Reynolds Greg D, Lickliter Robert
Department of Psychology, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA.
Dev Psychobiol. 2002 Sep;41(2):112-22. doi: 10.1002/dev.10058.
Although a number of studies have demonstrated the effects of altered prenatal experience on subsequent behavioral development, how these effects are achieved remains a topic of enduring interest. The present study examined the immediate effects of unimodal and multimodal prenatal sensory stimulation on physiological and behavioral arousal in bobwhite quail embryos. Embryos were videotaped and their heart rate was monitored during a 4-min exposure period to (a) no supplemental sensory stimulation, (b) unimodal auditory stimulation, (c) unimodal visual stimulation, (d) two sources of concurrent auditory stimulation, or (e) concurrent auditory/visual stimulation. Results indicated that quail embryos' overall activity levels and heart rate can be significantly affected by the type of prenatal sensory stimulation provided during the period prior to hatching. In particular, multimodal stimulation increased both behavioral activity levels and heart rate compared to controls. Across the unimodal and intramodal groups, however, behavioral and physiological measures revealed different patterns of activity in response to supplemental sensory stimulation, highlighting the value of using multiple levels of analysis in exploring arousal mechanisms involved in prenatal perceptual responsiveness.
尽管许多研究已经证明了产前经历改变对后续行为发展的影响，但这些影响是如何实现的仍然是一个长期受关注的话题。本研究考察了单峰和多峰产前感觉刺激对北美鹑胚胎生理和行为唤醒的即时影响。在4分钟的暴露期内，对胚胎进行录像并监测其心率，暴露期的条件为：(a) 无额外感觉刺激，(b) 单峰听觉刺激，(c) 单峰视觉刺激，(d) 两种同时存在的听觉刺激源，或(e) 同时存在的听觉/视觉刺激。结果表明，孵化前阶段提供的产前感觉刺激类型可显著影响鹌鹑胚胎的整体活动水平和心率。特别是，与对照组相比，多峰刺激增加了行为活动水平和心率。然而，在单峰和单峰内组中，行为和生理测量结果显示，对额外感觉刺激的反应存在不同的活动模式，这突出了在探索产前感知反应中涉及的唤醒机制时使用多层次分析的价值。
