Research Journal: 2012

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

RJA 13b: Visual Aids

I chose this image because these are headphones specifically designed for fetal hearing.

This image is a rendering of the baby at 17 weeks. This is the time when hearing is developed.

I thought this would be a good image because I talk about various stages of the pregnancy and this shows how big and developed the child is in each step.

This is another image of when important functions are developed.

RJA 13a: APA-Style Annotated Bibliography, Part 2

Chang, Mei-Yueh, Chung-Hey Chen, and Kuo-Feng Huang. "Effects of music therapy on psychological health of women during pregnancy." Journal of Clinical Nursing. 17.19 (2008): 2580-2587. Web. 10 Jul. 2012. <http://0-onlinelibrary.wiley.com.skyline.ucdenver.edu/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2702.2007.02064.x/full>.

This excerpt from a book talks about a study done with 236 pregnant women done over a two weeks span. The women who listened to music everyday for 30 minute showed decreased stress and depression.

Coila, Bridget. "The Effects of Music on Prenatal Babies." Livestrong. 17 JUL 2011: n. page. Web. 10 Jul. 2012. <http://www.livestrong.com/article/494633-the-effects-of-music-on-prenatal-babies/ >.

This article talks about the growth of the fetus week by week and music's effect. The baby can hear sounds at 17 weeks, at 33 weeks can breath in time with the music, and by 38 weeks the baby can react to different genres of music.

Giobbi, Matthew Tyler. "You Are Your Child." Media, Psychology, Culture, & Music. N.p., 16 JUN 2012. Web. 10 Jul. 2012. <http://www.mgiobbi.com/2012/06/you-are-your-childs-first-music-teacher.html>.

This blog talks about musical talent and its correlation with music exposure in the womb. This music professor makes it a point to talk to mothers about when they introduced music into their children's lives. Many of the mothers say they did indeed start while pregnant.

Swaminathan, Nikhil. "Fact of Fiction? Babies Exposed to Classical Music End up Smarter." Scientific American. 13 SEP 2007: n. page. Web. 28 Jun. 2012.

This article talks about the arguments against the Mozart Theory. A test in older kids showed only a slight IQ raise that did not last very long. Some say it is just an old belief that is hard to debunk. It is also a great way to make money as many pregnant women by the CDs made for fetal listening.

Sunday, July 15, 2012

RJA 12b: APA-Style Annotated Bibliography, Part 1

Drums, X. (2009, June 19). [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://www.x8drums.com/v/blog/2009/06/pregnancy-and-music-how-music.asp

This blog from X8 Drums incorporates both sides of the question of music exposure on unborn babies. Babies respond to music they heard in the womb during infancy. The amniotic sack conducts sound which makes sound outside the womb very clear to the child. Music played too loudly could overstimulate the growing fetus.

Robledo, S. J. (2012). Music and your unborn child. Retrieved from http://www.babycenter.com/0_music-and-your-unborn-child_6547.bc?page=2

This article explains the criticism music exposure on unborn children has faced. The tests that were done to measure the effect of music exposure on children were done only older children. It is hard to measure what happens to a fetus while in the womb. Music could have a greater effect on the fetus than the older children because of it's fragile and ever-growing state.

Womb to Bloom. (2009). Mozart: Fact or fiction. Womb to Bloom. Retrieved from http://www.wombtobloom.com/baby-development/125-the-mozart-effect-fact-or-fiction.html

This article explains both sides of the argument for the Mozart Theory. While listening to music does increase IQ for short periods of time it is not known whether there are long term effects on a fetus.

RJA 12a: Conversion from MLA to APA Style

Chang, M., Chen, C., & Huang, K. (2008). Effects of music therapy on psychological health of women during pregnancy. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 17(19), 2580-2587. Retrieved from http://0-onlinelibrary.wiley.com.skyline.ucdenver.edu/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2702.2007.02064.x/full

Coila, B. (2011, July 17). The effects of music on prenatal babies. Livestrong, Retrieved from http://www.livestrong.com/article/494633-the-effects-of-music-on-prenatal-babies/

Giobbi, M. T. (2012, June 16). [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://www.mgiobbi.com/2012/06/you-are-your-childs-first-music-teacher.html

Swaminathan , N. (2007, September 13). Fact of fiction? babies exposed to classical music end up smarter. Scientific American, Retrieved from http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=fact-or-fiction-babies-ex>

