{"id":2517,"date":"2019-11-29T09:24:52","date_gmt":"2019-11-29T09:24:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.coachmentoring.co.uk\/articles\/?p=2517"},"modified":"2019-12-02T15:31:55","modified_gmt":"2019-12-02T15:31:55","slug":"realist-evaluation-of-complex-coaching-and-mentoring-interactions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.coachmentoring.co.uk\/articles\/2019\/11\/realist-evaluation-of-complex-coaching-and-mentoring-interactions\/","title":{"rendered":"Realist Evaluation of complex coaching and mentoring interactions"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"RealistMentoring and coaching are complex interactions between people and any evaluation needs to, not only look at outcomes, but also the process that led to the outcomes. Enter realist evaluation!<\/p>\n

Evaluation is an essential part of any mentoring or coaching scheme. Why? Because, how can you improve the scheme without feedback?<\/p>\n

Often in organisations the so-called softer areas get downplayed or dismissed as anecdotal or subjective. But, mentoring and coaching are subjective and individualistic and pretending otherwise is to misunderstand them.<\/p>\n

A key question, when evaluating mentoring<\/a> or coaching is \u2018what is the truth about the programme?\u2019<\/em> There could of course be many answers to that question. Recently I watched that classic film \u2018Twelve Angry Men\u2019. It demonstrates that truth can be a subjective process in itself!<\/p>\n

Realist evaluation of mentoring and coaching interactions<\/h2>\n

Realist evaluation sheds light on the full picture of change in a mentoring or coaching programme<\/a>. It is a process that is about \u2018what works\u2019 and that has appeal for many managers.<\/p>\n

Mentoring and coaching happen through personal and interpersonal engagement in developmental<\/a> relationships and purposeful conversations. The outcomes, in the main, are individually defined and therefore have meaning to those individuals. Each relationship is unique but, at the same time there are aspects that link to other mentoring relationships across the scheme and to the rest of the organisation\u2014mentoring and coaching create ripples! Realist evaluation looks at those ripples!<\/p>\n

Realist evaluation is about theory and as Lewin (1951) points out, \u2018there is nothing as practical as a good theory\u2019. There is theory behind every practice in organisations.<\/p>\n

Pawson and Tilley (1997) were the first to make the case for realist evaluation. Realist evaluation is about the \u2018black box\u2019 in mentoring and coaching. It looks at the theory behind the intervention and sees if it stands up or not! So, what are the steps?<\/p>\n

Step 1:\u00a0Establish the theory of the programme<\/h2>\n

What is it supposed to do? Who is it for? This may be some kind of \u2018theory of change\u2019 framework that attempts to link intent with the hoped-for outcomes. There may be \u2018levels\u2019 of theory, for example:<\/p>\n