The aim of the research was to identify and describe the function of resilience factors in families of children with hearing impairment. The research sample included 54 families. The definition of time data, the time interval between the first parents’ suspicion and completion of the diagnostic process and the time interval between the diagnosis and provision of first compensation aid, may be seen as the most significant outcomes. The results show that stability and pro-social elements are not affected by the structure of the family, nor by the educational level or religiousness of the parents. Moreover, it was demonstrated that the communication burden affecting the family of a child with hearing impairment is lower in children whose parents became aware of the hearing defi ciency at the child’s lower age, and significantly lower if the hearing impairment was diagnosed before the 12th month of the child’s age. In terms of the social impact of the child’s hearing impairment on the family it was demonstrated that the income level significantly affects the impact of the child’s hearing impairment on social life, and also that the religiosity of parents has no effect on eliminating the negative perception of the hearing impairment.

Shame and emotional regulation in the process of identity formation
In the paper we present a draft of a model capturing the relationship between shame and the identity development process. We discuss two main concepts of shame: shame as an adaptive emotion, according to the evolutionary approach, and as a maladaptive emotion, according to the cognitive attribution theory. Our main thesis states that shame has an essential, both constructive and maladaptive importance for identity development, and this effect is indirect, through the mechanisms of regulating emotions. The destructive and disrupting value of shame is not an immanent feature of this emotion, but a consequence of malfunctioning mechanisms of shame regulation. The association of shame with identity formation relates to the dimensions of exploration: in breadth, in depth and ruminative, as well as to commitment making and identification with commitment. People with a high level of shame proneness are more sensitive to information and assessment coming from signifi cant others from their nearest social environment and more self-critical. This may contribute to the increasing discrepancy or dissonance between the possessed and the desired or socially expected identity. This may also activate mechanisms of identity change and affect its relative stability.

The communication between the mother and the child from the adolescent’s point of view in families of different structures
The aim of this study was to measure the quality of the relationship between the mother and the adolescent in a complete and incomplete family, expressed as a way of communication. The study was not expected to reveal differences in the assessment of communication between the mothers in complete families and those from incomplete families but it was suspected that communication depends on the sex and age of the adolescent. Communication with the mother was rated by 148 adolescents from families with both parents and 237 adolescents reared by single mothers. The method which was used was the Parent-Adolescent Communication Scale (PACS). The U Mann-Whitney Test showed that communication with single mothers is just as satisfying as communication with mothers – showed that positive adolescent communication does not depend on age, while difficulties in communication are the most intense in middle adolescence (15–16 years). In sons, this correlation is stronger than in daughters.

The perception of parental attitudes and posttraumatic growth in a group of children and young people – victims of road accidents
Only recently the development and positive changes after trauma experiences, especially in children and adolescents, have become a subject of research, although the trauma itself and its negative impact on the human condition have been known and explored for a long time. The aim of this study was to determine associations between perceived parental attitudes and positive changes after a traumatic experience. The research group consisted of 72 young people (36 boys and 36 girls) aged 10–17 years who were victims of road accidents. The research tools were the Personal Growth Questionnaire – KOW-27 developed by N. Ogińska-Bulik and Parental Attitudes Scale – SPR, version for young people, by M. Plopa. The respondents have experienced positive changes as a result of a negative life situation. The results showed a signifi cant, though varying, role of parental attitudes, especially attitudes of mothers, that were correlated with personal growth. Their meaning is associated not so much with the general index of posttraumatic growth than with each of its dimensions.

Risky behaviours of youth at secondary-school age
In the face of different civilization changes threatening human health and life, risky behaviours of youth have become one of the essential research areas of present-day psychology. The conclusions of this research can be used to design programmes and preventive measures in this area. The purpose of this research was to determine the structure of risky behaviours of youth at secondary-school age. It was assumed that within a group of youth from the second class of the secondary school, most of the risky behaviours associated with the use of alcohol, nicotine and drugs occurred at least once during the 12 months preceding the research. It was also assumed that sex differentiates risky behaviours in terms of their frequency and structure. The research was conducted on a group of youth of the second class of secondary school. This group consisted of 158 people. To determine the risky behaviours the diagnostic survey method was used. The conclusions of the research made it possible to outline a picture of the spread of these dysfunctions in the school environment of the youth. The vast majority of the respondents declared that during the 12 months preceding the survey, they most frequently used alcohol. Only one out of ten respondents claimed to have abstained from alcohol. Also popular was the use of tobacco and cannabis (marijuana and hashish). The most signifi cant differences between girls and boys occurred primarily in the field of tobacco use, with the frequency of ‘1–5 cigarettes daily’ in favor of girls.

Eudaimonic psychological well-being and identity formation in educational and occupational domains
The main aim of the research was to empirically verify the model of relationships between the three identity dimensions: commitment, in-depth exploration and reconsideration of commitment, as differentiated in the model proposed by Crocetti, Rubini, and Meeus (2008), and the eudaimonic psychological well-being in the model proposed by Ryff (1989). The participants were 504 students and workers aged 17–55. Two separate models were created: one considered identity formation in educational domain, and the other – in occupational domain. Well-being was introduced to the model as an endogenous variable, explained by the three identity dimensions. In the model with educational identity, the identity dimensions explained 28% of well-being variance, and in the model with occupational identity – 17%. The results obtained highlighted the meaning of identity formation on the way to achieve eudaimonic well-being.