RJA 11: Argument

1. The "Mozart Theory" is a widely accepted idea that classical music calms both the mother and child (Swamination).

A. Classical music affects spatial-temporal reasoning, allowing for better math and engineering skills later in life. ("Womb to Bloom")

B. The womb amplifies sound so whatever the mother is listening to or even the tone in which she speaks and is spoken to can effect the child. (Chang, Chen, and Huang, 2580-2587)

Objections:

A. Researchers claim classical music only helps the IQ temporarily and does not have a long term effect. ("Womb to Bloom")

1. This study was done with college students it is hard to say what actually happens to the fetus when exposed to music.

B. "I think parents are very desperate to give their own children every single enhancement that they can"- Rauscher (Swaminathan)

1. This could be true, but no harm could ever come from calming music. It has been proven that classical music at the least calms the mother and unborn child. (Chang, Chen, and Huang, 2580-2587)

2. Newborn babies respond and remember music up to a year after birth.(Drums)

A. Mothers report feeling kicking in rhythm later in pregnancy when listening to music repetitively (Coila).

B. Babies exposed to music sleep easier after birth than those without stimulation.

C. The amniotic fluid allows for sounds to travel well, so the baby hears music and voices very clearly. (Drums)

Objections:

A. If not used in moderation the unborn child could be overstimulated and it could also hurt development. (Drums)

1. Harsher styles of music could overstimulate but if the Mozart theory is used the fetus would mostly likely be calmed not overwhelmed.

B. The studies done on music exposure focused on older children.

1. If music exposure shows influence on older children then it is not a reach to think that fetuses could benefit the same. (Robledo)

3. A group of women asked to listen to 30 minutes of calming music everyday for two weeks showed a decrease in stress (Chang, Chen, and Huang, 2580-2587).

A. Music with a steady beat around 60-80 beats per minute can help relax the mother and unborn child. Helping relieve stress and decrease depression. (Chang, Chen, and Huang, 2580-2587)

B. Music therapy is beneficial to mental distress. Two weeks of music exposure was concluded to reduce anxiety, depression, and stress. (Chang, Chen, and Huang, 2580-2587)

Objections:

A. This study is not without fault. The women involved may have performed different activities while listening or rested more than others.

1. The women may have done different activities but the general outcome was still decreased stress regardless of activities performed.

B. Music at this tempo may encourage relaxation, and relaxation, or meditation, could be the true reason for decreased stress. (Chang, Chen, and Huang, 2580-2587)

1. It is the music that stimulates relaxation so even if meditation was the main reason, music was still the stimulant.

Coila, Bridget. "The Effects of Music on Prenatal Babies." Livestrong. 17 JUL 2011: n. page. Web. 10 Jul. 2012. <http://www.livestrong.com/article/494633-the-effects-of-music-on-prenatal-babies/ >.

Drums, X8. "Pregnancy and Music: How Music Stimulates Baby Development." Drum Circle. X8 Drums, 19 JUN 2009. Web. 27 Jun. 2012. <http://www.x8drums.com/v/blog/2009/06/pregnancy-and-music-how-music.asp>.

"Mozart: Fact of Fiction." Womb to Bloom. Womb to Bloom, LLC, 2009. Web. 27 Jun 2012. <http://www.wombtobloom.com/baby-development/125-the-mozart-effect-fact-or-fiction.html>.

Robledo, S. Johanna. "Music and your unborn child." Baby Center. n.d. n. page. Web. 15 Jul. 2012. <http://www.babycenter.com/0_music-and-your-unborn-child_6547.bc?page=2>.

Swaminathan, Nikhil. "Fact of Fiction? Babies Exposed to Classical Music End up Smarter." Scientific American. 13 SEP 2007: n. page. Web. 28 Jun. 2012.

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

RJA 10c: Objections

1. As long as the mother does not engage in drugs, tobacco, and alcohol the fetus will develop the same with or without music stimulation.

2. If health issues are addressed and the mother eats normally the fetus will develop naturally.

3. Music could not be what helps the mother become less stressed, it could be the meditation involved while listening (Chang, Chen, and Huang 2580-2587).

