Family Coaching: An Emerging Family Science Field

As the field of family science continues to adapt to the changing needs of families, its methods of delivery for family practice are also evolving. Family coaching is one such example in its approach to delivering prevention and intervention services to families. Much like family life education, family therapy, and family case management, the aim of family coaching (FC) is to help families become more successful. FC is an emergent field; in this article we highlight existing coaching efforts in family science and explore FC as an extension to the domains of family practice (DFP) model by Myers-Walls, Ballard, Darling, and Myers-Bowman (2011). Although family practitioners are "coaching" families, there is a gap in family studies literature with regard to theoretical and empirical research on FC. The exact fit of FC within family science remains unclear, as does its fit within the domains of family practice. To better delineate FC as a domain of family practice, however, it needs to be more clearly operationalized with regard to scope and constructs. Specifically, in this article we suggest that FC is unique in its delivery of services. We propose this knowing that historically FC is in its infancy. Thus, our aim is to initiate a collaborative conversation about FC among family professionals.Defining Family CoachingLike other family professionals (e.g., family therapists and family life educators), the role of a family coach is to guide clients "into increased competence, commitment and confidence" regarding a specified goal (Hudson, 1999, p. 6). Broadly defined, it is a processdriven relationship between a family system (as represented by an individual or familial group) and a family practitioner designed to foster the achievement of family-identified goals. Family coaches may work with more than one family member, but most likely a family coach will work with an individual, parent(s), or couple on family life issues.Unlike family life education that uses a set of materials such as a curriculum or an educational program, FC is a strengths-based approach to helping families reach goals and improve family functioning through coaching techniques. Family coaches strive to create coach-client partnerships that offer support and cultivate growth opportunities through the use of coaching techniques and models. Family coaches strive to develop the capacity of a parent or family member to improve abilities and skills (Rush, Shelden, & Hanft, 2003). Family coaches utilize practices such as powerful questioning (e.g., probing, comparative), providing feedback, conducting assessments (e.g., strengths, self-awareness), planning actions, evaluating actions, and offering accountability in nonjudgmental interactions (Rush & Shelden, 2006). Although the coach and client come to the setting with different abilities and roles (and therefore are never completely equal), the emphasis is consistently on creating a relationship of parity where power is shared (Stober, 2006). An egalitarian and collaborative relationship facilitates positive interactions and benefits to the client (Ives, 2008). The core focus of coaching is to partner with clients in working toward the goals and aspirations they choose for themselves (Grant & Cavanaugh, 2007). ne General Evolution of CoachingAlthough coaching is considered a developing field of study, the first reference to coaching was found in a 1937 article describing a coaching process that led to increased profits (Gorby, 1937). Since this time, the field of coaching has grown exponentially (Maynard, 2006). With this increase, the need for rigor and evaluation arose (Grant, 2004), and coaching psychology research began to populate the psychological literature during the 1960s, becoming particularly prevalent by the 1990s. Much of that research, however, was and still is phenomenological in nature, making some skeptical of the validity of coaching given its nomenclature as popular psychology, protoscience, and/or pseudoscience (Grant, 2004; Grant & Cavanagh, 2007). …