Chapter 1. Newborn States

Synopsis

Human Development Video Activity
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You must read each slide, and complete any questions on the slide, in sequence.
active awake
An alert state of arousal characterized by frequent diffuse motor activity, vocalizations, flushed skin, and irregular breathing.
active sleep
A state of arousal characterized by increased muscle tone and motor activity, facial grimaces and smiles, occasional eye movements under closed lids, and irregular breathing. Also known as rapid eye movement (REM) sleep.
crying
A state of arousal associated with distress and characterized by vigorous but diffuse motor activity, facial grimaces, red skin, and intense rhythmic vocalization.
deep sleep
A state of full rest characterized by low muscle tone and motor activity, eyelids closed and eyes still, and regular breathing. Also known as non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep.
drowsiness
A state of arousal characterized by low activity, eyes opening and closing, eyes glazed when open, and variable breathing.
non-rapid eye movement (NREM)
A state of full rest characterized by low muscle tone and motor activity, eyelids closed and eyes still, and regular breathing. Also known as non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep or deep sleep.
quiet awake
A state of arousal characterized by slight activity, relaxed face, open eyes, and regular breathing.
rapid eye movement (REM)
A state of arousal characterized by increased muscle tone and motor activity, facial grimaces, and smiles, occasional eye movements under closed lids, and irregular breathing. Also known as rapid eye movement (REM) sleep or active sleep.
state of arousal
Current level of activity and alertness that ranges from deep sleep to activity.

Newborn States

Author

Close-up of newborn sleeping

S. Stavros Valenti, Hofstra University

Synopsis

In this activity, we consider the six states of arousal that newborns pass through in their trek from sleep to wakefulness. After you become familiar with these six states, you will have a chance to identify them in some videos of newborns.

REFERENCES

Cole, M., & Cole, S. R. (2001). The development of children (4th ed.). New York: Worth.

Siegler, R., DeLoache, J., & Eisenberg, N. (2003). How children develop. New York: Worth.

The Newborn’s Six Primary States of Arousal

What newborns notice, learn, and do depends on their state of arousal, or their general level of alertness and activity. Developmentalists have identified six primary states of arousal: deep sleep, active sleep, drowsiness, quiet awake, active awake, and crying. As you will see in the screens that follow, each of these six states is associated with its own pattern of activity, such as gross muscle movements, eye movements, breathing patterns, and brain states.

Baby staring quietly at something off‐camera quiet awake Baby resting its cheek on its mother’s shoulder while staring in a daze drowsiness Newborn asleep with completely relaxed face deep sleep
Newborn asleep on its back with arms and hands curled up near face active sleep Newborn engaged and reaching for toy mobile active awake Newborn crying crying

Waking and Sleeping Cycles

Over a 24-hour period, a typical newborn in the United States will experience about seven sleep intervals and seven waking intervals. The peaks in this diagram represent relatively alert intervals, and the valleys represent periods of sleep. The various states of arousal occur throughout the day and night as the newborn moves between waking and sleeping.

A graph shows how much time the newborn spends in the different waking and sleeping states.  It is a cyclic pattern that repeats itself with some variation during a 24-hour period.

The Quiet Awake State

In the quiet awake state, the newborn’s eyes are wide open, and the infant shows only slight activity. You can expect a mild response to sights, sounds, and touch. Quiet awake may occur shortly after waking, or it may follow a more active period.

The Active Awake State

In the active awake state, the newborn shows a higher level of activity moving more frequently and occasionally making sounds. The infant’s reactions to sights and sounds are stronger than they are in the quiet awake state.

A diagram that shows where the active awake state appears in relation to the other states. It represents the peak of the arousal level right before arousal starts to decline.

The Crying State

In the earliest days, a newborn’s cry is an involuntary reflex just as breathing and eye blinks are reflexes. Crying is controlled by structures in the lower, primitive parts of the brain in response to whenever the infant is in distress and needs comfort or food. After a few months, however, crying becomes more voluntary. At that point, the infant can use her cry to get the caregiver’s attention.

A diagram that shows where the crying state appears in relation to the other states. It represents the first stage in a rather steep decline in the arousal level.

The Drowsiness State

In the drowsiness state, newborns and infants open and close their eyes, which usually have a glazed-over appearance. Sleep is not far off!

A diagram that shows where the drowsiness state appears in relation to the other states. It represents the last phase of alertness before falling sleep.

The Active Sleep State

During active sleep, also known as rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, the infant shows a good deal of movement of the face and eyes under closed lids and some body movements, such as tossing and turning. Active sleep occurs at the start of a period of sleep for newborns. This differs from the normal adult pattern in which the adult sleeper first enters a deep-sleep stage and then proceeds to REM sleep.

Newborns spend about 8 hours a day, which is 50 percent of their total sleeping time, in REM sleep. The proportion of REM sleep declines rapidly in the months after birth. After age 3 or 4, children spend only about 20 percent of their total sleeping time in REM sleep.

Why do newborns spend so much time in REM sleep? Current research suggests that this is nature’s way of making up for the newborn’s lack of external visual stimulation during sleep. To develop properly, the neural circuits for vision need stimulation, and REM sleep creates patterns of brain stimulation that facilitate this development.

A diagram that shows where the active sleep state appears in relation to the other states. It represents the first phase of sleep which is a rather quick and steep decline in arousal level.