Chang, Mei-Yueh, Chung-Hey Chen, and Kuo-Feng Huang. "Effects of music therapy on psychological health of women during pregnancy." Journal of Clinical Nursing. 17.19 (2008): 2580-2587. Web. 10 Jul. 2012. <http://0-onlinelibrary.wiley.com.skyline.ucdenver.edu/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2702.2007.02064.x/full>.

RJA 10b. Reasons

1. The "Mozart Theory" is a widely accepted idea that classical music calms both the mother and child (Swamination).

2. Mothers report feeling kicking in rhythm later in pregnancy when listening to music repetitively (Coila).

3. The womb amplifies sound, it is only natural that what the fetus hears will effect development.

4. Children that are exposed to music while in the womb have shown an inclination to musical instruments and the arts later in life (Giobbi).

5. A group of women asked to listen to 30 minutes of calming music everyday for two weeks showed a decrease in stress (Chang, Chen, and Huang, 2580-2587).

Coila, Bridget. "The Effects of Music on Prenatal Babies." Livestrong. 17 JUL 2011: n. page. Web. 10 Jul. 2012. <http://www.livestrong.com/article/494633-the-effects-of-music-on-prenatal-babies/>.

Giobbi, Matthew Tyler. "You Are Your Child." Media, Psychology, Culture, & Music. N.p., 16 JUN 2012. Web. 10 Jul. 2012. <http://www.mgiobbi.com/2012/06/you-are-your-childs-first-music-teacher.html>.

Swaminathan, Nikhil. "Fact of Fiction? Babies Exposed to Classical Music End up Smarter." Scientific American. 13 SEP 2007: n. page. Web. 28 Jun. 2012.

RJA 10a: Claim

Does listening to music during pregnancy help fetal development?

Listening to music during pregnancy has a big impact on fetal development. Music can calm the fetus and support memory development.

Coila, Bridget. "The Effects of Music on Prenatal Babies." Livestrong. 17 JUL 2011: n. page. Web. 10 Jul. 2012. <http://www.livestrong.com/article/494633-the-effects-of-music-on-prenatal-babies/>.

Swaminathan, Nikhil. "Fact of Fiction? Babies Exposed to Classical Music End up Smarter." Scientific American. 13 SEP 2007: n. page. Web. 28 Jun. 2012.

RJA 9b: Paragraph with Quotation

A developing fetus has the ability to hear at 17 weeks. Listening to music with a steady beat of 60-80 beats per minute can help stimulate growth (Chang, Chen, and Huang 2580-2587). Repetition to this music has been reported to lead to the unborn child kicking in rhythm later in pregnancy. Even after birth newborns have been known to remember songs heard while still in the womb (Coila).

Inside the womb sound is amplified, what the mother listens to and the tone she speaks in can effect the child. The "Mozart Theory" is a theory accepted by many professionals and mothers-to-be (Swaminathan). Due to hormones a pregnant woman's emotional state is always fluctuating. The idea is that listening to classical music could alleviate this stress therefore relieving the child. Classical music is best to listen to because of its steady tempo of 60-80 beats per minute. Harsher styles of music could create more stress because of the faster beats (Chang, Chen, and Huang 2580-2587).

RJA 9a: MLA Style Annotated Bibliography

Chang, Mei-Yueh, Chung-Hey Chen, and Kuo-Feng Huang. "Effects of music therapy on psychological health of women during pregnancy." Journal of Clinical Nursing. 17.19 (2008): 2580-2587. Web. 28 Jun. 2012. <http://0-onlinelibrary.wiley.com.skyline.ucdenver.edu/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2702.2007.02064.x/full>.

Coila, Bridget. "The Effects of Music on Prenatal Babies." Livestrong. 17 JUL 2011: n. page. Web. 28 Jun. 2012. <http://www.livestrong.com/article/494633-the-effects-of-music-on-prenatal-babies/>.

Giobbi, Matthew Tyler. "You Are Your Child." Media, Psychology, Culture, & Music. N.p., 16 JUN 2012. Web. 28 Jun. 2012. <http://www.mgiobbi.com/2012/06/you-are-your-childs-first-music-teacher.html>.

Swaminathan, Nikhil. "Fact of Fiction? Babies Exposed to Classical Music End up Smarter." Scientific American. 13 SEP 2007: n. page. Web. 28 Jun. 2012. <http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=fact-or-fiction-babies-ex>.

