| The study was a critical, naturalistic, and holistic case study that examined the real life phenomenon of avatar based coaching sessions facilitated by an avatar coach. The research was conducted using Robert Yin's (2009) case study model. The study investigated the perceptions of eight avatar participants who engaged in virtual reality coaching interventions facilitated by an avatar coach within a 3D virtual world environment. This model incorporates case study propositions to provide a bounded system for the study and to predict the themes based on the outcome from data analysis. The research findings determined that five general themes are unique to describing the phenomenon of avatar based coaching: traditional face-to-face coaching versus virtual reality coaching, lack of social norms and nonverbal cues, technological issues, a sense of presence, and avatar coaching. Nonconventional qualitative data collection techniques used in the study included reflective journaling exercises that spanned a period of 4 weeks and the collection of a demographic survey. The purpose of this research was to provide descriptive data on the use of a 3D virtual world, such as Second Life, to virtualize the coaching process and to demonstrate the feasibility of this modality for the practice of coaching psychology. |
