ABSTRACT
The focus of this chapter is the discussion of the study of the behavioral individuality of pre term infants in terms of the developmental trajectories of such infants and the effects of the extrauterine environment on this development, in order to elucidate the specificity of the brain's expectation for sensory input. The dynamic interplay of human fetal brain development, environment, and behavior is outlined, and inferences are drawn from data presented regarding healthy pre term behavioral and neurophysiological functioning, as well as from data regarding the impact of environmental and care modification for preterm behavioral and neurophysiological functioning.