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

RJA 8b: Field Research Plan

I plan on talking to Mountain Midwifery Center, INC. AND the University of Colorado Hospital. I'm curious to see the differences in the two. I know some friends that had children at the University hospital and they had terrible doctors who rushed them in and out of there, my friends that chose midwives were completely satisfied. Knowing that, I'm wondering if the Midwifery Center advocates music more than the University.

I know a midwife (RN) in Boulder who has agreed to talk to me. I plan on asking her about her patients music habits and what she advocates as far as music exposure. I also would like to talk to her about mothers who listen to music during birth. Lastly, I would like to talk at least three mothers, maybe one who is still pregnant and two who have had children. I have one mother already, a mother of two who has already told me about her experience with pregnancy. I would like to do a survey but I do not know enough pregnant women to truly do the survey like I would like.

RJA 8a: Free-writing

What effect does music have during pregnancy?

During pregnancy a woman's emotional state is always fluctuating. Stress and anxiety are all to common, classical music could help reduce this stress. Babies in the womb can hear sound from outside the womb, it is amplified inside the womb. Whatever the mother is listening to or even the tone in which she speaks and is spoken to can effect the child.

A growing fetus could be effected by the mother's stress and become stressed itself, possibly stunting brain development. However, with the help of music the fetus can sometimes be calmed. Music has the opposite effect of stress on brain development of the growing baby. The music can help regulate the heartbeat and stimulate activity and brain activity. This could lead to increased learning ability after birth.

I have heard that increased math skils, reading skills, and musical talent can be attributed to music exposure while in the womb. Classical music is said to be the most stimulating because of the regular tempo. Harsher styles of music would not be as helpful as classical music because harsher styles like heavy metal could actually increase the level of stress on the fetus. While this music may calm the mother because that is her favorite band, the tempo could confuse the fetus's heartbeat and stunt growth due to the stress from the music.

It is hard for studies to accurately research what happens in brain development during fetal growth throughout pregnancy, that is why this subject is so fascinating to me. Some pregnant women swear by classical music, some by meditation and yoga. It is possible it is completely different for each pregnancy but so many positive effects have been associated with music exposure that it is hard to deny that music has, at the least, a small effect on fetal growth.

RJA 7b: Webpage Annotation

Here is a link to my Diigo Library where you can see all of the sources I have been reading. The two that I provided links for below have been the most promising and added the most helpful information to my research.

http://www.diigo.com/user/ashleyhattle

http://0-onlinelibrary.wiley.com.skyline.ucdenver.edu/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2702.2007.02064.x/full

http://www.babyzone.com/pregnancy/bonding-with-baby-to-be/prenatal-learning-with-music_71701

RJA 7a: Evaluation of Sources

Effects of music therapy on psychological health of women during pregnancy

*This book was written by three people, one an RN, one a PhD, and one an MD.

*All of these authors have worked in the field for several years and have extensive experience with pregnancy.

*Mei-Yueh Chang, RN attended Kaohsiung Medical University.

*Chung-Hey Chen, PhD, RN and Professor also went to Kaohsiung Medical University.

*Kuofeng Huang, MD is the Director of the OBGYN Chi Mei Medical Center in Taiwan.

*All of the authors are involved in research projects regarding pregnancy and the psychological health of the women.

*The Kaohsiung Medical University is their biggest affiliation.

*This information was first published in 2008.

*As this is a book it has not been updated, but the authors suggest several other books and articles in their references.

*The references page provides links to all of their sources.

*The authors provide information about their specific study in terms of data which is intended to inform women of the benefits of music during pregnancy.

*Originally, I think this article was intended for professionals and students but I think pregnant women would be interested as well.

*This article does not show bias as it focuses on the un-biased results of the study.

*The medical board reviewed this study and article and approved.

*This source has a lot of information that is helpful to my research. It is also very helpful because it comes from such a credible source.

*When reading the article I can tell it was intended for doctors and students but it is not too wordy to where it is hard to understand.

*All-in-all I'm very glad I found this book.

Chang, M.-Y., Chen, C.-H. and Huang, K.-F. (2008), Effects of music therapy on psychological health of women during pregnancy. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 17: 2580–2587. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2702.2007.02064.x

URL: http://0-onlinelibrary.wiley.com.skyline.ucdenver.edu/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2702.2007.02064.x/abstract

A healthy dose of classical music

*This author is a journalist, a correspondent for the Sarasota Herald Tribune.

