentors/mentees in diversity 14 flexibility, Universal Integrated Framework 95 flow, narrative psychodrama 155–6, 158 fluidity, coaching/mentoring 89 forgiveness 23 Furnham, A 90, 100, 101 future work/research 217–18 Gallwey, Timothy 17, 49 geographical proximity 15 gestalt cycle of continuous flow of experience 118 gestalt theory and approaches 29, 115–16, 135–6 GROW model 133–4 paradoxical theory of change 117–20 practical exercises 143–8 primacy of a present-centred attitude 116–17 techniques 120–5 transpersonal aspect 116 globalisation and competition 5 goal-oriented techniques and tools 108 goals assessing values of 112 matching coaches/coachees and mentors/ mentees in diversity 15 setting cognitive behavioural techniques 112 GROW model 17–18 psychology of learning 30, 83 gratitude 23 Greater Manchester Police 8 ‘Green Book’ guidelines 188 Grotowski, Jerzy 179, 180, 184 group exercises gestalt approaches 145, 146–8 learning 138 narrative approaches 152–4, 155, 156 GROW model ix, 17–18, 133–4 case study 166 Hardiman, Bob 64, 65 Harrington, S 51

239 Health and Safety at Work Act 159 health and social care case study 163, 164 accreditation 164–5 becoming a learning organisation 165–7 evaluation 192–8 objectives 189 realising the benefits 165 hierarchy of needs 18, 81 motivation of learners 31–2 Home Office 187 hope 23 Houston, Jean 218 humanity 22 Human Rights Act 1998: 216 Human Rights Bill 217 humility 23 humour 23 Hunt, KR 12 Hunter, Tom 11 Hussain, Zulfi 103 identification and acting in gestalt approaches 122 impact assessment 19, 194–5, 209 introducing a coaching programme 67 implementation stage, ROAMEF framework 191 independent practitioners 9, 10 India, matchmakers in 16 Inflated Expectations Theory 13–14 ‘inner game’ 17, 28 Institute of Directors (IoD) 8, 11 instructing, definition of learning applied to 51 integrative continuum 89–90 integrative gestalt techniques 122–3 integrity 23 inter-cultural coaching psychology 52–3 inter-cultural sensitivity 82 internal coaches and mentors 10 internalisation, knowledge transfer by 63–4 International Coach Federation (ICF) 4, 211 market for coaching/mentoring/training 9 Internet communication 103–4 market for coaching/mentoring/training 10 matching coaches/coachees and mentors/ mentees in diversity 14, 206–7 see also e-coaching and e-mentoring interpretivism 29

240 intervention, identifying 139 I/You gestalt exercises 143–5 job satisfaction, improvements in 199 Johari window 104, 105 narrative approaches 127 Johnson, G 57 Jung, Carl 185 justice 22 key performance indicators (KPIs) 196 kindness 23 Kirkpatrick, D 191 knowledge flows of 60–1 management of 61 network 63–4 positive psychology 22 representation 39 transfer matrix 63 types of 60 see also learning; learning communities; learning organisations Korea, matchmakers in 16 landscapes of action 28, 126–7, 130 case study 177 of consciousness 28, 126, 127 case study 176 practical exercises 149 of identity 130 Lane, David 78, 210 language 89 Law, Ho 125, 140 case studies e-coaching 169 narrative coaching in communities 163, 171, 172, 173, 218 performance coaching and reflection 164 evaluation 187 law of effect 29 leadership facilitation 97 learning organisations 74–5 positive psychology 23 learning 1–6, 24, 47 coaching and mentoring as learning process 28 combinatorial 42 communities see learning communities cycle see learning cycle

