The Paradigmatic Failure Affecting Coaching Demand

This study explores the evolution of coaching demand through the lens of a paradigmatic failure, as a reflection of a cultural crisis characterizing post-modernity. The research draws upon Kuhn's theories on paradigms, Bourdieu's concept of habitus, and Husserl's exploration of cultural crisis to analyze how coaching addresses demands increasingly focused on values, meaning, and purpose. Paradigmatic failure is defined as the questioning of previously established normative and value systems, which can no longer effectively guide choices and actions in a rapidly transforming socio-cultural context. Through an analysis of Carli's dynamics of collusion and the “sad passions” described by Benasayag and Schmit, the study highlights how coachees’ requests reflect cultural disorientation and the necessity for innovation. This approach highlights the role of coaching as an ethical and transformative tool, helping coachees pursue happiness and self-realization – understood as the realization of their true selves, through the creation of new meanings, unlocking both individual and collective potentialities.