Contributing to coaching knowledge whilst learning how to research: a review and discussion of four student-coaching studies.

This article showcases four student research projects focused on forms of internal and external coaching, and coaching supervision. The studies were selected from a pool of unpublished studies that were grouped according to their general interest and relevance to each other. After briefly describing the studies, key findings are identified for each and integrated into a combined discussion. More specifically, the discussion focuses on the perceived challenges that HR practitioners face in respect of providing an internal coaching service (i.e. HR coaching), along with an examination of more general factors that appear to influence employee receptivity to employer-sponsored programmes (like internal coaching). Also explored is the niche area of maternity coaching, with evidence presented about its efficacy and questions noted about current prevalence and the importance of research to its long-term viability. Finally, several issues related to coaching supervision are considered, particularly in regard to the relatively unexplored area of supervision within internal coaching contexts. Recommendations for future research are provided for all research topics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]