What is schema coaching?
Iain McCormick PhD, Executive Coaching Centre, Auckland NZ.
Schema coaching is a recently developed area of practice which uses the methods and techniques of schema therapy to assist team members in the workforce to deal with persistent personal challenges.
Schema therapy was developed by Jeffery Young and colleagues (2003) and integrates a range of techniques from existing therapies and theories, including cognitive behavioural therapy, psychodynamic therapy, attachment theory and gestalt therapy.
In schema therapy, a schema is an organised persistent pattern of thought and behaviour that is self-defeating or dysfunctional. The schema develops during childhood or adolescence and can impact an individual throughout his or her life. For example, clients suffering from the unrelenting standards schema have a very strong belief that they must constantly strive to meet very high internalised performance standards to avoid criticism. This schema frequently results in feelings of being pressured and unable to slow down, combined with exaggerated criticism of themself and others.
The goal of both schema therapy and coaching is to help clients get their core needs met in an adaptive manner through changing their maladaptive schemas.
For further information contact Dr Iain McCormick
Photo Credit: Road Trip by Raj