FROM CELLS TO SELVES 

Biobehavioral Development
 

National Institute of Child Health and Human Development 
FROM CELLS TO SELVES 

Biobehavioral Development 

Contents
 

The NICHD Mission ..................................................................................... 1
 

The Strategic Planning Process ................................................................... 2
 

Introduction ............................................................................................... 3
 

Scientific Goals of the Strategic Plan ........................................................... 5
 

Biobehavioral Bases of Developmental Continuities and Discontinuities:
 

From Birth Through Parenthood ...................................................................................... 5
 

Development of Individuals With Disabilities and Chronic Diseases ................................. 14
 

Research Technologies and Resources ....................................................... 19
 

Data Collection and Analysis Related to Neural Networks and
 

Dynamic Systems for Analysis of Development ............................................................... 19
 

Animal Models ........................................................................................................... 19
 

Functional Neuroimaging ............................................................................................ 20
 

Brain Tissue Banks ....................................................................................................... 20
 

Training and Education ............................................................................ 21
 

Appendix—Roster of Advisors .................................................................. 23
 

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FROM CELLS TO SELVES 

Biobehavioral Development 

The NICHD Mission
 

The National Institute of Child Health and Human 

Development (NICHD) seeks to ensure that every individual 

is born healthy, is born wanted, and has the opportunity to 

fulfill his or her potential for a productive life unhampered 

by disease or disability. The Institute further strives to help 

parents have the children they want, at the times they want 

them, and to ensure that every mother experiences a 

pregnancy free of adverse complications. Key to the 

success of this mission is answering the fundamental 

questions of how a single fertilized cell eventually develops 

into a fully functional adult human being and how a 

multitude of genetic and environmental factors influence 

that process for good or ill. 

Programs at the NICHD are based on the concepts that 

adult health and well-being are determined in large part 

by episodes early in life, sometimes before birth; that 

human development is continuous throughout life; and that 

optimal outcomes of development are important not only to 

the individual but to society. NICHD research is also 

directed toward restoring or maximizing individual 

potential and functional capacity when disease, injury, or a 

chronic disorder intervenes in the developmental process. 

Thus, the NICHD mission truly spans the life cycle, and 

much of the health and well-being of our population 

depends on the success of the Institute’s research. 

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Biobehavioral Development 

The Strategic Planning Process
 

During 1998 and 1999, the NICHD staff engaged the 

scientific community in jointly developing a strategic plan 

to facilitate achieving its mission. The initial framework 

document for this plan, From Cells to Selves, highlighted 

four areas for immediate strategic development and 

described a series of scientific goals under each area. 

These four areas were as follows: 

• Genetics and Fetal Antecedents of Disease Susceptibility 

includes the interaction of the genotype with 

socioeconomic, environmental, and psychological 

factors in the fetal and postnatal environment that 

contribute to health or the pathophysiology of 

diseases. 

• Reproductive Health for the 21st Century comprises 

the biological and behavioral factors that allow 

couples to have healthy children when they want them 

and the reproduction-related conditions that may 

affect women during and after their reproductive 

years. 

• Developmental Biology: Understanding Normal and 

Abnormal Development consists of the basic biological 

science necessary to understand early development 

in utero and through the time when many organ 

systems form. 

• Biobehavioral Development includes research to better 

understand the developmental processes involved in 

forming cognitive, learning, emotional, social, and 

physical behaviors, and the biological and 

environmental factors that make infants, children, and 

adolescents more susceptible to behavioral disorders 

or to adopting risk-taking and violent behaviors. 

This document refines the goals and objectives outlined 

under the area titled “Biobehavioral Development.” 

To help establish the more detailed research agenda that 

follows, the NICHD convened a working group 

comprising distinguished scientists (see Appendix) from 

around the country and asked them to collaborate with 

Institute staff to identify and prioritize research goals and 

to suggest appropriate strategies to meet those goals. 

The working group drew upon ongoing planning efforts, 

previous emphasis areas, recent forums, workshops, 

conferences, and research findings to develop a draft of 

the strategic plan that would guide the Institute’s research 

agenda in biobehavioral development for the next 

5 years. 

The draft plan was posted on the NICHD Web site to 

allow members of advocacy groups, nonprofit 

organizations, the scientific community, and the general 

public to comment. In addition, the Institute shared the 

plan with members of the National Advisory Child 

Health and Human Development Council and with the 

Friends of the NICHD, a coalition of more than 100 

professional and patient organizations committed to the 

Institute’s scientific mission. After consolidating and 

reviewing all comments, the NICHD revised and 

finalized the plan. This document is intended as a 

targeted, but flexible, blueprint that can be modified as 

new scientific findings, research opportunities, or 

resources become available. 

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Biobehavioral Development 

Introduction
 

If we truly wish to understand human health and 

behavior and to devise effective, practical ways to apply 

basic science advances to improving human health and 

behavior, we must first understand the complex interplay 

among external, biological, and behavioral factors that 

results in a human being. In addition these interactions, 

and all related functions, processes, and outcomes, must 

be understood in the context of developmental changes 

that occur over time. Without understanding 

fundamental biological factors such as brain structure 

and function, changing hormone effects, or genetic 

contributions, it will be difficult to develop more effective 

ways to treat, let alone prevent, complex developmental 

conditions such as mental retardation, autism, attention 

deficit disorder, and learning disabilities. Nor will we be 

able to truly understand how one learns to read or 

communicate or how to best teach and parent our 

children. By simultaneously addressing developmental 

problems and the impact of external factors on 

biological and behavioral functioning, scientists could 

use research funds more effectively, while saving critical 

time and guarding the fragile hopes of affected 

individuals and their families. 

Certain basic concepts underlie the NICHD 

biobehavioral strategic plan: 

• The nervous system represents a continuum of neural 

processes involving the entire brain, cranial nerves, 

the autonomic nervous system, and the peripheral 

nervous system. 

• Behavior is an emergent property of the nervous 

system, driven by environment, context, and 

experience and requiring specific neurophysiological 

states and processes. 

➢ By “behavior” we mean both internal and external 

actions or responses originating from factors such 

as cognition, language, learning, memory, 

academic skill acquisition, emotion, cognitive-based 

social interactions, and planned motor function. 

➢ By “environment” we mean external factors such as 

nutrition, health care, environmental toxins, 

schooling, and the full range of experiences of 

children in the family, community, and broader 

society. 

• The biobehavioral interface is inherently bi-directional. 

