Ho Law, Sara Ireland & Zulfi Hussain

Objectives: The objectives of this case study were to: (1) develop a Universal Integrated Framework (UIF) of coaching; and (2) evaluate its effectiveness in terms of its impact upon the participants and the organisations.
Design: 49 participants assessed themselves on coaching indicators using the online CCSR tool as part of a leadership development programme within the National Health Services (NHS) in UK. The tool consisted of four dimensions (Personal, Social, Cultural, and Professional) and 18 elements with 110 questions.
Methods: The tool was evaluated using linear regression and analyses of variance, supplemented with qualitative review as part of triangulation process.
Results: Statistical analyses indicated that the Coaching/mentoring competence was predicted by Personal competence. The competence increased with age/life experience. There were no differences in competence scores between male and female participants. Personal and Social and Social and Cross-Cultural competences were co-related. Black participants seemed to benefit from the cross-cultural dimension framework as they scored significantly higher than White participants. Asian participants scored somewhere in between the two categories.
Conclusions: The results supported the underpinning coaching philosophy that was advocated that in order for the framework to be universal (non-biased), it was important to include a cross-cultural dimension within the core coaching and mentoring competence. It was recommended that future research should aim to explore the validity of the individual elements of the CCSR using a larger sample size.

Keywords: coaching psychology, coaching, competence, continuous professional development, cross culture, diversity, emotional intelligence, evaluation, leadership development programme, mentoring, National Health Services (NHS), online, review, Universal Integrated Framework.

Full article: Volume 1, Issue 2 pages 56 - 67