Innovative interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) approach in a coaching research project: implications for future qualitative coaching research and beyond

This paper discusses an innovative use of Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) within a coach development research project. Since its introduction, key authors of IPA have been inviting researchers to innovate within the methodology. However, the response to the invitation has, to-date, been limited. In this paper, we address this absence by reflecting on the methodological choices within a recent global coaching study. This study is innovative compared to many IPA studies due to (a) the relatively large sample size; (b) involvement of multiple researchers and analysts; (c) researchers being part of the community and having direct experience of the phenomenon being investigated and (d) introduction of additional analytical steps. These individually and taken together within one project, provide a unique IPA research design. Our innovation facilitated a detailed account of the participants' experience and a clear research output with implications for practice and research. This novel approach to IPA may help improve the scholarly confidence to innovate within qualitative methodologies in general, but particularly within IPA studies. The benefits of our approach – such as richness and enhanced understanding of the diversity of the phenomenon – may encourage scholars to explore bolder research designs to uncover hidden phenomena.