Archives

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  The Intentional Coach: Bridging Intentionality and Ethicality

  Vol. 2 No. 1 (2025)

  Abstract:

  This paper examines the primary theme of intentionality in the professional development of experienced coaches, building upon the research presented in ‘On Becoming a Coach’ (Rajasinghe, Garvey, Smith, et al., 2022). The original study explored how coaches navigated their developmental journeys as they evolved into seasoned practitioners. Key themes identified in that research included: Vehicles of Development, Narratives of Awareness, Narratives of Letting Go, Ethical Practice, and Narratives of Becoming a Coach. This paper extends those findings by focusing on intentional learning, a deliberate, conscious effort to align professional growth with intentionality and ethicality, fostering personal and professional wellbeing in the process.

  Drawing from my previous work on identity development (Smith, 2024), which examined the shifting nature of self-concept in becoming a coach, this paper highlights how intentional learning intersects with identity shifts and the evolution of ethicality. The study employs a qualitative approach, conducting in-depth interviews with experienced coaches to explore how intentionality shapes professional development. Engines and Anchors of Intentional Learning, Novel Learning Frontiers, and Thriving and Mastery through Ethicality.

  This research contributes to the emerging conversation on ethicality in coaching, a concept pioneered by this work. It demonstrates how intentional learning fosters professional growth and ethical maturity. It presents a practice model rooted in ethical responsibility and lifelong learning. The paper discusses practical implications for coach educators, emphasising the importance of creating environments that nurture intentionality to enhance coaching effectiveness and ethical practice.

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  Decoupling Consent from Contracting in Coaching: From Agreement to Participation

  Vol. 3 No. 4 (2026)

  Contracting is widely positioned as the primary ethical mechanism in coaching, establishing expectations, boundaries, and the conditions of engagement. Within this framing, consent is frequently assumed to be embedded within initial agreements. The paper proposes both a conceptual and practical decoupling of consent from contracting, arguing that consent should be understood as a distinct ethical process rather than assumed to be encompassed within the coaching agreement. Contracting is positioned as the relational architecture of the coaching engagement, while consent is reframed as an ongoing, situational, and intervention-specific ethical practice.

  Drawing on coaching ethics, psychological codes, and consent theory, the paper compares coaching frameworks, including the International Coaching Federation (ICF) Code of Ethics and the European Mentoring and Coaching Council (EMCC) Global Code of Ethics, with psychological standards such as the Psychology Board of Australia Code of Conduct and the British Psychological Society (BPS) Code of Ethics and Conduct. The analysis highlights that while coaching frameworks primarily emphasise agreement-based ethics, adjacent professions more explicitly conceptualise consent as continuous, revisitable, and operationalised within practice. Failure to distinguish these concepts risks undermining client autonomy, obscuring power dynamics, and reducing ethical responsiveness. 

  A dual-framework model is proposed: contracting frames the professional relationship; consent protects the person within it. This distinction strengthens ethical clarity, enhances psychological safety, and supports the continued maturation of coaching as a profession.

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  Dynamic Ethical Practice: Holding Complexity and Courage When Mental Health Enters the Space

  Vol. 3 No. 3 (2026)

  This paper examines dynamic ethical practice in coaching and coach supervision in the context of growing complexity and uncertainty. Drawing on adult developmental thinking, King and Kitchener’s (2004) reflective judgment framework, the revised Global Code of Ethics (2026), and a capacity-based view of mental health in coaching (Calleja & Clidière, 2026), the presentation proposed that ethical practice is relational and situational rather than procedural. This also resonates with Smith’s (2025a) view that ethicality is cultivated through intentional, reflective, and value-led engagement with practice. This paper explores four linked themes: complexity, courage, dynamic ethical practice, and ethical maturity as reflective maturity. It then connected these themes to coaching situations in which mental health-related strain, vulnerability, or distress may enter the space. It suggests that client outcomes may be shaped by the practitioner’s reflective depth, ethical discernment, and capacity to pace, contain, and respond appropriately under conditions of uncertainty, this goes beyond tools and models.

