my interest in psychologyI have always been intrigued by the mental processes of humans and animals. As a child and teenager, as a student, teacher and caregiver, I have always been interested in psychology in one form or another. This essay will reflect not only the development of my interest in psychology, but the development of myself as a person. I was born into a family with Native American roots that practiced a strict Protestant religion. As a child, I often wondered why people's attitudes, behaviors, and beliefs could be so different from each other. I wondered why some people believed things with great zeal, while others believed the opposite with the same vehemence. As a teenager, I was enrolled in an accelerated high school program from which I graduated at age 14. Then I was faced with the decision at an early age of what direction my adult life would take. During this time, I also began to research my Native American heritage and began to form my view of individuality, life, spirituality, and relationships. My beliefs eventually evolved and became very contrary to the belief system prevalent in my childhood environment. It was also during this time that I first learned about the field of psychology. I felt that it was very natural for me to gravitate towards a field that investigated the affects, behavior, and cognition of humans and animals, since I had always shown interest in this area. During my first years as a college student, I found myself very interested in the psychological issues I was learning about. I also discovered how difficult it could be to attend college and work full time. Duri......middle of the paper......expression of cognitive abilities and disabilities. Within this thesis, I studied common research paradigms, such as twin and adoption studies. Additionally, I examined the assumptions used within the methodologies, common data analyzes (e.g. concordance rates and heritability measures), and the methodological strengths and weaknesses of different experimental designs. In addition to assisting in research and performing a literature review (first author) in the field of behavioral genetics, I am a member of several behavioral genetics societies to stay up to date on research in the field of genetic inheritance and behavior. I am currently furthering my research in these areas by completing my preliminary thesis on the interaction of GABA genes in autistic disorder and an independent project on depression and mental retardation.