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This paper describes the results of research into the characteristics of high and low growth small and medium sized businesses in Scotland.

Interest in employee mindfulness has increased dramatically in recent years, fueled by several important conceptual articles, numerous studies documenting the benefits of mindfulness for employee outcomes, and the adoption of mindfulness-based practices in many Fortune 500 organizations. Despite this growing interest, the vast majority of research on employee mindfulness has taken an intrapersonal focus, failing to appreciate the ways in which mindfulness may enhance work-related relational processes and outcomes. The authors explore possible associations between mindfulness and relationally oriented workplace phenomena, drawing from interdisciplinary scholarship examining mindfulness in romantic relationships, child–parent relationships, patient–healthcare provider relationships, and student–teacher relationships. A framework is proposed that links mindfulness to three distinct relationally oriented processes, which are expected to have downstream effects on work-related relational outcomes. The authors then take the proposed framework and discuss possible extensions to a variety of unique workplace relationships and discuss critical next steps in advancing the relational science of mindfulness.

The term ‘obsolescence’ occurs frequently in the literature of librarianship and information science. In numerous papers we are told how most published literature becomes obsolete within a measurable time, and that an item receives half the uses it will ever receive (‘half‐life’) in a few years. ‘Obsolescence’ is however very rarely defined, and its validity, interest, and practical value are often assumed rather than explained. Before reviewing studies on ‘obsolescence’, therefore, it is necessary to look at the concept and to identify the reasons why it should be of interest.

Aarhus Kommunes Biblioteker (Teknisk Bibliotek), Ingerslevs Plads 7, Aarhus, Denmark. Representative: V. NEDERGAARD PEDERSEN (Librarian).

Mindfulness-based interventions are on the rise in workplace settings to enhance Well-Being and address work stress. Their popularity is in part due to the fact that they are often assumed to have a net positive impact on both workers’ Well-Being and organizational functioning. However, the majority of workplace mindfulness practice and research focuses on individual-level mindfulness interventions and their associated outcomes, like reduced stress. However, the modern workplace is highly dependent on positive team functioning, and the impact of mindfulness in teams is lesser known. This review differentiates individual mindfulness from team mindfulness and explores how both individual and team mindfulness impact team functioning. The authors review mindfulness and teams’ literature to understand antecedents, correlated mediators, and consequences of mindfulness in team contexts, team processes, and the boundary conditions related to mindfulness outcomes. This review adds to the budding theoretical conversation regarding mindfulness at work and contributes valuable insight into the practical applications of mindfulness in teams.

A welcome sign of the growing recognition of the need for more attention to research and documentation in the social sciences can be found in the Report of the Committee on Social Studies under the chairmanship of Lord Heyworth. Not that the report has a great deal to say on the documentation aspect; it has a few fairly cordial references to libraries, and a paragraph mentioning their inadequacies, with a recommendation that national lending facilities should be provided. But the committee were evidently aware of the need for better collection and dissemination of information, and regarded this as one of the major tasks of the Social Science Research Council, of which Dr Michael Young, Director of the Institute for Community Studies, has now been appointed chairman.