INDEX definition 50–1 double-loop 89 emancipatory 36 exercises in 138–9 individual and organisational, relationship between 72 linking to coaching and mentoring 27 love of 22 market 7–10 organisations see learning organisations process see learning process psychology of 1–6, 28–33 application to coaching and mentoring 43–7 and learning organisations 62–5 reflective see reflective learning styles 35–6 theories 33–4 constructive-developmental 38–43 learning process 34–6 reflective learning 36–8 Universal Integrated Framework 102 appreciation of cultural environment 81–3 coaching/mentoring fluidity 89 communication methods 103 diversity in practice 83–9 learning cycle, supervision and continuous professional development 78–80 wheel see learning wheel learning communities 69–70 need for 72–3 learning cycle 34, 36, 38–40 case study 184 managerial competencies 66 Naturalistic Knowledge Engineering 65 organisational learning 63, 64 learning organisations 54, 74–6 benefits of coaching/mentoring 200 case study 165–7 coaching psychology and organisation memories 59–62 collaborative and partnership approaches to learning, need for 74 competence 57–9 hard-to-shift cultures 54–7 and individual learning, relationship between 72 listening and empowerment, contribution of 69–70

INDEX managerial competences and introducing a coaching programme 65–9 psychology of learning 62–5 social support for coaching and mentoring 70–2 learning process 34–6 coaching and mentoring as 28 Learning to Inspire Ltd 50 learning wheel 34–6, 43, 44–5 case study 182 gestalt approaches 117 and gestalt cycle of continuous flow of experience 118 ROAMEF framework 188 legal framework for practice 3, 216–17 children, working with 128 running a coaching/mentoring/training session 159 Lieberman, Susan 167, 169 life coaches cognitive behavioural techniques 112, 113 neurolinguistic programming 19 sole traders 9 Linley, PA 51 listening, by learning organisations 70 living-in-the-moment exercise 146 locus of control model 33, 83–4 love 23 management consultancies 9, 10 management of others 96–8 managerial competencies 65–6 introducing a coaching programme 66–9 market for coaching/mentoring/training 7–10 marriage, couple matching in 16 Maslow’s hierarchy of needs 18, 81 motivation of learners 31–2 matching coaches/mentors and coachees/ mentees in diversity 14–16, 203–5 co-ordinators 207 electronically 206–7 matrix 204–5 for success 205–6 matchmakers 15–16, 205, 206, 207 Mayer, JD 90 meaningful reception learning theory 41–2 meaning-making 41–3, 45–6 narrative approaches 126

241 Medical Research Council 7 memories, organisational 59–62 mentoring 1–6, 11–14, 24–6, 218–19 application of psychology of learning to 43–7 benefits 199–201 and coaching, differences between 48–9 definition 48 diversity of mentors/mentees 3, 4 matching 14–16, 203–7 e-mentoring see e-coaching and e-mentoring emotional intelligence and cross-cultural competence 207–9 ethics and code of conduct 211–16 evidence-based research and impact assessment 209 future work/research 217–18 introducing a programme 66–9 learning organisations 56–7, 65, 75–6 introducing a mentoring programme 66–9 managerial competencies 66 social support 70–2 as learning process 28 legal framework 216–17 linking learning to 27 market 7–10 and psychology 17–20 reflective learning 38 standards 210–11 supervision 210 zones of proximal development 39–41 mercy 23 minority groups see black and minority ethnic (BME) people; disabilities, people with modesty 23 monitoring, ROAMEF framework 188, 191 monologue exercise 146–7 motivation ARCS model 31 benefits of coaching/mentoring 199, 200 psychology of learning 31–2 Universal Integrated Framework 93–4 multiculturalism see cultural issues multi-modal therapy 19 Myerhoff, B 125, 171 Myers–Brigg Type Indicators (MBTI) managerial competencies 65–6 matching coaches/mentors and coachees/mentees 205

242 narrative approaches 41, 125–6, 136–7 attitude and posture of coach 132–3 case study 163–4, 171 definitional ceremony 172–3 difficulties 178–9 follow-up feedback 177–8 landscape of consciousness mapping landscape of action 176–7 outcome 178 stories 173–6 vision 171–2 definitional ceremony 131–2, 137 case study 172–3 externalising conversations 128–9 landscapes of action 126–7 landscapes of consciousness 127–8 outsider witness retelling 130–1 practical exercises 149–59 re-authoring 129–30 re-membering conversations 130 running a coaching/mentoring/training session 160–1 structured questioning 160–1 zones of proximal development 40 narrative psychodrama case study 179–85 practical exercises 154–9 National Health Service case study 163, 164–7 evaluation 192–8 objectives 189 social support for mentoring 71 National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) 19 Naturalistic Knowledge Engineering (NKE) 64–5 nature/nurture debate 32–3 negative learning, identifying sources of 139 neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) 19 No Fear Ltd 171 objectives, ROAMEF framework 188, 189–90 objectivism 29 online coaching and mentoring see ecoaching and e-mentoring open-mindedness 22 options, GROW model 18 organisational culture hard-to-shift 54–7 Universal Integrated Framework 100 organisational memories 59–62

