A DEVELOPMENTAL AND COMPONENT ANALYSIS OF ACTIVE SLEEP

A wide variety of hypotheses have been put forth that address the func tional significance of active sleep. Despite the well-accepted fact th at active sleep expresses itself predominantly in the perinatal period , the vast majority of these functional hypotheses are applicable larg ely, if not exclusively, to the adult. We build on the developmental a pproaches of previous researchers and propose that the individual comp onents of active sleep (e.g., myoclonic twitches, rapid eye movements) exhibit unique developmental and phylogenetic histories and may serve independent functions in the developing organism. This dynamic perspe ctive leads to specific experimental approaches aimed at the developme ntal roles of these components in the neonate, their maintenance roles in the adult, and the means by which these various components coalesc e temporally in what is commonly referred to as a behavioral state. (C ) 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.