E-Coaching

Theory and practice for a new online approach to coaching

Anne Ribbers, Alexander Waringa

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2015
• ISBN:
  9781317676096
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Business General
• Index: Business

In a rapidly moving world where so many of our day-to-day activities are now online, it has become essential to adapt coaching processes in order to better suit clients' circumstances and needs. Above all, clients want sustainable and time-efficient results. Electronic coaching (e-coaching) is an inevitable development for every professional who coaches, mentors, teaches, supervises, guides or helps people in their jobs.

The book is underpinned by a theoretical framework that introduces a new model of people development (the ABC model), inspired by Graham Alexander's GROW model, and a new text-based coaching method inspired by Brown and Levinson's politeness theory. E-coaching is practical in its approach, with explanations on safeguarding the security and privacy of your clients, how to calculate rates, managing expectations and other important aspects of coaching online.

The first English-language text available on e-coaching, this book presents a unique combined approach of method and technique, supplemented with a sample e-coaching programme. It is a must-read for all coaches, mentors, supervisors, teachers or HR professionals who want to coach in a modern way, as well as students studying on coaching courses.

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PART I

Introduction to the world of e-coaching

Electronic coaching, or e-coaching for short, is a new branch of coaching that is rapidly gaining popularity. In Part I of this book, we will explain the relevant theory behind the field e-coaching and how the discipline came into being. We will also talk about the various possible applications of e-coaching. We then go into greater detail, discussing the underlying processes involved in e-coaching from both a client and coach perspective. In order to fully comprehend the concept of e-coaching, it is important to gain insight into these specific psychological and psycho linguistic processes and the dynamics involved especially for text-based coaching. In our experience, most coaches that try e-coaching without proper preparation tend to throw in the towel quickly. This happens because they communicate with their e-coachees in the same way as they do during face-to-face (F2F) coaching. For this reason, we will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of online communication. Subsequently, we will introduce the ABC model, which stands for Accelerated Behavioural Change. This model is specifically developed for online facilitation of behavioural change. To close Part I of the book, we will introduce the eCoachPro (eCP) method for text-based e-coaching and discuss a number of theories upon which it is based. We developed this method ourselves in order to ensure that online communication within e-coaching programmes is conducted effectively and efficiently.

In Part II, we describe the practical application of the ABC model and the eCP method. We also provide a summary of all of the essential preconditions for successful e-coaching programmes. Part III then perfectly combines the theory from Part I and the practical application from Part II in the form of a comprehensive example of a real-life e-coaching programme.

1

E-COACHING

The new world of online coaching

The Internet phenomenon is here to stay. Around the world, there are nearly three billion Internet users, which is approaching half of the world’s population. We live in a rapidly changing world with more and more being demanded of both our cognitive and social skills. For the generation born within the last ten years, clicking a mouse or tapping a touchscreen is as natural as breathing or blinking. Internet via the World Wide Web is almost limitlessly accessible and creates opportunities that have been available to no other generation in history. The Internet not only satisfies an increasing demand for information, it also creates a wealth of opportunities for entertainment, social contact, communication and interaction.

Technology is the driving force behind this rapidly changing environment. However, due to the increasing complexity of the world we live in, there is a risk that we will be expected to absorb and process more information than the human brain can possibly handle. This problem demands that new applications are developed to provide order and structure, reducing the complexity to manageable levels. Innovative concepts such as e-coaching can help people to adapt to the constant change of our increasingly complex world. Until now, e-coaching has mainly been associated with speed, availability and accessibility: support at the click of a mouse. This viewpoint mainly focuses on the benefits and opportunities offered by technology and the Internet. However, the opportunities for intra- and interpersonal processes get far less airtime. It is in these intra-personal and interpersonal processes where the true benefit of e-coaching lies. In this chapter, we will explain the various aspects of e-coaching and introduce a new definition of e-coaching. To close the chapter, we will give a number of reasons why you should embrace this innovative coaching approach.

1.1 Existing forms of online learning/coaching

Although coaching is practiced on an enormous scale, there is few empirical data on why it works; about the active ingredients. Very little – if any – scientific research has been conducted into e-coaching. However, research is available about various other successful forms of online guidance. For this reason, we have examined how much overlap there is between e-coaching and two other online guidance methods: e-learning and e-therapy.

1.1.1 E-learning

No matter which of the various definitions of coaching you subscribe to, one aspect is always prevalent: the facilitation of learning. Learning is an essential part of the coaching process. Online learning is also known as e-learning, and can be described as the provision of educational programmes or training by means of various electronic media such as the Internet, intranet, extranet, audio-visual devices,VIOP (Voice over Internet) and/or CD-ROMs. For this type of education, technology is used to enrich the lessons and learning experiences. By using online media, you can create a virtual learning environment that provides information over the Internet. It also facilitates new applications for the data and in-depth investigation of specific information, which offer fantastic new insights. As with the analogue variety, the main goal of online learning is to gain new knowledge. Within the field of coaching, learning new information is an instrumental factor in achieving specific behavioural change.