INDEX outcome measurement 194 outsider witness retelling 127, 128, 130–1 case study 173, 174–6 practical exercises 152–4 paratheatre case study 179–85 narrative psychodrama 154–5 parenting and mentoring, parallels between 17 Parsloe, E 49 partnership approaches to learning 74 peer rating 360-degree feedback mechanism 104–6 people knowledge 60, 61 perception exercise 145–6 performance coaching case study 164, 179–85 narrative psychodrama 53 performance-enhancing thinking (PET) 113 performance interfering thinking (PIT) 113 Perls, Fritz 115, 123, 135–6 persistence 22 personal competence 91, 92–5, 100–3 perspective (wisdom) 22 Peterborough Racial Equality Council (PREC) 171 Peterson, Christopher 21 Petrides, KV 90, 100, 101 philosophy, Chinese 116 phi phenomenon 29 physical warm-up cycle, narrative psychodrama 157 Positive Image project 171, 172 positive psychology 20–4, 25–6 gestalt approaches 136 learning 30 personal strength 51 practical exercises 138, 161–2 cognitive behavioural coaching 139–42 gestalt exercises 143–8 learning 138–9 narrative psychodrama 154–9 running a coaching/mentoring/training session 159–61 story-telling exercises 149–54 pragmatism 29 prejudice 44 preparation for running a coaching/ mentoring/training session 159–60 present-centredness, gestalt approaches 116–17 practical exercises 143–4, 145–6

INDEX Prince’s Trust 11 problems, identifying and overcoming 113 procedural/process knowledge 60 process, organisational learning based on 58 process evaluation 193–4 professional competence 91, 100–3 professional institutions 8–9, 10 progress reviews 114 proximal development, zones of 39–41, 125 narrative approaches 126 prudence 23 psychodrama, narrative case study 179–85 practical exercises 154–9 psychological factors in learning, identification of 139 psychology 2, 4, 20, 24–5 adaptation in coaching and mentoring 19–20 coaching 17–20 definition 52–3 goal-setting 17–18 of learning see learning, psychology of options 18 positive see positive psychology reality 18 will 18 psychotherapy, departure from 25 public sector mentoring programmes 11 see also National Health Service quality of life 21 questioning end-of-session 161 structured 160–1 rationale evaluation 188–9 organisational learning based on 58 rational emotive behavioural therapy 19 Ratner, Gerald 55, 74 reality, GROW model 18 re-authoring conversations 127, 128, 129–30 case study 173–4 practical exercise 149–50 recipe knowledge 60, 61, 74 reflection, learning wheel 34, 35 Naturalistic Knowledge Engineering 65 reflective accounts 37

243 reflective learning 36–8, 43 case study 164, 179–85 cognitive behavioural diaries 140 narrative techniques 137 running a coaching/mentoring/training session 161 reinforcement–affect model 30 relationship between coach/mentor and coachee/mentee 12–13 re-membering conversations 127, 128, 130 practical exercise 150–2 reputations, learning organisations 74 resistance, gestalt approaches to 118–20 respect 99 restructuring, schema theory 42 Rice University, Houston 163, 167–71 rich story development in skills and knowledge 149–52 ROAMEF framework 187–95 Rosenbloom, David 180 Rosinski, Philippe 53 Rowson, R 213 rule utilitarianism 215 running a coaching/mentoring/training session 159–61 Rushall, Brent ix–x Safer Cities Programme 187 Salovey, P 90 schema theory 42–3 Scholes, K 57 schools social support for mentoring 71 Universal Integrated Framework 89, 90 self-awareness 92–3 self-efficacy cross-cultural emotional intelligence 90–1 psychology of learning 30–1, 83 self-fulfilling prophecies 32 self-management 93–5 self-regulation 23 self-reports exercise 146–7 Seligman, Martin 20, 21 sensitivity analysis 190 sensors 35, 36 skills acquisition 200 SMARTER targets 67 cognitive behavioural techniques 112–13 social care case study see health and social care case study social cognitive theory 30 social competence 91, 95–8, 100–3

