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Traits that form during fetal period

From the way we perceive the world, our study habits, thrill seeking desires, talents and abilities, intelligence levels, psychological disorders and a wide range of other characteristics and traits form as a result of the interaction between genetic composition and life experiences. The topic of personality is incredibly fascinating and has intrigued us for centuries. We know that both nature and nurture (biological/environmental variables) contribute to who we are.
Psychologists also know that babies are born with clear differences such as patterns of activity, mood and attention span that point to individual temperament being evident from the first days of life. But if we accept that nurture also contributes to the development of personality, how do we explain individual differences present only a few days after birth?
More and more research is being conducted to shed light on this interesting debate. So far much of the analysis leads us to incredible findings regarding fetal personality development, which refers to aspects of personality that form during the fetal period.
DiPietro and her colleagues have investigated this phenomenon for years and some of their most interesting findings include: fetuses that are very active in the womb tend to be more irritable infants. Those with irregular sleep/wake patterns in the womb sleep more poorly as young infants, and fetuses with high heart rates become unpredictable, inactive babies.
"Behaviour doesn't begin at birth," states DiPietro. "It begins before and develops in predictable ways."
DiPietro and other researchers today are discovering that at 32 weeks of gestation, two months before a baby is considered fully prepared for the world, a fetus is behaving almost exactly as a new born, continuing to do so for the next 12 weeks. Among the revelations of intelligent life in the womb include:
> By nine weeks, a developing fetus can hiccup and react to loud noises. By the end of the second trimester it can hear.
> Just as adults do, the fetus experiences the rapid eye movement (REM) sleep of dreams.
> The fetus savours its mother's meals, first picking up the food tastes of a culture in the womb.
> Among other mental feats, the fetus can distinguish between the voice of Mom and that of a stranger, and respond to a familiar story read.
> Even a premature baby is aware, feels, responds, and adapts to it's environment.
DiPietro goes on to explain that personality development is highly influenced by the lifestyle choices a mother makes. From the food she eats, levels of stress, leisure activities and levels of toxins. Bernie Devlin, of the University of Pittsburgh, suggests that genes may have less influence on IQ than previously supposed and that the environment of the womb may account for much more. "Our old notion of nature influencing the fetus before birth and nurture after birth needs an update," DiPietro insists. "There is an antenatal environment, too, that is provided by the mother."
It seems that, highly pressured mothers-to-be tend to have more active fetuses - and more irritable infants. "The most stressed are working pregnant women," says DiPietro. "These days, women tend to work up to the day they deliver, even though the implications for pregnancy aren't entirely clear yet. That's our cultural norm, but I think it's insane."
Therefore, if birth isn't the beginning of it all, expecting mothers should try and use these findings not as a way to be constantly worried about what they are doing, eating or feeling but rather as insight into the multitude of factors that contribute to the development of their infant.
Expecting mothers should of course try and provide the most favourable antenatal environment for the baby, in accordance to their lifestyle, circumstances and socio economic levels.
Even though DiPietro condemns women working to the last day of their pregnancy, there are others who claim if you're a healthy woman having a normal pregnancy and work in a safe environment, you may be able to continue working until the day you deliver, hopefully without negatively affecting the fetus. However, precautions should be taken not to over exert during these months since hormone and activity levels alter substantially.
While the discussion related to fetal personality is still relatively new and needs to be researched much more intensively, we do know that there are tremendous advantageous, both physiological and psychological, for expecting parents to begin early interaction with their soon to be born child.
Dr Samineh I. Shaheem is an assistant professor of psychology, learning & development specialist and the owner of Life Clubs UAE. Please forward your thoughts/ suggestions for future articles to OutOfMindContact@gmail.com