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  Who Decides? Professional Conduct, Authority, and Ethical Agency in Tension

  Vol. 3 No. 2 (2026)

  Overview

  This case explores ethical tensions arising during a professional development session delivered by an independent ethics consultant for a global professional body. The consultant declined to use the organisation’s copyrighted slide template due to concerns that doing so could imply institutional ownership or control over her independently developed materials. During the session, which explored ethical discernment and applied decision-making, she used this scenario as a live pedagogical example of ethicality emerging in real time, understood here as the process of recognising, interpreting, and navigating ethical tensions in practice (Smith, 2025).

  Organisational representatives interrupted the session and later challenged the presenter in a private discussion. The session was further disrupted by a security breach in the online environment. The consultant subsequently raised concerns with institutional leadership in confidence.

  Some time later, the facilitator was informed that the organisation had judged her behaviour “unprofessional”. No formal inquiry or dialogue had occurred following the initial discussion with leadership, and the facilitator was unaware of any subsequent investigative or consultative process.

  This case examines ethical voice, institutional power, professional reputation, due process, intellectual property concerns, and the tensions that can arise when independent ethical frameworks intersect with organisational authority.

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  Society and Planet: How Eco-Aware Coaches Embody Ethical Responsibility

  Vol. 3 No. 1 (2026)

  Objectives: Coaching professional bodies have publicly acknowledged the role of coaches in responding to climate change, but there is a lack of research into how executive coaches concerned with climate change experience their roles. This qualitative study addresses this gap, exploring, ‘How does being an eco-aware coach show up in coaching?’.

  Methods: This study employed Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) to explore in rich detail the lived experience of self-identified eco-aware executive coaches. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with six experienced coaches based in the UK and Ireland.

  Results: The findings reveal that eco-aware coaches show up with ethical responsibility towards Society and Planet which interlinks three Group Experiential Themes: Mindset, Inner Work and Partnership.

  Discussion: The identified themes offer a nuanced understanding of how eco-aware coaches show up, specifically how they experience cognitive dissonance and navigate tensions between their responsibility towards Society and Planet and their professionalism as coaches, ultimately embodying ethical responsibility. The findings challenge the wider coaching community, raising questions about whether coaches can claim to be fully agenda-free.

  Conclusion: The results of this study contribute to the coaching psychology literature about the emerging field of climate change coaching, illuminating how eco-aware coaches balance their social purpose with their professionalism.

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  Courageous Becoming: Cultivating Ethicality

  Vol. 2 No. 5 (2025)

  Courageous Becoming is a developmental model of ethical practice for coaches, mentors, and leaders. As ethical tensions intensify across professional landscapes, practitioners require more than compliance, they need ways of engaging that support real-time ethical responsiveness. In contrast to static, compliance-driven approaches, it positions ethicality as a lived, relational, and mature way of being. The model outlines eight interdependent movements—Context & Culture, Lived Values, Nourishment, Networks of Strength, Embodied Presence, Intentional Agency, Discernment, and Praxis in Motion; each representing a dimension of ethical development involving reflection, intentionality, and relational awareness.

  The model supports practitioners in engaging with real-world ethical complexity—not by prescribing answers, but by cultivating the inner capacities required to respond with presence, courage, and integrity. Integrated with the Praxis Model—a reflective framework for navigating ethical tension in real time—Courageous Becoming also supports the ongoing development of ethical awareness and presence across all aspects of practice.

  Together, they offer a psychologically informed and philosophically anchored framework for cultivating ethicality as a way of being: in practice, in relationship, and across the arc of a professional life.