244 social intelligence 23 socialisation, knowledge transfer by 63 social learning theories 30 locus of control model 33 social recommendation systems 15 social skills 96–8 social support for coaching and mentoring 70–2 Socrates 20 sole traders 9 solution-focused brief therapy 19 South Africa 11 Special Group in Coaching and Psychology (SGCP) 4, 9 definition of coaching psychology 52, 53 videoconferencing 13 specialist coaching and/or mentoring organisations 4 Spinelli, Ernesto 59–60 spirituality 24 sports and exercise psychology 17 standards 210–11 stereotyping 32 story-telling approaches see narrative approaches strategy, organisational 57 strengths, human 21–4 definition of 51 structured questioning 160–1 subsumption 41 supervision 210 benefits of 201 case study 165, 166 evaluation 196 and continuous professional development 80 diversity in practice 86, 87 suppressive gestalt techniques 120–1 surface dialogue 41 team coaching 98 techniques and tools 108–9, 134–7 cognitive behavioural techniques 111–15 empowerment psychology, principle of 109–11 gestalt approaches 115–25 GROW model revisited 133–4 narrative approaches 125–33 see also practical exercises technology communication methods 103–4 market for coaching/mentoring/training 10

INDEX Universal Integrated Framework 87–8 see also e-coaching and e-mentoring; Internet teleconferencing 12, 13 teleological concern 215 temperance 22 thinkers 35, 36 thinking-in-action 45 three-chair exercise 147–8 360-degree feedback mechanism 104–6 tools see techniques and tools top dog/underdog dichotomy in gestalt theory 123 practical exercises 147–8 training market 7–10 training programmes 210 transcendence 22 transpersonal psychology 17, 53 techniques and tools 108 gestalt approaches 115, 116 Treasury’s ‘Green Book’ guidelines 188 trust in e-coaching and e-mentoring 12 organisational culture 55 Universal Integrated Framework 96 trustworthiness 94 tuning, schema theory 42 underdog/top dog dichotomy in gestalt theory 123 practical exercises 147–8 understanding 96 Unilever 11 United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) 7 benefits of coaching 11 legal framework 3, 216–17 market for coaching/mentoring/training 7–9 specialist coaching and/or mentoring organisations 4 standards 211 Universal Integrated Framework (UIF) 77–8, 91–103, 106–7, 218 case study 163, 164 coaching and mentoring diversity in practice 83–9 coach/mentor/mentee fluidity 89 communication methods and feedback mechanism 103–6 cross-cultural emotional intelligence 90–1

INDEX cultural environment, appreciation of the 80–3 emotional intelligence and cross-cultural competence 207–9 evaluation 187, 195–8, 201–2 integrative continuum 89–90 learning cycle, supervision and continuous professional development 78–80 matching matrix 204 supervision 210 techniques and tools 136, 137 upward transformation in coaching/ mentoring/learning paradigm 43, 44 utility, principle of 215

245 warm-up exercises, narrative psychodrama 157 Wertheimer, Max 115 West Coast Capital, Scotland 8 White, Michael 125, 126, 171, 182 externalising conversations 128 outsider witness retelling 131 re-authoring conversations 129 re-membering conversations 130 Whitmore, Sir John GROW model 18 psychology 17, 19 transpersonal coaching 17, 53 will, GROW model 18 wisdom 22 you-ness exercise 144

valour 22 values and goals, matching coaches/ coachees and mentors/mentees in diversity 15 videoconferencing 12, 13 vitality 23 Vygotsky, Lev S 38, 39–40, 125, 128

zones of proximal development 39–41, 125 narrative approaches 126

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