Robinson S R, Smotherman W P
Department of Psychology, Binghamton University, New York 13902-6000.
J Neurobiol. 1992 Dec;23(10):1574-600. doi: 10.1002/neu.480231013.
Techniques that permit direct observation of fetuses in vivo recently have expanded our understanding of prenatal behavioral development in mammals. Although fetal motor activity seems to lack the dynamic, goal-directed character of postnatal behavior, the dimensions that define behavioral organization after birth are applicable to the movements expressed by fetuses. Fetal activity exhibits temporal, sequential, and spatial organization that emerges between the inception of movement and term. Fetal rodents, for example, exhibit coordinated motor patterns antecedent to postnatal righting, locomotion, suckling, maternal-infant communication and grooming behavior, while other action patterns appear to be functional adaptations to the intrauterine niche. Fetuses also are behaviorally responsive to sensory stimulation and changes in environmental conditions in utero. Expression of these behavioral properties emphasizes continuity between prenatal and postnatal life while implying an adaptive role for behavior before birth.
最近，能够在体内直接观察胎儿的技术拓展了我们对哺乳动物产前行为发育的理解。尽管胎儿的运动活动似乎缺乏出生后行为那种动态的、目标导向的特征，但出生后定义行为组织的维度也适用于胎儿表现出的运动。胎儿活动呈现出从运动开始到足月期间出现的时间、顺序和空间组织。例如，胎儿期的啮齿动物在出生后翻正、运动、吮吸、母婴交流和梳理行为之前就表现出协调的运动模式，而其他行为模式似乎是对子宫内环境的功能适应。胎儿对子宫内的感觉刺激和环境条件变化也有行为反应。这些行为特性的表现强调了产前和产后生活之间的连续性，同时暗示了出生前行为的适应性作用。
