The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) among parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) through reducing psychopathology, improving quality of life, and developing psychological skills (psychological flexibility, self-compassion, and ego-resiliency). The study was quasi-experimental in the form of a four-week ACT intervention; three measurements were obtained (baseline, one week after training, one month after training). It involved 60 participants divided into three groups: two criteria groups (ACT in the off-line form, N=20, ACT in the on-line form, N=20), and one control group (N=20). The results showed a significant improvement in the area of quality of life and the level of psychological skills among parents participating in the ACT training, and this improvement was maintained both a week and a month after the end of the training. The form of participation in the training did not differentiate the groups, which may indicate their equivalence. In addition, significant intergroup differences were shown between participants from the criterion groups and those from the control group, as the subjects who did not participate in the training were characterized by lower quality of life and lower level of psychological skills, and higher intensity of psychopathological symptoms. The results can be used both in designing further scientific research and in clinical practice, especially in the psychological care of families of persons diagnosed with ASD, with special focus on the area of developing psychological skills and the use of short-term therapeutic methods.

The article presents conceptions and theories of expert knowledge, as well as discussions on the epistemological status of expert knowledge, cognitive competences falling within the scope of expertise and expert authority. They are treated as a kind of extra-institutional knowledge, referring only to a small extent to the scientific knowledge and academic circles. The positions of Alvin Goldman, Harry Collins and R. Evans, Z. Majdik and W. Keith, T. Burge and J. Shanteau on the validity of expert knowledge and methods of its justification are presented. The paper points to the problematic nature and certain limitations of the traditional perspective on the credibility of expert knowledge and expert authority. On the example of the phenomenon of the autism spectrum and traditional judgments about it—in particular, expert opinions issued about people covered by it, as well as common opinions and stereotypes— the discussion on the changes taking place in this field of knowledge and social practice is presented. Conceptions of expertise by experience in the subject of autism are discussed, including the so-called self-advocacy and self-advocacy scientists. These new cognitive attitudes and social functions of autism spectrum experts are also analyzed from the point of view of the epistemological credibility of this type of knowledge and competence.

Analyzing Don Quixote from the perspective of the main character's madness has a long history backed by a well-entrenched critical tradition. The latter was recently revisited by Marcin Rychter in his article 'Don Kichote i szaleństwo' [Don Quixote and madness] ( Przegląd Filozoficzny, N.S., 2017 (2), pp. 121–133). Although Rychter eschews psychiatric terminology in his descriptions of Don Quixote's state of mind, he cannot help using the term 'psychosis' and assumes that the reactions of Cervantes' protagonist are delusions and hallucinations. This article steers clear of any psychoanalytical or psychiatric interpretations of Don Quixote and suggests instead that he represents a metaphorical projection of self-estrangement which has reached the point of not being able to interact with the outside world. The very creation of such a character dramatizes the problem of incongruity between self-expression and the rules of communication with other people and the basic assumptions which make understanding and being understood possible. In effect Don Quixote may be seen as an exemplary figure typifying both autism and cognitive distortions. He personifies the Other, i.e. someone who is separate and estranged from the community and its norms and, at the same time, valiantly grapples with that condition trying again and again to transcend it.