The personal transformational value of coaching: exploring the lived experience of the coachee

Abstract

Coaching is a professional field of practice in psychology and its popularity continues to grow in the work context. Research on the value of coaching is predominantly grounded in the perspective of the coach, with limited empirical exploration of the experiences of the coachee. The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological study was to understand the personal transformational value of coaching through an exploration of how coaching facilitates personal transformation for the coachee. The study was meta-theoretically grounded in transpersonal and positive psychology. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven participants in senior leadership positions in a corporate setting, who had engaged with a coaching programme of at least six coaching sessions. Participants were selected by means of purposive sampling and the data analysis strategy applied was interpretative phenomenological analysis. The findings of the study are of value to the application of coaching in the discipline and field of industrial and organisational psychology, specifically, consulting and coaching psychology. The contribution of the study is grounded in the identification of four themes: (1) coaching as process; (2) coaching mechanisms; (3) coaching the holistic self; and (4) rippling changes in the work-life context. A conceptual framework was developed, describing the integrated dynamic of the primary findings to capture the essence of the transformational value of coaching for the coachee. The study demonstrates how the personal transformational value of coaching is constituted in its potency to initiate, facilitate and maintain a continuous process of transforming higher levels of being towards flourishing, which is the ultimate end-state of psychological well-being.

Afrigting (coaching) word wyd erken in die sielkunde-veld en die gewildheid daarvan binne die werkskonteks neem voortdurend toe. Navorsing oor die waarde van afrigting is hoofsaaklik geskoei op die perspektief van die afrigter (coach). Daar is tot op hede ‘n beperkte hoeveelheid empiriese navorsingstudies wat spesifiek fokus op die ervaring van die afgerigte/kliënt (coachee/client). Die doel van hierdie hermeneutiese fenomenologiese studie was om die waarde van afrigting te verstaan spesifiek in die konteks van persoonlike transformasie. Die studie het derhalwe ondersoek ingestel na die wyse waarop afrigting persoonlike transformasie vir die kliënt bewerkstellig. Die studie was meta-teoreties gegrond in transpersoonlike sielkunde (transpersonal psychology) en positiewe sielkunde (positive psychology). Semi-gestruktureerde onderhoude is met sewe deelnemers in senior korporatiewe leierskapsposisies gevoer. Die deelnemers was betrokke by ʼn afrigtingsprogram bestaande uit minstens ses afrigtingsessies. Deelnemers is deur middel van doelbewuste steekproefneming geidentifiseer terwyl interpretatiewe fenomenologiese ontleding aangewend is om die data te ontleed. Die bevindinge van die studie lewer ‘n waardevolle bydrae tot die dissipline en veld van bedryfs- en organisasiesielkunde (industrial and organisational psychology), met spesifieke fokus op raadgewende (consulting psychology) en afrigtingsielkunde (coaching psychology). Die bydrae van hierdie studie lê in die identifisering van vier temas: (1) afrigting as proses; (2) afrigtingsmeganismes; (3) afrigting van die holistiese self; en (4) die rimpeleffek binne die werk-lewe-konteks. ʼn Konseptuele raamwerk is ontwikkel, waarvolgens die primêre bevindinge geïntegreerd en dinamies gekonseptualiseer word om die aard van persoonlike transformasie as die kernwaarde van afrigting vir die kliënt, vas te lê. Die studie demonstreer hoe die persoonlike transformasiewaarde van afrigting opgesluit lê in die vermoë daarvan om ʼn voortgesette proses te inisieer, te fasiliteer en te handhaaf waarvolgens hoër bestaansvlakke getransformeer word tot florering (flourishing). Florering is dié gewenste uiteindelike toestand van sielkundige welstand (psychological well-being)

Ukukhosha/ukweluleka kuwumkhakha wobizo lomsebenzi wesifundo sezengqondo/sesayikholoji kanti lo mkhakha uya ngokuya ukhula endaweni yokusebenza. Ucwaningo mayelana nokubaluleka kobizo lomsebenzi wokukhosha lugxile kakhulu emqondweni okhoshi/abaluleki, kanti luncane kakhulu uphenyo oluphathekayo olwenziwe lolwazi oluhlangabezene nowelulekwayo. Inhloso yalolu cwaningo oluyi-hermeneutic phenomenological study kwakuwukuchaza ukubaluleka kokuguquka komuntu ngokwezeluleko zokukhosha ngokuphenya indlela ukukhosha kusiza ngayo ukuguquka komuntu, lowo owelulekwayo. Ucwaningo ngokwesimo esiphathekayo nesomqondo (meta-theoretically) lunamathele kwinguquko yomuntu kanye nakwisayikholoji/nakwingqondo enhle. Izinhlolovo ezimbaxambili zeyi zenziwa ngabadlalindima abayisikhombisa abakwizikhundla eziphezulu zobuholi kwisizinda sezamabhizinisi, laba babandakanyeka ohlelweni lokukhosha okungenani izinkathi zokuhlangana eziyisithupha. Abadlalindima bakhethwe ngokusebenzisa isampuli enenhloso (purposive sampling) kanye nesu lokuhlaziywa kwedatha elisetshenzisiwe belingendlela yohlaziyo ebizwa nge-interpretative phenomenological analysis. Ulwazi locwaningo olutholakele lubaluleke kakhulu ekusetshenzisweni kohlelo lokukhosha kwisifundo kanye nakumkhakha we-industrial and organisational psychology, ikakhulu, isayikholoji yezokuxhumana kanye nokukhosha. Igalelo locwaningo ligxile ekwehlukaniseni kwezizinda ezine: (1) Ukukhosha njengohlelo oluqhubekayo; (2) ukukhosha njengendlela; (3) ukukhosha njebunjalo bakho bomuntu obuphelele; kanye (4) nezinguquko eziyinselelo endaweni yangempela yokusebenza. Isakhiwo somqondo wegama liye lakhiwa, lachaza inguquko ehlangene yolwazi lokuqala olutholakele ukuthola ukubaluleka kwenguquko yokweluleka lowo owelulekwayo. Ucwaningo lukhombisa indlela ukubaluleka kokuguquka komuntu okwenziwa ukweluleka, lokhu kwenziwe ngamandla awo okuqala, okunceda kanye nokugcina uhlelo oluqhubekayo lokuguqula amazinga aphezulu aqonde ukufinyelela impumelelo enkulu, okuyisimo sokugcina sempilo enhle yokusebenza kwengqondo.