The Effectiveness of Coaching on Workplace Learners’ Goal-Setting Behaviours and Self-Compassion: A Quasi-Experimental Study

Workplace learners face challenges balancing work and study, underscoring the need for effective support. This longitudinal quasi-experimental study investigates coaching's impact on workplace learners’ goal-setting behaviours and self-compassion among 84 learners, comparing professional external coaches, internal coach-educators and a control group over 9 months. Both coaching conditions improved in goal competence relative to the control group, but improvements in goal planning and self-compassion were observed only with external coaches. Longer session durations were associated with greater goal-related gains in the coach-educator condition. These findings demonstrate coaching's value while highlighting that outcomes vary depending on coach type and session structure.