➢ Biobehavioral development research targets the 

development of behavioral processes (along with 

their interrelations with molecular, genetic, cellular, 

and neural systems), whole organ processes, and 

environmental factors to understand how these 

interrelations contribute to typical and atypical 

development. A full understanding of the impact of 

these interrelationships requires a more integrated 

research approach. Studies that focus on only one 

level of analysis are not sufficient. 

• Traditional disciplinary boundaries must be crossed. 

For example, scientists or teams of scientists who have 

an understanding of both neural processes and social 

behavior must be recruited to study social 

development. 

• The creation and use of animal models must be 

supported and expanded. Cross-species comparisons 

are no longer sufficient. Conceptually sophisticated 

studies must take into account phylogeny and 

ontogeny. 

• Researchers will be encouraged to include examining 

long-term behavioral consequences in studies 

incorporating biological manipulations (e.g., gene 

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Biobehavioral Development 

manipulation, reproductive intervention, or hormonal 

manipulations). 

• There also is a strong need to examine the behavioral 

consequences associated with decisions about 

important biological events throughout the lifespan, for 

example, the decision to breastfeed or the decision to 

take hormone replacement therapy. 

By targeting the biobehavioral approaches outlined in 

this strategic area, the NICHD plans to expand its 

leadership role in addressing significant developmental 

health problems ranging from chromosome 

abnormalities associated with cognitive deficits to 

childhood violence. In addition, the Institute’s effort can 

unravel the scientific mysteries of how children learn, 

think, plan, feel emotions, decide, and act in ways that 

not only support their well-being but also contribute to 

society. This is no small effort; it requires targeting 

existing knowledge gaps, integrating multidisciplinary 

approaches, and encouraging collaborations to translate 

basic science into practical solutions. In terms of 

knowledge gaps, amazingly little scientific information 

exists to tell us exactly which aspects of behavioral 

experience are essential to human development, or how 

experience and behavior relate to the biological 

functioning of the developing organism. Therefore, the 

main goals of the following strategic research areas are 

to expand our knowledge of (1) how the developmental 

processes associated with behavior and experience are 

incorporated into biological structures and mechanisms, 

(2) how biological processes shape behavioral 

development, and (3) how this new scientific information 

can be used to devise relevant and effective interventions 

to improve the lives of children. 

These goals require an unprecedented integration of 

several scientific disciplines involving behavioral, social, 

and basic biological sciences. In turn, this 

multidisciplinary, integrative approach promises to 

greatly stimulate interest and subsequent scientific 

advances in human behavioral development, as well as 

in complex child health and development issues. 

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Biobehavioral Development 

Scientific Goals of the Strategic Plan
 

The following strategic areas were identified on the basis 

of the most recent breakthroughs in developmental 

research. They represent areas where gaps in our 

current understanding of development exist, as well as 

where the integration of biological with behavioral 

science can best be applied to the developmental 

problems faced by children in our society today. 

Biobehavioral Bases of 

Developmental Continuities and 

Discontinuities: From Birth 

Through Parenthood 

The NICHD believes that it is important to emphasize 

development when conducting biobehavioral research. 

It is critical to apply biobehavioral research paradigms 

to questions that are relevant to specific developmental 

periods, developmental transitions across periods, or 

commonly experienced developmental episodes. 

Scientists need to learn much more about the 

biobehavioral bases of development and the continuities 

and discontinuities that occur as children mature from 

birth until they themselves reach parenthood. The 

behaviors of interest include cognition, perception, 

attention, memory, speech, language, emotional and 

social developmental behaviors, and the ability to 

regulate behaviors (e.g., behavioral inhibition, sleep 

regulation, and feeding). 

The processes are also bi-directional. Biobehavioral 

studies should be able to address not only how 

behavioral/environmental processes influence biological 

development but also how biological factors influence 

behavioral/environmental interactions. It is as important 

to investigate the impact of culture and early 

environments on biology as it is to understand the 

biological correlates of behavioral development. For 

example, significant differences in health and 

developmental outcomes between and among racial and 

ethnic groups are most likely the result of complex 

interactions between basic biological processes and 

environmental factors such as poverty, education, and 

cultural realities. (For an expanded discussion of NICHD 

strategic planning for research addressing racial and 

ethnic health and developmental disparities, see the 

NICHD strategic plan titled “Health Disparities: Bridging 

the Gap.”) Many of the emphasis areas described 

below target critical knowledge gaps. 

Biobehavioral influences of social behavior 

and socialization throughout development 

Societal and biomedical researchers often focus their 

attention on negative issues, such as illness, stress, or 

violence. As a result, research concerning processes 

associated with positive social behavior, wellness, and 

health has been neglected. To better understand the 

body’s ability to cope with the challenges of daily life or 

even serious disease, it is essential to identify active 

processes underlying good health and states of 

psychological and physical well-being. 

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Biobehavioral Development 

The benefits of positive experiences, socialization, and 

social support are no longer controversial. It has long 

been known that primate newborns, including humans, 

require social interactions for normal development. 

When these social interactions are lacking during 

development because of social deprivation or 

inappropriate social experiences, the result may be 

physical and emotional illness, including asocial 

behaviors. Likewise, more recent human epidemiology 

studies have revealed that social isolation, even in 

adulthood, increases the risk of morbidity or mortality 

from all causes. For example, cardiovascular disease, 

the leading cause of death in both men and women, is 

more prevalent in individuals who live alone. Thus, it is 

important to understand the mechanisms and processes 

underlying both the positive and negative effects of 

social interactions. Shared neural substrates (e.g., 

hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis substrate, 

which affects both social behavioral responses and 

physiological functioning) are responsible for both 

positive social behavior and optimal physiological 

functions, such as cardiovascular or immune function. 

This knowledge suggests mechanisms through which 

positive social experiences mediate both physical and 

mental health. Unfortunately, limited funding and the 

fact that this topic crosses traditional scientific disciplines 

have slowed the development of research in this 

important area. 

Given this understanding, studies that are grounded in 

only one level of analysis are no longer sufficient. For 

example, social behavior, like other behavioral states, is 

the result of physiological events, which emerge from 

specific biological processes and states of the nervous 

system. However, research on social behavior and 

social development traditionally has focused on 

behavior-behavior relationships rather than on 

physiological-behavioral interactions. 