*The author has no expertise on the matter, she is just reporting on the event that sparked all of the interest.

*This newspaper article does not say what degree the author has but she is with the Sarasota Herald Tribune.

*This information was published March 30, 2010 and has not been updated.

*The article provides no links to other relevant articles or books and there is no bibliography. That is because this article is all about observation and events.

*This information is intended to inform but also persuade people to come to this event and support the "Mozart Effect" theory.

*There is definitely bias shown, in the article a mother comments on how her children are calmed by classical music and that her daughter is better at reading because of it. The classical music may be irrelevant to her daughters advanced reading.

*This article was not critically reviewed after it was written but does contain a little information that is helpful to me, like the mothers comments.

*As it is a newspaper article it is very easy to understand.

"A healthy dose of classical music." Sarasota Herald Tribune 30 Mar. 2010. General OneFile. Web. 3 July 2012.

URL: http://0-go.galegroup.com.skyline.ucdenver.edu/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA222527263&v=2.1&u=auraria_main&it=r&p=ITOF&sw=w

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

RJA 6b: Social Media, Multimedia, Etc.

I was hoping to find a lot of blogs about mothers talking to other mothers about music during various trimesters. I found a few that were hopeful but none were exactly what I was looking for. Here are the search sites I used:

Whostalkin.com
pregnancy+music+blog
5 hits/ 1 relevant

Twingly.com
Pregnancy+Music
0 relevance
2nd search: Music+"Fetal Development"
many hits, 3 relevant (2 on relevance scale)

Technorati.com
Pregnancy+Music
0 hits (on posts)
10 hits (on blogs)
1 hit relevant and useful

Blogpulse.com
Music+Pregnancy
0 hits
(I wasn't thrilled with this site so I went on to another)

blogcatalog.com
Pregnancy+Music+"Fetal Development"
100's of hits
2 on the relevance scale

RJA 6a: Websites

I think I have finally found the best way to search for information on my research topic! Thanks to discussion E I found zuula.com. Zuula searches all search engines for you and then comes up with the most relevant first. Then if you still want to find more information there are tabs to other search engines like Bing and Yahoo that you can try.

My keywords are becoming easier to use now too. Pregnancy+Music+"Fetal Development" seems to work the best especially on Zuula. On the relevance scale I give it a 5. I get thousands of hits when I search these keywords but the most relevant come up first. I would say on the first page of results 90% are relevant to my topic.

At first I was going to focus on music AND emotion and their effect on fetal development, but the more I research the more I think just focusing on music would be my best option. Emotion, especially during pregnancy, is hard to accurately gage whereas music's effect has had studies conducted and is easier to prove.

I used Zuula on June 23, 2012.

Here are some sites I found using Zuula.

http://www.babycenter.com/0_music-and-your-unborn-child_6547.bc

http://www.lullabelly.com/benefits.html

http://www.babyzone.com/pregnancy/bonding-with-baby-to-be/prenatal-learning-with-music_71701

This last link talked about the babies memories of music during and after pregnancy, which I found very helpful.

Sunday, June 24, 2012

RJA 5b: Periodical Articles

At first I had difficulty distinguishing periodicals from books because of the way the Auraria Library site is set up but then I figured out how to narrow my search. Researching this subject is becoming easier and easier now that I have specific keywords that give me the results I want. As I said in my previous post, Music+"fetal development" and pregnancy+music, are my best search words. Those keywords bring up at least 5 out of 10 relevant hits. I've searched these over the last couple days (June 20-24.) I have cited these periodicals as well as add them to my Diigo account.

Periodical 1
"A healthy dose of classical music." Sarasota Herald Tribune 30 Mar. 2010. General OneFile. Web. 24 June 2012.

