In testing for the self-serving bias in performance evaluation, the authors propose that comparing managers' counterfactual and prefactual thoughts about subordinates' performance is more conclusive than the attributional approach and also offers practical advantages. In a study with 120 managers, a 4-way interaction of subordinate performance, temporal perspective, direction, and reference confirmed the predicted pattern. Managers' thoughts about how a weak performance could have been enhanced had external references, but thoughts about how such a performance could be enhanced in the future focused on the leader. This asymmetry was only observed for weak performance. Results are discussed with regard to biases in leaders' performance evaluations and to how counter- and prefactual thoughts could be used for leadership research and practice.

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Purpose Team coaching (TC) is a popular new addition to the team learning and development toolkit. However, the conceptualization of TC and the distinction between TC, team training, team development and team building interventions remains unclear. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach The authors address this significant gap by abductively exploring how TC is conceptualised in practice (n=410). The authors survey practitioners engaged in delivering TC to ask how they would define TC and distinguish it from other team interventions. Findings A thematic analysis of the data reveals eight themes, which can be used to define TC and illustrate areas of overlap and distinctiveness with other team interventions. Research limitations/implications The absence of a clearly defined construct is hindering the development of a rigorous theory of TC. The contribution of the paper is, therefore, a clear and comprehensive definition of TC, which can be used by researchers and practitioners alike when working within the domain of TC. Originality/value The paper provides the first systematic exploration of a definition of TC in relation to alternative team interventions. By utilising an abductive approach in the research, the authors are able to capitalise on practitioner experience in this practice-led field.

How are task reflexivity and intercultural sensitivity related to the academic performance of MBA students? Higher Education in business school environments is increasingly focused on how to best equip students with the skills necessary for leadership in the global workplace. This paper examines the impact of two particularly important cognitive capabilitiestask reflexivity and intercultural sensitivity, on academic performance in an MBA programme. It was hypothesised that in an intercultural learning environment, task reflexivity would be associated with higher academic performance, and that this relationship would be mediated via intercultural sensitivity. Questionnaire data from 77 MBA students was analysed alongside academic performance. Results demonstrated that task reflexivity was indirectly related to academic performance through intercultural sensitivity. Our findings suggest that engagement in task reflexivity enables students to develop greater levels of intercultural sensitivity, allowing them to reap the positive effects of diversity in their peer group for their own learning and performance. Limitations and practical implications of the research for professional practice are discussed.

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