The physiological approaches to social behavior and the 

nature of the process of socialization are relatively recent 

and uncommon. Biobehavioral studies that do exist in 

this field tend to use physiological parameters (including 

psychophysiological measurements, brain imaging, etc.) 

as secondary or correlative variables. Although 

interesting, this approach is limited and can address 

neither the neural mechanisms mediating social behavior 

nor the mechanisms through which social behavior 

affects physiology. Within an integrative model, 

researchers assume that social context and experience 

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Biobehavioral Development 

can impact physiology and, conversely, that physiology 

can limit or optimize social behavior. 

For example, social behaviors in primates, including 

humans, are regulated not only by the central nervous 

system (CNS) but also by several cranial nerves 

necessary for social engagement (i.e., looking, listening, 

and vocalizing). The brain regions, including cortical 

areas, that control the neural pathways necessary for 

social engagement have direct connections with 

brainstem areas regulating cardiovascular, pulmonary, 

and immune function. Greater knowledge of this 

integrated system is essential to improve our 

understanding of the mechanisms and health 

consequences of social behavior and the processes 

involved in socialization. Understanding the functional 

organization of the nervous system offers insight into 

mechanisms through which positive social behaviors 

control health, growth, and restoration. 

Social behavior varies across species, and knowledge of 

this natural variation has advanced our understanding of 

processes responsible for social behavior. In addition, 

changes induced through specific manipulations of the 

nervous system have provided an increased awareness 

of the neurobiology of this system. 

We now know that neuroendocrine and autonomic 

processes regulate positive social experiences in a 

variety of animal models. For example, neuropeptide 

hormones, produced primarily in evolutionarily ancient 

areas of the brainstem but acting throughout the brain, 

are implicated in both positive social behaviors and the 

systems responsible for good health. An awareness of 

the novel properties of neuropeptide hormones and their 

mechanisms of action provides a unique perspective on 

the physiological basis of positive social experiences and 

suggests mechanisms through which positive experiences 

and social support improve welfare and protect us from 

the stress of life. 

It is essential to understand these processes in the context 

of the lifespan. For example, socialization is a lifelong 

process of learning to function within social groups. 

Harmonious and constructive functioning improves 

quality of life and contributes to a stable, productive 

society. Conversely, inadequate socialization can 

undermine the family, degrade all levels of society, and, 

if not controlled or rectified, negatively influence the 

organizations and institutions that society builds. 

In terms of specific research directions, the following 

questions have been targeted as requiring emphasis 

during the next decade: 

• How do biobehavioral processes underlie 

socialization, taking into account growth and 

maturation as well as social contact, mother-infant 

dyadic interactions, caregiver-child interactions, 

teacher-student interactions, gender-based 

interactions, friendships, and adversarial encounters, 

among others? 

• How can the healthful bonding of mother to child and 

child to mother be enhanced so that the child is well 

prepared for subsequent attachments? 

• How can we encourage a healthy development of the 

human brain’s structure and function so that it serves 

healthy, effective social adaptation throughout life? 

• How can competent communication skills best be 

cultivated? 

• What factors help determine the effectiveness of each 

individual child as a social agent, a person, and a 

citizen? 

• How do children learn to be happy, to have fun, and 

to benefit from play, given both its attendant pleasures 

and acrimonies? 

• How can children be helped to develop the personal 

and social strengths necessary for becoming effective 

adults in a highly mobile and technical society with its 

unstable social networks? 

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Biobehavioral Development 

• Modern technological advancement, including 

increased reliance on electronic communication, has 

not taken neural systems into account. Therefore, a 

range of questions should be answered. For example, 

what are the biobehavioral and health consequences 

of the increased amount of time spent by both adults 

and children in social isolation because of interaction 

with this technology? 

Influences of sex/gender throughout the 

developmental process 

A large number of descriptive studies have documented 

sex/gender differences; however, few studies examine 

why behavioral and related disease differences exist 

between males and females. Therefore, researchers must 

go beyond these descriptive studies to understand the 

developmental processes that produce these differences 

and the consequences on health throughout the lifespan 

and on individual and social behavior. 

To better understand the influence of sex/gender 

differences in optimal biobehavioral development across 

the lifespan, priority should be given to multidisciplinary 

research that (1) simultaneously examines biological and 

behavioral development and cultural influences and 

(2) examines how these mechanisms lead to differential 

outcomes between the sexes. The level of adoption of 

gender role and how this is tied to development of the 

self also should be researched further. 

Areas to be targeted and questions to be answered in 

the next decade include the following: 

• The physiological and genetic differences between 

males and females in utero and postnatally predispose 

males to be more susceptible to a variety of difficulties 

and specific disorders. What is the role of biological 

gender, coupled with social factors tied to gender role 

norms, in affecting a child’s risk for disease or 

developmental disability? 

• How do biological gender and gender roles influence 

differences in the ability to adapt to and cope with 

stress, variations in cognitive performance and 

emotional development, and willingness to engage in 

risk-taking behaviors? 

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Biobehavioral Development 

• How do the interactions of gender role, culture, and 

biological factors affect biobehavioral outcomes in 

different cultures? 

Fetal behavior 

We know little about what fetal and early postnatal 

behaviors, and their interactions with biological and 

environmental factors, tell us about the developing fetus 

or neonate, or how such behavior is related to physical 

and neurological status and perinatal outcome. 

Studying the fetus will contribute new theories 

concerning the process of behavioral development. 

Specifically, prenatal research can help identify 

transformational or ontogenetic factors that specify how 

behavioral capacities change from one stage to the next. 

With the exception of information concerning the 

development of sensory systems during pregnancy, we 

know little about fetal behavioral abilities over the total 

course of fetal development in any mammalian species. 

Even in rodent species that have been studied in late 

gestation and early postnatal life, little is known 

concerning earlier behavioral antecedents of learning, 

memory, and perceptual abilities. This is a crucial lack 

of knowledge with respect to the coming age of genome 

manipulation research and presents major concerns 

regarding the safety of gene manipulation, as well as the 

related field of assisted reproduction technology (embryo 

splitting, sperm injection, living animal cell cloning.) 

Studying the behavioral effects of genome and 

reproduction manipulations depends initially on detailed 

descriptions of the fetal developmental behavioral 

phenotype. Where scientifically possible and justified, 

assessing the development of relevant behavioral 

phenotypes should be a part of all fetal studies 

manipulating genes and reproductive methods. 

We also know very little about relationships between 

fetal behavior patterns and abilities, competencies, and 

development later in life. It is clear that most, if not all, 

postnatal behavioral abilities depend initially on nervous 

system growth and physiological development during the 

embryonic and fetal periods. However, scientists do not 

know how the rate of this early development correlates 

to postnatal developmental abilities. For example, is 

rapid fetal development predictive of later competence? 