The Deep Sleep State

In deep sleep, also known as non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep, the newborn is at full rest. Muscle tone and activity are low, and the eyes are still and closed. Breathing is slow and regular.

After two or three months, the sequence of active sleep and deep sleep will reverse, and deep sleep will come before active sleep as it does in adults.

A diagram that shows where the deep sleep state appears in relation to the other states. It represents one of the lowest levels of arousal and a state where the newborn spends a fair amount of its time relative to the other states.

A Typical Day in the Life of a Newborn

The top segment of this diagram shows the typical portion of a 24-hour period that a newborn in the United States spends in each of the six states of arousal.

Some of you may wonder why new parents often complain of sleep deprivation when newborns are sleeping for 16 hours a day. The challenge for new parents is that newborns get their sleep in short naps that may last for a few minutes to a few hours. Therefore, they can be asleep or awake at any time of day or night.

As the chart shows, these round-the-clock bouts of sleep consolidate into a long period of sleep at night and a few naps during the day. Over time, newborns’ cycles of arousal across the day gradually shift into the typical adult patterns of sleeping and waking.

A diagram that shows how much time humans spend in the various states throughout a 24-hour period at different life points – as a newborn, at 1 year, at 4 years, at 10 years, and as an adult.  Even though humans at all life stages show similar patterns of increased and decreased arousal, the amount of time that humans spend in the sleeping states decreases.

Identify the State of Arousal

In the next several pages, you will have a chance to try your hand at identifying some of the states of arousal in video clips of newborns.

When you feel confident that you can identify the state of arousal, select the newborn state below that most closely corresponds to the infant’s state that you see in the video clip.

Baby staring quietly at something off‐camera quiet awake Baby resting its cheek on its mother’s shoulder while staring in a daze drowsiness Newborn asleep with completely relaxed face deep sleep
Newborn asleep on its back with arms and hands curled up near face active sleep Newborn engaged and reaching for toy mobile active awake Newborn crying crying

Question 1.1

Select the newborn state below that most closely corresponds to the infant’s state that you see in the video clip.

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Correct.
Incorrect.

Identify the State of Arousal (continued)

When you feel confident that you can identify the state of arousal in this video, select the newborn state below that most closely corresponds to the infant’s state that you see in the video clip.

Baby staring quietly at something off‐camera quiet awake Baby resting its cheek on its mother’s shoulder while staring in a daze drowsiness Newborn asleep with completely relaxed face deep sleep
Newborn asleep on its back with arms and hands curled up near face active sleep Newborn engaged and reaching for toy mobile active awake Newborn crying crying

Question 1.2

Select the newborn state below that most closely corresponds to the infant’s state that you see in the video clip.

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Correct.
Incorrect.

Identify the State of Arousal (continued)

When you feel confident that you can identify the state of arousal in this video, select the newborn state below that most closely corresponds to the infant’s state that you see in the video clip.

Baby staring quietly at something off‐camera quiet awake Baby resting its cheek on its mother’s shoulder while staring in a daze drowsiness Newborn asleep with completely relaxed face deep sleep
Newborn asleep on its back with arms and hands curled up near face active sleep Newborn engaged and reaching for toy mobile active awake Newborn crying crying

Question 1.3

Select the newborn state below that most closely corresponds to the infant’s state that you see in the video clip.

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Correct.
Incorrect.

Assessment: Check Your Understanding

Close-up of newborn sleeping

Question 1.4

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Correct! Rapid eye movement is characteristic of active sleep.
Sorry. Rapid eye movement is characteristic of active sleep.

Assessment: Check Your Understanding

A smiling mother holding her baby who is gazing at something off-camera.

Question 1.5

yTu4Geg9l3lcrj/A6mxiEoCeCBBVyUQgRoWByYF75E0BxF5blyc68MeFpMtioVY2yCf1I4ohM1JmqT+BxnAmm2qD/s5R5QWdY0uH86XpH/TfoV8NlDSL9ZgzBwihA0ThAdW5E5vEfAIUo3QBaTqiEAhHzcNhxhebgYMeNlXx7tTQu2DphYgNrk4thzJ5Ih3kYAYsWaYLJoemq3/VZ+QtvdFGjgh+ZGQDEgYqoUZMW376YQ2P1c3d1g==
Correct! An infant who is alert but not highly active shortly after waking is in the quiet awake stage.
Sorry. An infant who is alert but not highly active shortly after waking is in the quiet awake stage.

Assessment: Check Your Understanding

A mother holding her baby and baby is sleeping on her shoulder.

Question 1.6

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Correct! REM sleep, also known as active sleep, appears to help brain development by providing stimulation to the brain areas for vision.
Sorry. REM sleep, also known as active sleep, appears to help brain development by providing stimulation to the brain areas for vision.

Assessment: Check Your Understanding

Newborn asleep with completely relaxed face

Question 1.7

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You should mention the following points in your answer: – Neonates’ sleep occurs in many brief bouts throughout a 24-hour period lasting from a few minutes to a few hours. – Neonatal active (REM) sleep comes before deep sleep. – Over the first few years, total sleep decreases, and sleep bouts consolidate into fewer, more long-lasting intervals of sleep. – Over time, the total amount of active (REM) sleep decreases, and active sleep shifts from occurring before deep sleep to occurring after deep sleep.

Congratulations! You have completed this activity.Total Score: x out of x points (x%) You have received a provisional score for your essay answers, which have been submitted to your instructor.