1.1.2 E-therapy

The term e-therapy encompasses all forms of remote therapy conducted using technology. There are many different forms, such as e-health and e-counselling. Despite the widespread use of e-therapy, there is still no absolute definition. In our opinion, the American National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) gives a useful definition. Although this definition relates to e-counselling, it can easily be used to define e-therapy in the broadest possible sense of the term. Their definition is as follows: ‘Internet counseling involves asynchronous and synchronous remote interaction among counselors and clients using e-mail, chat, and videoconferencing features of the Internet to communicate.’ This definition includes another aspect in addition to the use of ICT, i.e. that it involves remote interaction. In other words, it states that you can offer therapy that is potentially time and location independent.

It is no coincidence that e-therapy is popular with clients both young and old. Various studies have shown that e-therapy is extremely effective in treating psychological conditions such as depression, anxiety and trauma. Further research has shown that online therapy is also effective for conditions such as asthma or chronic fatigue syndrome, and a recent study showed that online therapy helps to lower patients’ blood pressure. Pilot studies have also been conducted that compare in-person therapy and e-therapy. The initial results show that e-therapy can be just as effective, and in some situations, even more effective than regular therapy. One of the important advantages of e-therapy is its accessibility, as communication can be conducted remotely and with a large degree of anonymity.

E-therapy can be seen as a technological response to society’s demand for care that is unrestricted by geographical, physical, psychological and/or financial obstacles. It makes care more accessible for groups such as young people, people in full-time employment, the hard of hearing, lonely and isolated people or housebound people. Anyone with an Internet connection can gain access to e-therapy.

1.1.3 Similarities and differences

Although e-coaching does have a degree of overlap with e-learning and e-therapy, there are a number of fundamental differences. In general, e-therapy is conducted via supply-driven programmes with a modular set-up. Often, it consists of self-help books and programmes that have been adapted for online usage. It involves therapies and programmes that are mainly protocol-based, with the client completing a number of standard modules and conducting sporadic online contact with a professional. Important aspects of e-therapy include psychoeducation,¹ written assignments, behavioural experiments and homework. These types of programme involve weekly online contact with a psychologist or therapist. Research shows that a large amount of personal online contact greatly benefits the effectiveness of the treatment.

Coaching is rarely supply-driven, protocols are infrequently used and personal contact is of essential importance to the nature and structure of the process. Every coaching objective is unique, personal and requires a made-to-measure approach. Furthermore, the central aspect of coaching is the dialogue. During the dialogue, the client is confronted with the coaching issue by means of questions, reflection exercises and introspection. To compare e-coaching with e-therapy, it is best to look at e-therapy programmes that involve interpersonal contact. E-coaching and e-therapy both involve written exercises, behavioural experiments and knowledge transfer. Due to this overlap, we can learn a lot about e-coaching from the research into e-therapy and the experiences of those that practice it.

1.2 Definition of e-coaching

E-coaching is also known as online coaching, remote coaching, web coaching, cyber coaching, digital coaching, i-coaching, distance coaching and virtual coaching. There are also other types in which specific software is used, such as chat coaching (via a chat program), video coaching (using a webcam), SMS coaching (via text messages) and Skype coaching (combination of Voice over Internet (VIOP) and webcam). The authoritative Handbook of the Psychology of Coaching and Mentoring edited by psychologist Jonathan Passmore and colleagues includes one chapter on ‘virtual coaching’. In this chapter several interesting examples of e-coaching are described, including a variety of definitions. Top coach and leadership expert David Clutterbuck (2010, co-founder of the European Mentoring and Coaching Council) defined e-coaching as a developmental partnership in which the learning dialogue is conducted online.

Based on this definition and the overlap between e-therapy and e-learning described in Section 1.1.3, we have formulated a more specific definition of e-coaching:

E-coaching is a non-hierarchical developmental partnership between two parties separated by a geographical distance, in which the learning and reflection process is conducted via both analogue and virtual means.

This definition is made up of three key aspects:

1 Coaching is involved. The lack of a hierarchical and advisory relationship is characteristic of e-coaching, which intrinsically distinguishes it from e-learning and e-therapy.

2 The learning and reflection process is conducted both in a practical setting (on the job) and in the client’s everyday environment (analogue).This learning and reflection process is facilitated by using the Internet (digital).This approach enables the client to practice new skills in relevant real-life situations.

3 Communication between the coach and client is not conducted in close proximity (in person), but at a distance (remote). Furthermore, in the case of email coaching each party decides when to read the messages sent to them (asynchronous). As a result, the coaching programme is both time and location independent.

1.3 E-coaching and coaching: similarities and differences

Remote one-on-one interaction is the central aspect of e-coaching, with little to no direct contact, i.e. face-to-face (F2F) coaching. The goal of both e-coaching and traditional F2F coaching is to provide effective personal guidance to induce the desired behavioural change, hopefully resulting in the client achieving his/her primary objectives. Coaching enables clients to improve their knowledge, skills and competencies and apply these new abilities in their everyday life. One of the most famous researchers in our field is the coaching psychologist Anthony Grant, who has formulated six essential steps in the coaching process based on recent research into the application of solution focused, appreciative and cognitive behavioural coaching, in addition to the discipline of ‘positive psychology’.These six steps can be used to realize any coaching objective that a client wants to achieve:

1 Identify the desired result.

2 Set specific goals.

3 Boost motivation by identifying strengths and building self-confidence.

4 Identify available tools and formulate specific action pl...