How do psychologists view goals in coaching? David Megginson, emeritus professor of HRD, Coaching & Mentoring Research Unit, Sheffield Hallam University, finds some unlikely alliances of opinion
I’m co-writing a book on goals in coaching, and we have some great contributors from psychology and development offering their own views. What do psychologists who are authors of coaching books say about goals in coaching? This is what I discovered.
Organisation agenda Peltier and Lee were two of the earliest coaching psychology books I read. Both drew attention to unconscious processes and opened my eyes to the possibilities of their influencing coaching conversations. As psychologists interested in psychometrics they were both drawn to assessment and 360-degree feedback. On re-reading them now, this interest seems to draw them into acknowledging the legitimacy of the organisational (and, perhaps particularly the HR) agenda. Lee sees a place for the individual, the group (direct reports) and the organisation having agendas, and that goals can usefully be set for each party.
SMART
Some psychologists talk about the goals value SMART (Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Relevant and Time-bounded). This seems to be an example of the behaviourist legacy that persists within psychology. Van Deurzen & Hanaway link SMART goals with Cognitive Behavioural Coaching and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, which rather confirms my hypothesis about the root of this tendency. Connor and Pokora go so far as to suggest that if SMART goals can be articulated clearly then the coach and client can progress straight to work on the goal without other preliminaries, because the client is clear about what they want. Cantore and Passmore also outline the SMART framework without critical comment.
GROW
Goal orientation in some texts comes from adopting or endorsing the GROW model. Connor and Pokora (2007) make a clear link, as do Cantore and Passmore. However, Bachkirova fiercely criticises GROW, in that this kind of algorithmic model involves assessment, imposing a narrow developmental agenda, judgment and lack of respect for complexity. Similarly, de Haan has no time for GROW, seeing it as problem-focused (in contrast to solution-, person- or insight-focused). He criticises problem focus as placing too much emphasis on what the coach does and on being unduly confronting, both of which he calls unhelpful.
Therapeutic outcomes
These represent, for some, an agenda contributed by the coach to the coaching conversation. Lee talks about three stages – hope, belief and expectation. Alan Headman, in a chapter on the person-centred approach in Peltier, talks about four goals of therapy – openness to experience; achieving self-trust; internal evaluation, and willingness to continue growing. They see these goals as shaping the coaching conversation. Both de Haan and Bachkirova see this as undesirable and detracting from the self-direction of the client.
Conclusion
There are two strands within coaching psychology on the subject of goals. In an unlikely alliance, the behaviourist tendency and some elements of the psychodynamic tradition seem to advocate goals, whereas on the other hand, developmental and relational coaches seem to have more concerns about the use of goals. In looking at our own practice it seems we need to employ our own discretion, though that judgment may be guided by the tradition we ally ourselves to, whether or not we are psychologists.
References
1 B Peltier, The Psychology of Executive Coaching: Theory and Application, New York, Brunner-Routledge, 2001
2 G Lee, Leadership Coaching, London, CIPD 2003
3 E van Deurzen & M Hanaway (eds), Existential Perspectives on Coaching, Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan, 2012
4 M Connor & J Pokora, Coaching and Mentoring at Work: Developing Effective Practice, Maidenhead, McGraw-Hill/Open University Press, 2007
5 S Cantore & J Passmore, Top Business Psychology Models, London, Kogan Page, 2012
6 T Bachkirova, Developmental Coaching: Working With The Self, Maidenhead, McGraw-Hill/Open University Press, 2011
7 E de Haan, Relational Coaching: Journeys towards Mastering One-to-One Learning, Chichester, Wiley, 2008
8 G Egan, Essentials of Skilled Helping, Belmont, CA, Thomson Wadsworth, 2006
Volume 7, issue 6