ABSTRACT
In mammals, somatosensation and chemosensation are the first sensory systems by which the developing organism becomes acquainted with its environment (Segond, 2008). This chapter proposes a framework to study neonatal psychobiological development focusing on tactile and chemical senses. It emphasizes how these senses are crucial modalities to understand very early development, and how they can bring rational arguments and testable hypotheses to the growing field of sensory therapies and developmental care in preterm and term neonates. The chapter argues that these modalities will attract more attention from both researchers and clinicians in the future. Most studies on therapeutic touch for neonates acknowledge the necessity of appropriate sensory-motor stimulation during the early life of preterm neonates, and its critical role in physical and psychological development, well-being and the attachment bond. Since early investigations of passive tactile perception and habituation in preterm neonates in the 1970s, such studies have been extremely rare, as recently pointed out a review of neonatal cognition studies.