Document URL

http://0-go.galegroup.com.skyline.ucdenver.edu/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA222527263&v=2.1&u=auraria_main&it=r&p=ITOF&sw=w

Periodical 2

Amtmann, I. (1997). Music for the unborn child. International Journal of Music Education, 29(1), 66-72. http://search.proquest.com/docview/1325448?accountid=14506

Periodical 3

Arabin, B. (2002), Music during pregnancy. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol, 20: 425–430. doi: 10.1046/j.1469-0705.2002.00844.x

http://0-onlinelibrary.wiley.com.skyline.ucdenver.edu/doi/10.1046/j.1469-0705.2002.00844.x/abstract

Periodical 4

AL-QAHTANI, N. H. (2005), Foetal response to music and voice. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, 45: 414–417. doi: 10.1111/j.1479-828X.2005.00458.x

http://0-onlinelibrary.wiley.com.skyline.ucdenver.edu/doi/10.1111/j.1479-828X.2005.00458.x/abstract

Periodical 5

Kisilevsky, B.S., Hains, S.M.J., Jacquet, A.-Y., Granier-Deferre, C. and Lecanuet, J.P. (2004), Maturation of fetal responses to music. Developmental Science, 7: 550–559. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-7687.2004.00379.x

http://0-onlinelibrary.wiley.com.skyline.ucdenver.edu/doi/10.1111/j.1467-7687.2004.00379.x/abstract

RJA 5a: Books

I found it surprisingly easy to find books and periodicals on the subject of music and pregnancy. I have also finally narrowed down my keywords so that I can find the information I seek more quickly and efficiently. The keywords that I find most useful are music+"fetal development" and pregnancy+music. Using those keywords I found several possible resources for my research paper. I have cited them and recorded the URL so I can easily find the site again. I found all of these using the Auraria Library online database. I'm very excited that I found so many options so quickly because my web searches turned less hits than I had hoped. All in all 8 out of 10 hits were relevant to my search. I searched them between June 20 and June 24.

Book 1:

James, D. K., Spencer, C. J. and Stepsis, B. W. (2002), Fetal learning: a prospective randomized controlled study. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol, 20: 431–438. doi: 10.1046/j.1469-0705.2002.00845.x

URL: http://0-onlinelibrary.wiley.com.skyline.ucdenver.edu/doi/10.1046/j.1469-0705.2002.00845.x/abstract

Book 2:

URL: http://0-onlinelibrary.wiley.com.skyline.ucdenver.edu/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2702.2007.02064.x/abstract

Book 3:

Lathom, Wanda B. Pediatric Music Therapy. Springfield, IL: C.C. Thomas, 2002. Print.

URL: http://skyline.ucdenver.edu/record=b1934098~S0

Book 4:

Sacks, Oliver W. Musicophilia: Tales of Music & The Brain. 1st ed. New York : Alfred A. Knopf, 2007. Print.

URL: http://skyline.ucdenver.edu/record=b2153361~S0

Book 5:

Carolan, Mary, Maebh Barry, Mary Gamble, and Kathleen Turner. Midwifery: The Limerick Lullaby Project: An Intervention to relieve prenatal stress. 28. 2. New York : 2010. 173-180. <http://0-www.sciencedirect.com.skyline.ucdenver.edu/science/article/pii/S0266613810002044>.

URL: http://0-www.sciencedirect.com.skyline.ucdenver.edu/science/article/pii/S0266613810002044

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

RJA 4d: Data

Chart of Critical Periods of Human Development

After searching for hours for a chart depicting fetal development I finally found one worth looking into. This chart shows the vital parts of pregnancy that affect the fetus. The part I was interested in was the auditory development though.

In my earlier posts I talk about how music played too loudly could hurt the forming ears of the child, this confirms that this is possible. From week 4 to week 9 is when there is the highest possibility of malformed ears and deafness. Another article I found earlier in the week said that forming fetuses can distinguish sounds as early as 8 weeks. My interpretation of this is that music can help or hinder at this early stage of pregnancy.

I attempted to use several resources to find charts and statistics but most of my keywords did not work. I tried pregnancy+"fetal development"+charts, pregnancy+emotion+chart, cognitive development AND pregnancy, pregnancy+charts, and finally pregnancy+development+charts worked. I'm glad I know this now because at first it seemed impossible to find anything on the subject.

I searched for quite a while on June 17th and all of my keywords brought up dozens of hits but only 1 in 10 were slightly helpful.

Sunday, June 17, 2012

RJA 4c: Field Research Options

In the Denver area alone there are many field research options. Many midwives live in my area including a close friend of my sisters. She has already agreed to do an interview with me. In addition to that I can talk to any prenatal center in the city.

I know several new mothers, some who listened to relaxing music regularly and some who did not, who would talk with me about their own personal experiences. They could also tell me how their children developed mentally after birth. Documentaries about fetal development are very prevalent so I plan on viewing several of those as well.