Does retarded development in utero mean that postnatal 

development will also be retarded? Are relatively high 

versus low fetal hormone levels related in any important 

ways to development during infancy and behavior in 

adolescence? Is fetal immune system development 

related to postnatal immune competency, disease risks, 

or behavioral effects at later life stages, including old 

age? Such questions cannot be answered unless we 

know if, when, and how fetal processes are related to 

postnatal growth, physiology, and behavior. This means 

that fetal biobehavioral phenotypes need to be related to 

phenotypes and outcomes in later developmental stages. 

Studies that follow measurement of fetal phenotypes into 

postnatal life will advance our current knowledge and 

are critical for assessing the safety and validity of 

applications of animal model findings to humans. 

During the past 20 years we have learned a great deal 

about how maternal behavior and environment can 

affect fetal development. Drugs, alcohol, smoking, viral 

infection, other teratogenic substances from the home 

and work environment, and some types of malnutrition 

are detrimental to normal fetal development, especially 

brain growth, and are risk factors for abnormal 

postnatal development. We need a better understanding 

of the influence of maternal endocrine status on fetal 

outcomes and long-term developmental consequences, 

including the influences of maternal thyroid, oxytocin, 

and vasopressin. A large, but contradictory, body of 

literature suggests that psychosocial and other 

environmental stressors on the pregnant mother can have 

detrimental effects on the pregnancy outcome and 

offspring development. On the other hand, there is 

almost no information concerning conditions that may 

enhance fetal development and maximize postnatal 

abilities, or that minimize the effects of risk factors 

experienced during pregnancy. With the exception of 

late pregnancy studies, and terminal studies with no 

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Biobehavioral Development 

prenatal or postnatal end points, there are almost no 

studies relating acute effects of fetal environment events 

to prenatal or postnatal developmental processes or 

outcomes. This is especially true in the area of maternal 

stress research in both animals and humans. Animal 

models documenting the existence of acute effects 

mediated through the mother on the fetus are critical for 

understanding which events can affect fetal development 

and for justifying longitudinal developmental outcome 

studies of environmental events, such as maternal stress. 

Biobehavioral studies of the fetus will help to identify 

novel approaches to promote the health and 

development of preterm infants and other at-risk infants. 

These approaches will not necessarily emerge from 

simple attempts to mimic either the fetal or full-term 

newborn environments, but from appreciation of the 

interplay of factors that drive behavioral development. 

In some respects, the preterm infant is a fetus that is 

challenged to survive and develop in an age-atypical 

environment. Understanding the capacities of the fetus 

in utero may help to identify new approaches for the 

clinician to promote the development of the preterm 

infant. 

It is important to understand the details of fetal behavior, 

not merely general measures of fetal reactivity such as 

gross motor activity or changes in heart rate. 

Characterization of behavioral organization will require 

new technologies for accessing the fetus, as well as more 

sophisticated quantitative methods for measuring 

temporal, sequential, and spatial patterns. In addition to 

activity and the state of the nervous system per se, fetal 

behavior can be influenced by other factors internal to 

the fetus (physiology, morphology), features of the 

sensory environment (mechanical and chemical stimuli), 

and environmental context (physical constraint, 

gravitational loading, uterine activity, etc.) As the fetus 

develops into a competent organism in its own right, 

fetal researchers must apply more inclusive models of 

behavioral control in studies of prenatal behavioral and 

neural development. Study of learning in the neonate 

has progressed from using artificial stimuli and 

contingencies to using stimuli that are ecologically 

relevant during early development. For example, most 

studies of prenatal habituation have employed artificial 

stimuli, such as the vibroacoustic stimulation produced 

by an artificial larynx. If learning has adaptive 

significance during the perinatal period, one may expect 

that using stimuli that are important to the fetus or 

newborn would better assess learning capacities. 

Understanding and facilitating learning in 

typically developing populations 

Researchers need to better understand the conditions 

underlying optimal acquisition of higher cognitive skills 

such as language, reading, math, reasoning, and critical 

thinking. Research in this area requires a truly 

integrated, biobehavioral approach. Such research also 

must relate our understanding of neuroanatomical 

development, developing brain processes, and 

neurochemical and neuroendocrine effects with learning 

behaviors and environmental influences (e.g., curriculum, 

mode of presentation of content, home environment 

influences, peer influences.) Researchers must pay 

particular attention to disparities in learning outcomes as 

functions of biological and environmental factors. 

For example, there is a need to understand the patterns 

of neural organization that lead to skilled reading and 

skilled mathematics. Identifying the environmental 

factors, such as specific instructional approaches, that 

lead to these patterns in typical learners can demonstrate 

what interventions lead to these patterns in children with 

learning disabilities. In addition, researchers must 

understand how patterns of neural organization in 

typical learners relate to long-term outcomes in 

academic skills, vocational skills, and life satisfaction. 

Researchers must also gain a better understanding of the 

relationships among neuroanatomical substrates, higher 

cognitive skills, and social learning in the developing 

organism. Furthermore, scientists need to identify the 

neural mechanisms and cognitive pathways mediating 

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Biobehavioral Development 

social behaviors and social learning. Researchers 

already have identified possible neural substrates 

underlying social behaviors and attachments, including 

the hippocampus, cerebellum, prefrontal lobe, and 

pathways involving the temporal lobe. For example, 

slower reaction times on vigilance tasks (presumably 

mediated by prefrontal lobe inhibition and executive 

function) are associated with poorer social and 

nonverbal understanding. Early frontal lobe damage 

has been associated with poor empathetic and social 

development. Early cerebellar damage predicts poor 

social competence and nonverbal functioning as well as 

poor comprehension of language sequences during 

social communication. The next step requires greater 

mechanistic understanding of these types of associations 

to advance our knowledge of cognitive and social 

development. 

The following questions target additional gaps in 

knowledge concerning learning in typically developing 

populations: 

• How does earlier acquisition of skills affect later neural 

development and higher cognitive skills? 

• What are the possible biological interventions for 

facilitating higher cognitive learning? 

• What are the relationships between early motor 

development, neural plasticity, and later higher 

cognitive skill? 

• What is the relationship between the quantity and 

quality of computer/electronic media use and 

neurophysiological, cognitive, language, and social 

development? 

Adolescence 

There has been little comprehensive research on 

adolescence, despite the many important 

neurobiological, hormonal, and social behavior 

interactions to be addressed during transitions into, 

from, and throughout this developmental period. 

