Routledge Fetal Development: A Psychobiological Perspective

Based on the presentations given by well-known specialists at a recent multidisciplinary conference of developmental psychobiologists, obstetricians, and physiologists, this book is the first exhaustive attempt to synthesize the present scientific knowledge on fetal behavior. Utilizing a psychobiological analytic approach, it provides the reader with an overview of the perspectives, hypotheses, and experimental results from a group of basic scientists and clinicians who conduct research to elucidate the role of fetal behavior in development. Experimental and clinical as well as human and animal data are explored via comparative developmental analysis. The ontogeny of fetal spontaneous activity -- via the maturation of "behavioral states" -- and of fetal responsiveness to sensory stimulation is studied in detail. Results are provided from studies of embryonic/fetal and newborn behavior in chicks, rats, sheep, primates, and humans. Knowledge of fetal behavior is crucial to the obstetrician, neonatologist, developmental psychologist, and even the future parents, in order to follow and assess the gradual development of spontaneous responsive movements of the fetus. While assessing this important information, this text also examines the neuro-behavioral events taking place during the fetal period as an aid to understanding normal and pathological life span development. Review "Methodologies with their inherent strengths and weaknesses in terms of collecting data that are both statistically significant and scientifically meaningful are mentioned... would recommend this book to neurologists and pediatricians interested in neonatal neurology."—Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences "...the finest contemporary statement of knowledge on fetal behaviour using criteria no less rigid than the standards of experimental physiology laboratories....I was favourably impressed with this volume as a useful contribution to an understanding of neural function in the immature state of the fetus and transitional newborn, and would recommend this book to neurologists and paediatricians interested in neonatal neurology. Coming from a skeptical paediatric neurologist/developmental psychologist, this is a strong endorsement."—Harvey B. Sarnat, The Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences "This book conveys a coherent message about the development of mental life in the human foetus, proving that cerebral preparations for after birth are clearly in place in the last trimester when the foetus is aware, learning, and receiving input from a maternal environment that itself has patterns of activity and change."—Neuropsychologia "The volume as a whole is a gem for our time in the study of development....This collection of chapters and the integrative introduction by the editors will serve as a very worthwhile transitional document. As a historical summary, and a platform for the next decade, it is excellent."—Contemporary Psychology