The fundamental regularities and contemporary concepts of the nature of Rehbinder's effect, i.e., adsorption-induced reduction of strength, are reviewed. Experimental data on the effect of adsorption-active environment on the fracture of solids, the strength of which is controlled by different interatomic bonds, are generalized. The reasons for the chemical selectivity and the influence of solid supramolecular structures and test conditions on the character of the effect are discussed.