Researchers need a better understanding of both typical 

adolescent development and adolescent development in 

atypical populations. Such research should examine the 

factors leading to increased vulnerability during 

adolescence, in terms of emotional, behavioral, conduct, 

and social development difficulties, and the subsequent 

effects of these difficulties on adulthood. 

To successfully negotiate the developmental transition 

between youth and adulthood, adolescents must 

maneuver this often stressful period while acquiring skills 

necessary for independence. Because certain behavioral 

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researchers need to establish baseline data regarding 

Biobehavioral Development 

features, including age-related increases in risktaking/novelty-seeking behaviors, are common among 

adolescents of diverse mammalian species, animal 

studies may aid in understanding this process in 

adolescent humans. For example, pubertal increases in 

gonadal hormones are a hallmark of adolescence, 

although there is little evidence for a simple association 

of these hormones with the behavioral changes observed 

during adolescence. Likewise, prominent developmental 

transformations are seen in prefrontal cortex and limbic 

brain regions of adolescents across a variety of species, 

alterations that include an apparent shift in the balance 

between mesocortical and mesolimbic dopamine 

systems. Developmental changes in these stressorsensitive regions likely contribute to neurobiological and 

behavioral interactions that lead to the unique 

socioemotional and behavioral characteristics of 

adolescence. Understanding this process and its 

outcomes is a major topic area for adolescence 

researchers. 

Developmental psychologists are concerned about the 

lack of research on adolescence, especially about the 

transitions into and out of adolescence. Therefore, 

typical adolescent biobehavioral development. For 

example, hormonal changes associated with puberty 

occur much earlier in development than the actual onset 

of puberty. The developmental course of these changes 

is highly variable, making the onset of preadolescence 

difficult to predict. Furthermore, the onset of hormonal 

change varies according to ethnic background, with 

some females 6 to 7 years of age showing signs of 

preadolescence. This is a downward shift of 5 to 10 

years for females in some cases and suggests the 

importance of studying endocrine stages, independent of 

age, as the predetermining factor of precocious 

adolescence. 

Significant structural neuronal growth changes occur 

during adolescence that affect behavioral development. 

Some evidence suggests that there is a right hemisphere 

growth spurt and pruning between ages 13 and 

approximately 16 years. Associated with this growth 

spurt and pruning is the development of the ability to 

abstract multidimensionally. Frontal and parietal areas 

of the brain are the last to myelinate, which continues up 

through age 15 or 16 years. Because it is not clear how 

behavior and environment interact with these structural 

changes, investigating the behavioral associations of 

structural brain changes during adolescence and their 

interactions with genetic and environmental factors is a 

priority for NICHD biobehavioral research. 

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Neural pathways associated with specific cognitive 

functions may differ during adolescence when compared 

with adulthood or childhood. For example, adults 

appear to rely on a left hemispheric prefrontal region of 

activation associated with a task of inhibition, whereas 

adolescents rely on right hemispheric opercular frontal 

cortex and caudate for comparable levels of 

performance on the same task. Such research suggests 

the possibility of adolescence as a “sensitive” or 

“critical” period for some types of neurobiological 

processes and, by association, specific types of social 

and cognitive learning. Researchers must gain a better 

understanding of these adolescent neurofunctional 

sensitivities and the role they play during the adolescent 

period. Particular types of learning or other experiences 

may be critical for certain types of cognitive and/or 

socioemotional outcomes during specific times during 

adolescence. 

Adolescence also appears to be a time of increased 

vulnerability to emotional disturbance or stress. Animal 

models have shown that stress in the form of threat and 

attack during adolescence can alter the balance between 

vasopressin and dopamine in the brain, resulting in 

inappropriate aggressive behavior in early adulthood. 

Although there has been much emphasis on behavioral 

and social antecedents and outcomes of emotional 

disturbance or stress during adolescence, the underlying 

biological interactions are poorly understood. This is 

also an important area of research for adolescent study. 

The following questions target key areas of adolescence 

research: 

• What are the links between the biological processes 

responsible for puberty and the behavioral changes 

associated with these processes? 

• What factors help optimize adolescent biobehavioral 

outcomes? 

• How do individuals with developmental disabilities, 

learning disabilities, or chronic diseases transition 

through adolescence? 

• What are the biobehavioral antecedents and 

consequences of variations in typical and atypical 

pubertal development? 

• What are the neurobiological antecedents of, and 

influences on, the emergence of expertise and skilled 

behavior during adolescence? 

• How do adolescent outcomes relate to long-term 

biobehavioral development? 

13
 
F R O M C E L L S T O S E L V E S 

Biobehavioral Development 

Development of Individuals 

With Disabilities and Chronic 

Diseases 

There is a lack of research examining the interactive 

factors associated with processes of biological, 

neurocognitive, and behavioral development specific to, 

and characteristic of, individuals with mental retardation 

and other developmental disabilities or chronic diseases 

over time. There is a significant gap in knowledge 

concerning how children with disabilities or chronic 

childhood diseases fare socially, cognitively, vocationally, 

and adaptively during adulthood. In addition, research 

is needed to increase understanding of the continuing 

developmental needs of adults with developmental 

disabilities or with chronic diseases that start in 

childhood. Such research is particularly important for 

predicting the developmental course and risk/protective 

factors associated with a particular disability or chronic 

disease as well as for developing effective, 

developmentally sensitive interventions across the 

lifespan. 

Although there is a great deal of information on the 

biological, neurocognitive, and behavioral processes that 

cause disabilities, there is little information concerning 

how these factors interact to produce disabilities. The 

biobehavioral research agenda gives priority to projects 

that specifically target these interactions, while 

recognizing the need to continue advancing our 

knowledge of the basic mechanisms that underlie 

conditions that precede disabilities. 

Priority should be given to studies of risk factors for 

children who are generally at high risk for 

neurodevelopmental disorders due to multiple 

adversities, particularly children in poverty either in the 

inner city or rural areas. The total burden or interactive 

burden of multiple risk factors in such children may result 

in very different trajectories of development than in 

children who have only one risk factor. Better social 

policy and interventions might result from knowledge 

gained regarding multiple adversities and interaction 

effects. 

Therapeutic interventions for developmental 

disabilities and related conditions (including 

mental retardation and other atypical 

development) 

This emphasis area focuses on exploiting and 

disseminating basic scientific advances to further develop 

innovative therapies (including new pharmaceuticals) as 

well as to refine and enhance the use of interventions for 

specific developmental problems. Studies are needed to 

clarify the mechanisms and processes concerning a 

specific disease or disability and the efficacy of related 

therapeutics, including pharmacological, educational, 

and psychological mechanisms and interventions. 