RJA 4b: Reference Works

My research topic is hard to find reference to in encyclopedias and dictionaries. I tried several keywords and phrases including: fetal development, early cognitive development, fetus, maternity. Surprisingly when I search maternity I got 0 relevant hits. I used encyclopedia.com, infoplease.com, and citizendium.

The only helpful article I was able to find (on June 17) was the one I made reference to in RJA 4a, Bayley Scales of Infant Development. Even this article is about infants and not unborn children.

RJA 4a: Subject-Specific Encyclopedia

Bayley Scales of Infant Development

I used Google as a search engine and found several helpful sites and articles. I found an especially helpful article on Webmd.

Music Reduces Pregnancy Stress

The keywords I used were Pregnancy+Music+Fetal Development, "Positive Attitude"+Pregnancy, Classical Music AND Pregnancy, and "Early Cognitive Development"+Pregnancy+Music. I searched all of them on June 17th.

I got thousands of hits on all of these keywords and phrases but only a small fraction were helpful. The relevance on all of them was about 1 to 100.

One that I found unhelpful was "Positive Attitude"+Pregnancy, there was only one hit that was relevant and even that one was not that informative.

RJA 3b: Keywords

Pregnant, pregnancy, emotion, emotions, lullaby, lullabies, baby, babies, hormones, hormonal, Mozart, Bethoven, classical music, positive thinking, maternity, unborn child, fetus, beat, positive attitude, fetal development, music exposure, early cognitive development, emotional affect of music

Boolean Operator:
Classical Music AND Pregnancy
Pregnancy AND Emotion
Maternity AND Music
Fetal Development OR Early Cognitive Development
Maternity NOT Child Birth
Fetus NOT Infant

Search Engine Math:
Pregnancy+Music+"Fetal Development"
"Positive Attitude"+Psychology+Pregnancy
Music+"Unborn Child"+Emotion
Pregnancy+Trimester+"Music Exposure"

RJA 3a: Research Question

How does music and emotion effect the unborn's cognitive development?

~~Who has conducted studies over this before?~~
~~What type of music is best for the fetus?~~
~~When during pregnancy is music and emotion most important?~~
How does music and emotion effect the unborn's cognitive development?
~~Should doctors be advocating positive thinking and music exposure?~~
~~Would positive thinking and music help prevent certain hereditary illnesses? i.e. Down Syndrome and Autism~~

Thursday, June 14, 2012

RJA 2C: Research Topic Focus

One argument against musical and emotional stimulants could be that at 17 weeks the fetus is too underdeveloped to distinguish emotion and music from its rapid growth. This could be applied throughout the pregnancy as well. An argument could be that only nutrition and outside stimulants such as tobacco, alcohol, and drugs can affect the unborn child.

If a mother were to listen to harsh styles of music such as grunge and heavy metal it could have an equally damaging affect. Music with fast beats could affect the heart in a negative way, causing the fetus's heartbeat to speed up to match the beat. Positive thinking could give the fetus an altered sense of reality because it would get in the way of normal mood fluctuation. These arguments can be easily addressed from what I have researched so far.

RJA 2B: Research Topic Exploration

Mom's mood: How it affects her baby

This article talked about positive and negative thinking during pregnancy. Most women have a tendency to be very stressed during pregnancy because of the worries that come with becoming a mother. Pregnant women under stress may have a higher probability of having a baby born too early and underweight.

A Mother's Attitude May Genetically Affect Baby in the Womb

Many women immediately start taking prenatal vitamins but doctors are now prescribing "Positive Thinking."

The Science of Baby Brain

Staying positive can be very hard because massive hormonal fluctuations are constantly happening. Studies have been done with rodents to determine how a mother's cognitive functions are permanently altered during and after pregnancy.

The Effects of Music on Prenatal Babies

It has been a theory for sometime that music heard while in the womb can effect fetal development and cognitive thinking. Babies may benefit from daily exposure of music. Fetus's can hear sounds at 17 weeks and by 38 weeks react differently to various genres of music. The true effects are still unknown but studies thus far have shown an expectation of longer attention spans, better motor skills, and early language development from birth through infancy. This article warned not to turn music up too loud because the amniotic sack amplifies sound. Music that is played too loud can hurt the developing ear.

