Call for Papers

We are currently inviting submissions for our November 2025 issue with a deadline of September 1, 2025. Submissions before July 1 will receive priority attention.

We will host a Developmental Workshop on May 13, 2025, for potential authors. Details will be posted on the Philosophy of Coaching website.

As always, we are looking for well-written, conceptually-rich submissions that address questions and concerns relevant to coaching researchers and coach practitioners. These may be in the form of:

  • Philosophically-oriented academic papers that use well-reasoned arguments to open us up to new ways of thinking and feeling about coaching, with implications for how we practice
  • Literature reviews that bring together existing research findings in new, more relevant ways
  • Case studies that show, using narrative methods, how a particular coaching engagement went, with informed reflections on what was learned as a result
  • Book reviews that share new perspectives on coaching as a field of research and practice
  • Alternative forms of writing about coaching, that may include arts-based, phenomenological and other qualitative methods.

How long should submissions be?

Between 1500-6000 words, tables, figures, appendix and references excluded

Special Issue: The Sacred Cows of Coaching

For this issue, in addition to general papers related to the journal’s theme, we are particularly interested in submissions that speak to the Sacred Cows of Coaching, the long-standing beliefs, practices and/or assumptions that are rarely challenged and often taught and practiced as established norms, conventional thinking, and/or institutionalized belief.

Of particular concern is the lack of questioning of these “unquestioned truths” in coaching practice, which can unintentionally perpetuate the status quo or an old-school mindset.

In light of this, we invite papers that address the following questions:

  • What are the traditional views in coaching practice that need to be examined and how can they be addressed? 
  • What are long-standing assumptions in coaching practice that should be examined, and what approaches can be taken to address them?
  • How can coaching practices and programs challenge traditional views in coaching and seriously engage in a re-examination or reframing to align with emerging insights and best practices? 

These questions invite challenges to the Sacred Cows of Coaching listed below, among others:

  • Coaches must remain completely neutral.
  • The client always has the answer within them.
  • Coaching sessions must have clear, measurable action steps/goals.
  • Coaches must remain detached and emotionally distanced.
  • Coaching should never be disruptive or uncomfortable.
  • AI and Technology have no place in coaching.
  • Coaching is only about the future, not the past.

For more information on how to write for us, visit our For Authors page.