Researchers also must examine why some interventions 

are effective for one individual and not for another. 

14
 
FROM CELLS TO SELVES 

Biobehavioral Development 

Such efficacy assessments should include measures 

relevant to independent and adaptive functioning. 

Additional long-term followup studies are needed to 

gain a better understanding of the impact and outcomes 

associated with specific interventions over time. Both 

animal models and human applications are pertinent. 

There has been little research addressing the efficacy, 

long-term side effects, and outcomes of a wide range of 

commonly used pharmacological agents in children. 

Such research requires both cross-sectional and 

longitudinal approaches. This emphasis area is 

particularly relevant for children with multiple disorders, 

dual-diagnosis disabilities, or mental retardation. It is 

also relevant for guiding practitioners to use more 

effective pharmacological interventions for children with 

developmental disabilities. 

The long-term effect of medications on the developing 

brain is an under-investigated area. Long-term 

developmental outcomes for prenatal and/or postnatal 

exposure to medications (in particular, prolonged use of 

antibiotics) also need to be addressed. Anatomical, 

biochemical, and neurobehavioral effects in animals 

could be examined to study the effects of antibiotics. 

Studies of neuroimmunologic involvement in autism or 

other disabilities, or chronic childhood diseases, and 

how these parameters change with different 

pharmacological or nutritional interventions are 

important. 

Furthermore, there is a need for well-designed 

elimination/challenge studies of nutritional interventions 

for children with developmental disability. For example, 

we do not know if there are dietary implications for 

individuals with certain disabilities (e.g., autism and 

Fragile X syndrome). 

A pressing need exists to develop effective interventions 

for children with developmental disabilities involving 

learning deficits or behavior deficits (e.g., stereotyped, 

aggressive, self-injurious behaviors) that interfere with 

optimal development. This intervention research would 

include developing both new pharmaceuticals and other 

biological or behavioral strategies based on emerging 

scientific advances. This research will require identifying 

and clarifying the neurobiological, behavioral, and 

environmental mechanisms and processes underlying 

efficacy. Therapeutic research also must address the 

optimal timing of interventions throughout development. 

In addition, a great need exists to develop innovative 

interventions that address deficits in reading, 

mathematics, written communication skills, language 

usage, communication strategies, and learning ability or 

retention. The development of intervention strategies 

and devices should be emphasized for both typical and 

atypical developmental populations. 

There is also a need for research into developmental 

plasticity. This type of research holds promise for 

increasing our understanding of experience-dependent 

influences on brain organization in children with 

developmental disabilities and learning disorders, as 

well as for typically developing children. 

Although many advances have been made in techniques 

for facilitating the acquisition of language and 

educational skills in atypically developing individuals, 

with the exception of occupational training, little 

attention has been given to the actual use of these skills 

in everyday life. Similarly, advances in both behavior 

therapy and nonsedative drugs have brought abnormal 

behaviors under control in many people and show even 

more promise for the future. Children with Down 

Syndrome or Fragile X syndrome may be taught to read 

and to use language abilities in social interactions in 

clinical settings, but little is known about the 

15
 
FROM CELLS TO SELVES 

Biobehavioral Development 

generalization of these treatments, skills, and behaviors 

to everyday life. Such questions can best be answered 

by observational studies in daily life settings. Therefore, 

behavioral therapy and skills training research for the 

disabled should routinely include a component that 

assesses and documents the use of these skills or 

presumed behavior controls during the individual’s 

everyday activities. This information will be useful in 

assessing the utility of the methods for clinical 

applications and in assessing the cost-benefit 

relationships for enhancing quality of life. 

Health behavior and risk factors in childhood 

Although information about health behaviors in 

adulthood (e.g., smoking, diet, exercise) and their effects 

has grown dramatically in the past decade, researchers 

need to learn much more about health-related behaviors 

during childhood and how they influence developmental 

as well as lifelong health outcomes. The biobehavioral 

approach to this type of research will examine not only 

the biological disease or injury processes themselves but 

also the behavioral and external factors preceding, 

maintaining, aggravating, or interacting with these 

processes. Identification of biobehavioral risk factors in 

childhood, which predispose the child to injury, illness, 

eating disorders, obesity, chronic disease, and 

unplanned pregnancy, are a priority. Biobehavioral 

intervention studies, including developmental, behavioral 

pharmacological studies, are needed to evaluate the 

biological systems affected by the intervention being 

studied. It is also important to include variables that will 

help capture differences that occur across population 

groups and to extend these studies to community-based 

applications. 

Human epidemiology and rodent behavior studies 

suggest that deviant development in grandparental 

generations caused by nutritional and chemical insults, 

and even environmental or psychological stressors, can 

be passed on to grandchildren by nongenetic processes. 

For example, low birth weight of the grandmother 

caused by environmental conditions is correlated with 

lowered birth weight in grandchildren. Using certain 

hormones during pregnancy to protect against 

premature delivery can result in increased cancer risk in 

grandchildren. Such nongenetic transmissions of 

detrimental effects across generations has barely been 

considered, let alone studied, as causes of human health 

and behavior problems. It seems likely that many 

human problems associated with lower socioeconomic 

status may result from such nongenetic cross-generation 

effects. Well-designed retrospective human studies may 

be useful in more firmly establishing this concept. 

Experimental studies are possible only in animal models. 

Such studies would be especially important with respect 

to establishing the validity and potential scope of 

nongenetic intergenerational effects. (For an expanded 

discussion of NICHD strategic planning for research 

addressing disease susceptibility, see the NICHD 

strategic plan titled “Genetics and Fetal Antecedents of 

Disease Susceptibility.”) In light of an expected 

explosion of genetic studies as genome functions become 

identified, the possibilities of nongenetic 

intergenerational factors could easily become lost in 

gene enthusiasm. 

Developmental neurobiology underlying the 

emergence of prosocial behaviors versus 

violent and aggressive social behaviors 

Several lines of animal-model and human evidence 

indicate the important role that genes, hormones, 

neurotransmitters, neuroendocrine factors, neurocircuitry, 

and neuroreceptors play in the development of complex 

16
 
FROM CELLS TO SELVES 

Biobehavioral Development 

social behaviors, including the formation of social 

affiliations, parental care, asocial behaviors, and social 

aggression. Much more needs to be learned, however, 

about how these biological factors, interacting with brain 

development, cognition, and environmental and 

situational influences, result in prosocial, empathetic 

behaviors or, alternatively, in social avoidance, social 

aggression, and violent behaviors, particularly over time. 

