ABSTRACT
I have been impressed by the concept of the Schneirla conferences for many years now and feel privileged to have been invited to participate in one. However, I should say that I have been beset by doubts as to what contribution I, as a neurobiologist whose laboratory practice is buried in the microstructure of cells and their molecular constituents, can make to a meeting whose prime concern lies in theoretical constructs such as approach/withdrawal and whose main subject/object of study is the human infant. This session is entitled “biochemical/genetic/molecular level” and perhaps the most useful thing I can do is to offer some reflections on the issue of “levels” in the context of my own primary research interest in the hope that these may strike some chords with you.