Prenatal Memory

Various studies have concluded that fetal learning and memory could be studied and investigated using classical conditioning, habituation, and exposure learning. These psychology tools can "train" a fetus to react in a certain way to certain stimulants.

Sunday, June 10, 2012

RJA 2A: Research Topic

How much can a fetus be affected by outside influences in the womb?

I chose this subject because it is somewhat fascinating. The psychological development of a fetus during this stage is controversial. I have had many friends give birth recently and they, for the most part, have handled pregnancy differently. Some women may eat unhealthily listening to every craving their body has, while others may eat extremely healthy and control themselves. Exercising is another aspect that women struggle with, some argue that it is best to keep with your regular schedule while others can say it is harmful. My question is more environmental though, as in the sounds and feelings the fetus feels while in the womb. I would like to research the effects of different genres of music during pregnancy and also the effects of temperament. If the mother tends to get angry or emotional more often, what is the fetus most likely to do?

My knowledge of fetal development is rather elementary, I truly do not know much other than here say. Through different documentaries and family friends I have heard theories though. My mother for example did not eat junk food while pregnant with me, but developmentally I'm not sure what that did because I still love junk food. Another example would be a friend of mine who has two boys. With the first boy she ate whatever she wanted and caved to every craving or urge she had. With the second boy she watched what she ate and exercised more. Now that those boys are older, the first child is more temperamental and wants immediate gratification, the second child is very easy-going and mild tempered.

I do not know all the facts of fetal development, but it is something I would like to learn. There may be many resources that debunk my theory but I'm hoping to find more that support it. I don't know if studies have been conducted on the matter but am interested to find out if there is something substantial to this hypothesis.

RJA 1: Possible Topics

1. Do the good effects of swimming on the body out way the bad?

Scholarly. A positive research question could easily be derived for this topic. Swimming is a diverse sport, it can be recreational, competitive, or rehabilitative, therefore it would be relatively easy to write 3,900 words about the effects of swimming. There are many resources that can be utilized for swimming because it is a world wide sport that attracts athletes across the spectrum of sports. I know a lot about swimming but I do not know anything about the health effects of it. I'm am very interested in finding out if my hypothesis is correct or not. I have no opinion on the matter as of yet. I've never used this subject in a paper before.

2. How much can a fetus be affected by outside influences in the womb? i.e. music, soft sounds.

Academic. This topic can definitely be phrased in a positive connotation. It's a question that has plagued women across the world. The way the fetus psychologically develops while in the womb is not completely known. Resources would be easily accessible and the length of the paper would not be an issue. Many questions have been posed about this topic in the past and I would like to research it further. I do not know anything about this subject but have had many friends have kids recently whom had the same question. I have no opinion over environmental fetal development but am interested to learn more. I have yet to conduct any research on this matter.

3. Does fire mitigation do more harm than good?

Academic. Fire mitigation is a touchy topic because it can save lives in some cases but also hurt the situation in others. A positive research question can be asked of fire mitigation because there are many positive aspects of it and a few negative. Living in Colorado makes this an important topic to cover because fires are rampant across our state, resources can be found in any home in some cases as many people are personal affected by wild fires. I do not have a lot of knowledge about fire mitigation but am intrigued to learn more about what is happening around me. I have never used this subject in a paper before.

4. Could expansion happen on the other side of a black hole?

Scholarly. Since human kind discovered the existence of black holes we have wondered why they exist, what they do, and where the planets/asteroids that they inhale go. A positive question over black holes can easily be asked because no matter the result it is knowledge of how they work that we seek. There are so many places to find information about black holes that writing a 3,900 word paper on the matter would not be difficult. I do not know a lot about this subject, I read an article about the possible outcome on the other side of a black hole years ago but have not read further. I do not have an opinion over it, just a curiosity for its purpose. I have never used this subject in a paper before.

5. Does wind power or solar power create more energy?

Scholarly. With gasoline quickly running out, the quest for an efficient energy source is at its peak. Wind power and solar power are both renewable resources but which creates the most energy? A positive question is the only one that can be asked in this topic because either outcome will suffice. For decades now solar and wind power have been controversial so I do not think I would have difficulty finding information for a 3,900 word paper on the subject. I do not know much about wind and solar energy but feel like it is a topic worth researching, especially if one of them will help fuel the world in the future. I am neutral on the subject and am just curious what the facts are. I have never used this subject in a paper before.