Emotion is normally regulated in the human brain by a 

complex circuit consisting of the orbital frontal cortex, 

amygdala, anterior cingulate cortex, and several other 

interconnected regions. There are both genetic and 

environmental contributions to the structure and function 

of this circuitry. Impulsive aggression and violence most 

likely arise as a consequence of faulty regulation of 

negative emotions. Research on the neural circuitry of 

emotion regulation suggests new avenues of intervention 

for at-risk populations. Understanding how 

environmental, biological, and developmental factors 

modulate aggressive responses to environmental and 

situational stimuli in humans will aid our ability to 

predict and prevent human violence, while facilitating 

our ability to construct effective interventions for 

promoting prosocial behaviors and preventing human 

aggression and violence. Biological factors underlying 

these issues are difficult to elucidate and have not been 

well studied. They deserve additional emphasis and 

study. 

Interactions between individual biological 

processes and environment affecting or 

facilitating development 

Clarifying and better understanding the interplay 

among genetic and environmental influences on 

neurobehavioral development in populations with typical 

development, learning disabilities, developmental 

disabilities, or other developmental disorders is another 

major research target. To pursue this research, 

investigators must develop efficient and inexpensive ageappropriate instruments to help understand and explain 

genetic variations and gene/environmental effects on 

behavioral variability across populations. 

Perhaps most importantly, given the tremendous progress 

in identifying the human genome, we now need to 

decipher the behavioral correlates of various gene 

expressions. Since the reciprocal relationship between 

gene expression and behavior requires a 

multidisciplinary approach to understanding, gene 

manipulation studies should involve collaborations 

between molecular biologists and behavioral 

developmental researchers. 

The emergence of practical methods for producing 

identical twins for animal research studies enables a new 

dimension of controlled experimental developmental 

behavior genetics. Embryo splitting can be used to 

produce four to eight identical individuals from a single 

blastocyst in animal models, ranging from mice to 

nonhuman primates. With these techniques in animal 

models, identical twin mothers can carry identical twin 

fetuses through pregnancy and, if needed, through early 

postnatal development. One or more twins can be 

assigned to experimental treatments; others can serve as 

controls. These techniques will be especially useful for 

gene manipulation, teratology, stress, and environment 

studies because they can unequivocally separate genetic 

from environmental factors in experimental research. 

Well-designed studies using these techniques in basic 

developmental research, as well as targeted studies of 

developmental abnormalities, will provide information 

that is unavailable or difficult to interpret using 

traditional developmental designs, including human 

identical twin studies. 

Significant gaps exist in researchers’ understanding of 

the characteristics of the developmental course of the 

brain/endocrine systems, making this an important area 

to study. In addition, because the endocrine system 

plays an important role in stimulating neurobiological 

activity, it is important to gain a better understanding of 

the interaction of neuroendocrine and environmental 

17
 
FROM CELLS TO SELVES 

Biobehavioral Development 

factors on typical and atypical development and 

behavior. This interaction is particularly important as a 

response to internal and external stressors. 

Prenatal and perinatal exposure to infectious agents and 

toxins has been linked to pathogenesis of developmental 

disabilities and neuropsychiatric disorders. Researchers 

need to learn more about the possible connections and 

identify the mechanisms by which such outcomes can 

occur, how such effects can be treated, and any related 

long-term outcomes. 

Both human and animal research during the past 20 

years has shown that behavior and environment can 

have important consequences for immune processes. 

Recently, it has been shown that disease and immune 

processes can also affect behavior. Thus, it appears that 

emotional and cognitive processes can affect immune 

functioning and that immune processes can affect neural 

activity. Some rodent and primate studies suggest that 

environmental and physical stressors experienced during 

pregnancy can affect the postnatal development of 

immune processes. This raises the question of 

relationships between immune system development 

during prenatal and postnatal life stages, medical health 

and disease resistance, and health and disease-related 

behaviors. Theory, but little data, has suggested that 

fetal brain development, including laterality and 

hormone effects, and lifetime disease risk may be 

associated with fetal immune system development. 

Immune system effects are also certain to be a major 

concern in the application of gene manipulations to 

disease-related and behavior-related human problems. 

Therefore, studies relating immune system development 

to neural, hormonal, and behavioral processes are 

important targets for new biobehavioral knowledge. 

Biobehavioral effects of the interaction 

between the individual, technology, and 

multimedia sensory experiences throughout 

development 

Researchers know very little about the impact of 

computers and other technologies on the development of 

children—including physiological, neural, social, and 

emotional development, both positive and negative. 

Computers and other new technologies also hold the 

promise of useful, individualized, and specific 

interventions for children with developmental and 

learning disabilities. 

Neuroplasticity in development, learning, 

and memory 

It is critical to understand the interactive effects of 

behavior, environment, and neuronal cell motility as part 

of the developmental process. This research needs to 

include investigating the factors that control axonal 

growth and targeting as well as understanding how 

learning and experience influence neuronal “pruning.” 

Hormones and stimulants (such as caffeine) have 

pronounced effects on dendritic spine shape and motility, 

potentially affecting the efficiency of associative learning 

networks. Research is needed to increase understanding 

of how these events occur and influence outcomes 

throughout development. In addition, recent studies 

demonstrate that neurons within the temporal lobe may 

be regenerated, opening several important avenues of 

research on human learning and development. 

18
 
F R O M C E L L S T O S E L V E S 

Biobehavioral Development 

Research Technologies and Resources
 

The following technical development areas are relevant 

for all the biobehavioral research areas targeted in the 

previous section, and are highlighted because of their 

importance for studies specifically addressing 

developmental issues. 

Data Collection and Analysis 

Related to Neural Networks 

and Dynamic Systems for 

Analysis of Development 

Investigations in the emphasis areas should incorporate 

innovative methods of statistical or mathematical 

analysis to increase understanding of developmental 

trajectories, developmental growth curves, dynamic 

systems for representing multiple influences, and 

developmental transitions. In addition, these improved 

analytic techniques are necessary for understanding the 

complexity of neurobehavioral actions or responses. 

Investigators also require tools to represent “fluid 

behaviors,” such as skilled performance, or the change 

in this “fluidity” with maturation in a skilled motor 

performance. Modeling approaches should be 

emphasized to provide a means of studying how systems 

emerge and change, a key to understanding 

development. These should include neural network 

modeling, dynamical systems theory, and CMU-style or 

other computational models. At present, statistical 

models deal only with stationary targets. Computational 

approaches to learning and change, and the promise of 

developmental simulations as a new tool, are important 

technologies to be further developed in developmental 

biobehavioral science. 

