The Institute is a psychological research department of the School of social studies at Masaryk in Brno. The main research is based on grant project of Czech Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports MSM0021622406 Psychological and social characteristics of children, youth and families, development of the personality in the time of changes of modern society primarily focused on long term monitoring of psychological and social characteristics of the children, youth, and their families. The research topic is rather broad, but it is based on a real evaluation of current activities and possibilities of the research team. It is not an initial project, but a continuance of long term systematic research attempts that were developed in the past decade. In the first half of the ninetieth this was e.g. a participation on international projects of comparative survey on the youth (e.g. "Euronet Pilot Study", "Adolescents\' Interpretation of the Social Contract", by P. Macek);further on there were several projects dealing with educational and instructional task of the school as far as children from disadvantaged environment are concerned (e.g. the project called "Obecná a obc(anská škola (General and Civic School)" and "Podpora optimálního vývoje de(tí se sociokulturne( znevýhodne(ného prostr(edí (Supporting optimum evolution of children from socio culturally disadvantaged environment)" by V. Smékal), and projects dealing the problems concerning family life and partner relationships (e.g. "Dynamika rodinných a manželských krizí: zdroje, podoby a strategie zvládání" /Dynamics of family and partner crises:sources, forms and their management strategy/, solver I. Plan(ava). Further relevant topics were and are solved within projects supported by GA C(R (P. Macek, I. Plan(ava, Š. Portešová, M. Tyrlík, V. Smékal, S. Ježek, J. Mareš, E. Polášková ).