Prenatal and perinatal psychology: A review of the history, principles, clinical findings, scientific basis and applications

Prenatal and perinatal psychology (PPN) has been evolving as a multidisciplinary
field in psychology for the past 30 years. This field explores how our most early experiences - from conception through gestation, birth and early infancy, influence and shape our entire lives. Over the years, findings from clinical prenatal and perinatal oriented work with infants, children and adults have challenged our assumptions regarding early human development, and given us a new understanding of the capacities and capabilities of unborn babies and infants; however, research is just beginning to support these findings. Despite the field’s expansion in the last decade, its new discoveries have remained largely unavailable to the public, particularly in countries other than the United States. As a result, people in non-English speaking countries have limited access to the important discoveries of PPN. Israel, in which the spoken language is Hebrew, is one of these countries. In order to make the information about PPN available to the Israeli public, this literature review will culminate in the provision of a
Hebrew-language internet resource for the Israeli public at home and abroad.