Intraoral stimulation and sucking in the new born

The sucking of 3–4-day-old babies was examined in relation to variations in the object put in the infant's mouth to elicit sucking and showed that the nipple elicited more sucking than any of the tubes used and that, among the tubes, the largest ( 11 16 inch ) elicited the least sucking.

Abstract

The sucking of 3–4-day-old babies was examined in relation to variations in the object put in the infant's mouth to elicit sucking. In two experiments the procedure allowed comparisons to be made between an initial peroid, during which each S's “state” was assessed and a nipple was used to elicit sucking, and a series of trials in which both the nipple and tubes varying in size and compressibility were used to elicit sucking. The first experiment showed that the nipple elicited more sucking than any of the tubes used and that, among the tubes, the largest (1116 inch) elicited the least sucking. A second experiment replicated part of the first and showed, in addition, that softer tubes elicit more sucking than harder tubes. A change in intraoral stimulation led to immediate shifts in sucking performance. In neither experiment was there any association between the initial “state” of the baby and subsequent sucking. Significant individual differences were shown in both experiments.