Research that Benefits Children and Families-WK3

In thinking about families, children, and reflecting upon my various personal teaching experiences, I have never really participated directly in a research study as an educator.  However, I do vaguely remember being part of multiple questionnaires that my mother and I participated in that focused on children and the effects of war.  Since my father suffered from post traumatic stress due to the Vietnam War, questions were asked to learn more about the link between the types of behaviors children display due to emotional circumstances.  Again, these were very vague memories, but I do remember being scared because the man asking me the questions was a complete stranger and I felt uneasy about talking to him about my feelings.  But, my mother assured me it was fine, so I went with it.  We only met a couple times, but looking back I hope the research gathered was used to help other children who had similar childhood experiences as myself.  If I could use my knowledge, experience, and skill to research a particular early childhood topic, it would be to find a cure for Autism, or the causes of it.  I continue to ponder the effects of Autism and the controversial topic of whether or not Autism is genetic or is caused by various vaccinations that are given before the age of 2.  The contributions of finding a cure for Autism, or finding ways in which we can prevent autism would bring relief to millions of parents, and continue to help find ways to assist children in becoming productive citizens of society.