An increase in the epidemiological indicators and the neurodevelopmental character of autism cause more and more children to find their way into clinics dealing with early diagnosing and therapy. In view of the huge diversity of this population, the proper understanding of the nature of autism is crucial for a correct diagnosis. A survey of changes in the understanding of this disorder in the historical context may also broaden the perspective on the contemporary transformations of the diagnostic criteria. The paper presents modifications to the defining and classifying of autism over the years, from the description by Leo Kanner (1943) to the proposals included in DSM V (2013). Analysis of the changing diagnostic criteria shows that the first description of autism has, to a greater or lesser extent, had an impact on all authors of the subsequent criteria and classification textbooks. In some cases, the sets of the necessary and sufficient diagnostic criteria proposed within those 70 years of research on autism have had virtually nothing in common. On the one hand, it reflects the huge diversity of this group of people; on the other, it signifies that the question of what autism is has not found a definitive reply. Researchers are still discussing the nature of this disorder, its correct defi nition and diagnosis, as proven by the currently proposed changes in the diagnostic criteria.

The paper focuses on one aspect of the mother-child relation: the mother’s narration about her child during the prenatal period. The aim has been to establish how the mother builds a story about her developing child, which  elements are common to most mothers’ narratives and which variables make the narratives different. In order to answer these questions, a narrative method has been used in a study involving 32 women between the 16th and 37th weeks of pregnancy.
Qualitative and quantitative analysis of the gathered stories shows that the mothers-to-be attribute a meaning and intentions not only to their children’s behaviours in their wombs but also to their own notions of those behaviours, and they base their reactions on them. Furthermore, the mothers arrange their expectations and beliefs concerning their children into coherent stories, which is a vital element of entering motherhood. In this way, they familiarize  hemselves with the unknown and prepare themselves for performing the new role. In the annex to the paper, there are two narratives analysed thoroughly in terms of their content and structure.

One of the ways of presenting children’s experiences connected with their family environment is projection in drawing. The aim of this research has been to identify differences in children’s psychological profi les according to their position in the family birth order.
Children, including 179 girls (54%) and 151 boys (46%), have been surveyed using the Test of Projection Drawing, modifi ed by Maria Braun-Gałkowska, with the topic “Family”. Only 295 drawings have been analyzed, excluding drawings of middle children and twins.
The results show differences, conditioned by the family birth order and by the child’s sex, in the children’s psychological profi les in some aspects of personality.

The aim of the research has been to determine the family aetiology of defensive coping strategies (aggression, avoidance, submission) employed by teenagers in social conflict situations and resulting from educational attitudes and model coping strategies chosen by their parents in analogous contexts. The following assessment methods have been used: the scale of parental attitudes by Mieczysław Plopa, the questionnaire of parental coping strategies in social conflict situations in the child’s perception (SRwSK) by Danuta Borecka-Biernat, and the questionnaire of adolescent coping strategies in social confl ict situations (KSRK) by D. Borecka-Biernat. The empirical study has covered 892 students (464 girls and 423 boys) aged 13–15, from the first, second and third years of the lower secondary school. The results show that adolescents are not able to deal constructively with the social confl ict situation unless in their educational environment they find approval, openness to their matters, recognition of their freedom of action, respect for their rights, and a model of active behaviour provided by signifi cant others while seeking a viable solution to a conflict. Defensive forms of coping strategies in social conflict situations develop under  the influence of educational parental attitudes and models of reacting to problems, manifested in parents’ behaviours in emotional tension situations.

The aim of the cognitive-developmental study has been to determine features of the image of God and indications of the relationship with God formed by adolescents. The definition of the image of God adopted in this paper has three aspects: (1) knowledge about God, (2) emotional experiences of God, and (3) behavioral tendencies towards God. It should be noted that the image of God is formed by imagination to a considerable degree, as we shape our mental representation of God on the basis of imagination. In the study, 114 adolescent Catholics were tested with the projection drawing “My God and I”. The position, shape, size, colors and the way of drawing the figure or symbol of God belong to the formal part of the analysis, while the meanings ascribed to the figure or symbol of God, i.e. the semantics of the representation, constitute the aspect of content. The results of the study have helped to isolate the dimensions of form and content in the image of God and to present their different categorizations.

The aim of the research has been to present students’ preferences for values, their empathy and sense of security. The following methods have been used: the Rokeach Value Survey to identify the preference for values; Uchnast’s Sense of Security Questionnaire (SSQ) to determine the level of the sense of security, and Mehrabian and Epstein’s Empathy Questionnaire (MEEQ) to determine the level of empathy. The research was carried out in a group of students, aged 21–25, in Krakow in 2009. Further analysis was based on 200 sets of questionnaires filled in by the young people, with the average values (M), standard deviations (SD) and the ANOVA variance analysis taken into account and with the Multiple Stepwise Regression Analysis used to specify the independent  variables. The research has shown that students with a high level of empathy prefer final values other than those chosen by students whose level of empathy is low. Students with both levels of empathy appreciate the personal final values of wisdom and pleasure more than social ones. The strongest final values helping to explain the variance of the sense of security in the group of students with a high level of empathy are personal values such as pleasure, comfortable life or exciting life, while in the group of students with a low level of empathy it is also a personal value, the beauty of the world.

The paper presents the research aimed at determining the factors affecting the sense of marital satisfaction of parents of a child with intellectual disability. Special attention has been paid to the way in which the parental role is understood as well as to the parents’ description of their child. The research has involved 165 mothers and fathers of children with intellectual disability, aged 23–76. The following methods have been used: the Questionnaire of a Well-matched Couple (KDM-2), the Questionnaire My Child (KMD) and the Questionnaire of Fulfilling the Parental Role towards a Child with Intellectual Disability (KRRR). The results show that approval of the parental role and a positive way in which the parents describe their child belong to the factors supporting the parents’ marital satisfaction.