A great need also exists to develop new statistical 

techniques that will permit the analyses of multiple 

variables in situations where there may be relatively few 

subjects. For example, current statistical techniques that 

insist on 10 to 1 ratios between subjects and variables 

do not apply to the data produced by more advanced 

imaging techniques, such as fMRI, PET, and multichannel 

ERP and EEG studies involving 64 or more electrodes. 

To achieve maximum efficiency of effort and 

expenditure, large databases should be made accessible 

to a wider range of researchers. Since large grants 

collect massive amounts of data and often analyze only 

a fraction of it, the remaining data could be valuable to 

other investigators, or could be combined with other 

data sets to make the data more useful. Data pooling 

could be accomplished through a network of linked 

databases in lieu of one centralized database. 

Standardizing data coding would help with managing 

the rapidly increasing volume of information that already 

exists and is expected to continue into the future. With 

improved data accessibility and coding, it may be 

possible to analyze questions that were not feasible 

before on an individual basis. However, to accomplish 

this, issues of intellectual property rights need to be 

addressed because of the potential for problems 

resulting from collaborative efforts. 

Animal Models 

Some of the most fundamental, mechanistic aspects of 

biobehavioral research will have to be examined in 

animal models. Emphasis should be placed on 

developing parallel behavioral models in animals 

(including the mouse and monkey) as well as in humans. 

In addition, it is critical to develop and use animal 

models of particular syndromes associated with 

developmental disabilities to investigate biobehavioral 

influences on development, from conception through 

young adulthood. 

Although invertebrate, insect, and rodent models of 

developmental processes are crucial for identifying and 

19
 
F R O M C E L L S T O S E L V E S 

Biobehavioral Development 

understanding basic biobehavioral mechanisms and 

processes, they may have limited utility in assessing the 

scope of effects and safety of current and future genetic 

and nongenetic (assisted reproduction) advances. Study 

of animal species with genomes, reproductive biology, 

growth, and physiology closer to that of humans will be 

necessary to assess many of these technical and 

knowledge advances before they can safely be used on 

humans. Past experience has shown that human 

tragedies may result from failure to first adequately test 

science applications on appropriate animal models. 

Recognition of this problem and education of persons at 

all levels of the application process is especially 

important in the current context of animal rights. 

Without adequate support from the NIH, the Federal 

Government, and the general public, these crucial 

studies of the most appropriate models of human 

processes may become difficult, if not impossible, to 

pursue. 

Functional Neuroimaging 

The ability to use new functional neuroimaging 

modalities (e.g., EEG, ERP, fMRI, DTI, MEG, MRS) to link 

physical parameters in the brain with specific behaviors, 

and to do so over the course of development, 

presents investigators with an unprecedented 

opportunity. These tools allow earlier diagnosis and 

enable researchers to examine the effects of 

interventions. The use of such techniques will be 

important for addressing questions relevant to many of 

the strategic emphasis areas in biobehavioral 

development discussed in the previous section. However, 

it is impossible to conduct functional neuroimaging 

studies without specifying functional tasks to be studied. 

Functional genomic and functional imaging research 

require accurate analyses of the phenotype and 

the development of age-specific activation tasks likely to 

target specific brain areas involved in emotional and 

cognitive functioning. Therefore, this research agenda 

also emphasizes the development of age-specific model 

tasks. 

It is also important to take advantage of the use of 

multiple techniques on the same subject, for example, 

co-registration of subjects involved in both fMRI and ERP 

procedures. One technique yields more information 

about spatial resolution (fMRI), whereas the other yields 

good temporal information (ERP). When combined, 

data from both techniques will tell a more interesting 

story and provide complementary information to 

enhance research insights. 

Brain Tissue Banks 

Although the Human Genome Project may reveal which 

proteins (e.g., transcription factors, enzymes, 

receptors) are implicated in various developmental 

disorders, the individual biochemical states of cells in 

different regions of the brain can be determined only 

with tissue from autopsies. Recruiting families to donate 

tissue at the death of individuals with such conditions 

(e.g., with autism, fragile X syndrome, or Down 

syndrome) is an important undertaking. Behavioral 

profiling of individuals whose brains have been donated 

is necessary, and sharing brain tissue among 

researchers is important in standardizing brain 

sectioning or brain preservation among investigators. 

Given these needs, it is essential to create a network of 

brain tissue banks and to improve the way that 

investigators communicate the results of 

neuropathological examination targeting different 

syndromes. 

20
 
F R O M C E L L S T O S E L V E S 

Biobehavioral Development 

Training and Education
 

A tremendous need exists for predoctoral and 

postgraduate training programs that integrate 

experiences across the many disciplines relevant to 

biobehavioral development research, in general, and to 

the strategic emphasis areas listed above, in particular. 

It also is imperative to integrate advanced training in the 

behavioral and basic biological sciences to enhance and 

create new opportunities for effective and productive 

multidisciplinary research endeavors. 

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F R O M C E L L S T O S E L V E S 

Biobehavioral Development 

Appendix—Roster of Advisors 

Although this document has benefited from the input of many scientists within and outside the NICHD, and from the 

general public, we wish to particularly note the advice of the following members of the strategic plan working group: 

Duane Rumbaugh, Ph.D., Co-Chair
 

Georgia State University
 

Frances Horowitz, Ph.D., Co-Chair
 

The City University of New York
 

Sue Carter, Ph.D.
 

University of Maryland, College Park
 

Donald Cohen, M.D.
 

Yale University Medical Center 


Dennis Molfese, Ph.D.
 

University of Louisville School of Education
 

Gene Sackett, Ph.D.
 

University of Washington
 

Sally E. Shaywitz, M.D.
 

Yale University School of Medicine
 

Howard Silver, Ph.D
 

Consortium of Social Science Associations
 

William P. Smotherman, Ph.D.
 

Binghamton University
 

State University of New York
 

23
 
For additional copies of this strategic plan, or for more information on contacts or related issues, 

please contact the NICHD Clearinghouse at 

P.O. Box 3006
 

Rockville, MD 20847
 

Phone: (800) 370-2943
 

Fax: (301) 496-7101
 

Web: http://www.nichd.nih.gov/publications/
 

For additional information about other NICHD strategic plans and research, please visit our Web site at 

http://www.nichd.nih.gov/