Background: Despite an increasing recognition of the existence of a process of coaching, and a resulting increase in research activity, there remains a lack of a clear conceptual base for sports coaching. This situation has left coaching without a clear set of concepts and principles that reflect coaching practice. Purpose: The aim of this paper is to critically examine current conceptualisations of the coaching process, principally in terms of how they have been generated and their contribution to coaching knowledge. By exploring models for (idealistic representations) and of (empirically based) the coaching process, this paper examines the model's nature and conceptual underpinnings, in an attempt to position them within a broader framework of understanding coaching and the coaching process. Conclusions: The analysis suggests that the current set of models result in a representation of the coaching process that is often reduced in complexity and scale, and the essential social and cultural elements of the process are often underplayed. This is particularly illustrated through examining in-situ models of coaching practice, which identify coaching as a complex, interrelated and inter-dependent process that is firmly embedded within specific social and cultural contexts. Contribution of Research: Because of the inherent complexity of the coaching process, it is argued that the contextual purpose, particularities, and subjectivities of coaching must be examined before guidelines of recommended practice can be made.
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