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  Internal Coaching in India

  Vol. 2 No. 4 (2025)

  Abstract

  Coaching in India is an emerging practice that bridges traditional cultural values with modern organizational demands. This paper explores the unique challenges and opportunities faced by internal coaches operating within organizations, focusing particularly on role duality and ethical dilemmas influenced by cultural constructs such as dharma. Dharma, a foundational concept in Indian thought signifying duty, righteousness, and the inherent order of things, offers a crucial lens for understanding ethical navigation in coaching. This paper unpacks the concept of dharma and examines its application to coaching ethics, particularly concerning the distinctions between internal and external coaching roles within the Indian context. It highlights the critical need for clearly defined roles, specialized training informed by cultural nuances, and robust ethical guidelines to enhance the effectiveness and integrity of internal coaching, especially considering India's high-power distance culture and the growing emphasis on democratized coaching practices. By addressing these complexities, this paper aims to refine internal coaching frameworks and contribute to the global discourse, emphasizing the importance of cultural and ethical considerations in advancing the practice.

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  The Story So Far in Coaching Ethics: Insights from an Exploratory Enquiry

  Vol. 2 No. 3 (2025)

  Abstract:

  This article examines the results of a survey conducted during the Coaching Ethics Forum (CEF) conference 2023, inviting coaches from the event, the CEF email database and LinkedIn. The survey invited participants to examine how reflecting on coaching ethics impacted on their ethical coaching practice.

  There were 101 responses to four primary areas:

  1. Understanding the background and approaches of our sample.
  2. Understanding their view of supervision.
  3. Understanding their approach to reflection.
  4. Understanding their approach to ethical practice.

  The survey participants came from a range of different countries but with a large majority from English-speaking countries. In addition to the data on the background, views, approaches and ethical practice of the coaches, we explored various primary and sub-themes emerging. The group were mainly experienced and trained coaches who held a wide range of prior occupations. Overall, they showed a commitment to supervision (although many did not) and engagement in ethical reflection. The breadth of experience, types of training and diversity of frameworks followed was noteworthy, implying that coaching is very broadly based as a field of practice. We identify some key themes and further questions about the relationship between ethical practice, supervision and ethical reflective practice.  

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  Positive Psychology Coaching: Embodying Wellbeing and Ethicality

  Vol. 2 No. 2 (2025)

  Abstract

  This study explores the impact of Positive Psychology Coaching (PPC) on the wellbeing of coaches through a thematic analysis of interviews with nine participants. The research aimed to uncover both the benefits and challenges experienced by coaches in their professional and personal lives. Three key themes emerged from the data: Embodiment of Wellbeing, Enriched Coaching Practice, and Wellbeing as an Ethical Imperative in Coaching. These findings highlight the multifaceted impact of PPC, emphasising the importance of self-care, relationships, and ethical considerations — such as cultural sensitivity —in sustaining both personal and professional wellbeing.

  Participants reported significant personal transformational experiences, citing greater self-awareness, changes in how they support themselves and their coach identity, emotional growth, and the discovery of strengths and limitations as key outcomes of practicing PPC. Positive interventions, such as mindfulness, gratitude exercises, journalling, playfulness, and an increased sense of meaning and spirituality, were found to enhance coaches' overall wellbeing. However, challenges arose in maintaining work-life balance, with some coaches expressing difficulties in managing their wellbeing while meeting professional demands, as a result, reduced their practice. Additionally, the coaches highlighted the need for strong ethical boundaries.

  While the study offers valuable insights into PPC, it has limitations. The relatively small sample size, drawn from a specific subset of coaches, potentially limits the generalisability of the findings. The reliance on self-reported data may introduce bias, as participants may under-report negative experiences or exaggerate positive outcomes. Future research could benefit from a larger, more diverse sample and the inclusion of quantitative measures to complement the qualitative findings.

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  Journal of Coaching Ethics: Cover

  Vol. 1 No. 1 (2024)

  JoCE Cover 

  Boomerangs + white and blue + colourful = Australia its vibrancy my native home

  Red, white = Malta, my native cultural home
  Red, White, Blue = France, my home when founding the journal

  Red = ethics are the beating heart of everything we do across all domains of life, and specifically for this Journal the field of coaching.

  Messy, interwoven, colourful fluidity = that is Ethics

  Wendy-Ann Smith

  Founding Editor