This is an expanded version of an article which was published in French in "Quaestiones Medii Aevii Novae" (vol. 2, 1997). It contains a critical review of 19th and 20th-century studies on the history of hermits, monks and regular canons in Poland. An identification and description of successive stages in the development of this branch of historical inquiry leads to an appraisal of the present state of research and the formulation of an agenda for the future. After a brief review of relevant literature and methodology the author discusses the development of studies on the history of monasticism in Poland in the Central European context. Its first stage saw the domination of the ‘descriptive’ monograph. Historians who followed that model merely collected and edited source material related to individual abbeys. The beginning of modern scholarship in this field was connected with the ‘diplomatic’ approach which specialized in critical studies of oldest documents from the earliest monastic foundations. Its achievements paved the way for the ‘diplomatic and economic’ approach concerned chiefly with the economy and material aspects of monastic life. A more specialized branch of the latter, known as the Poznań school, has focused its efforts on the reconstruction of big monastic estates, in particular those owned by the Cistercians. More specializations are being developed, especially by researchers of the Lublin centre (the Catholic University of Lublin) headed by Professor Jerzy Kłoczowski. Subjects which have recently been attracting greater attention include the missionary activity of the Cistercians, the ‘foundation process’ of Cistercian and Praemonstratensian abbeys and the beginnings of Polish monasticism. Great importance is attached to studies of monastic culture, i.e. the functioning of libraries and scriptoria, or the artistic and musical production of the monasteries. In the final section of his thesis the author formulates a number of suggestions concerning research targets and techniques. He postulates extending the catalogue of research questions and putting more stress on an interdisciplinary approach, also at the stage of source collection and evaluation. New areas and issues, such as the place of monasticism in society and culture, its role in the task of evangelisation, implantation of an abbey in a specific social environment, the structure and functioning of monastic communities, spirituality, liturgy and officium divinum, should be opened for systematic research. Finally, the author points to the need of working out a new model monograph that would take due notice of all aspects of the abbey’s functioning.