How do you know when a baby is exposed to too much or not enough stimuli?

Answer 1

The signs of deprivation (not enough stimuli) can be very evident in an infant. An infant with proper nourishment but not enough exposure to things and little human contact shows signs such as delayed growth, being underweight, motor development and intellectual delays; underdeveloped gross and fine motor skills such as not crawling/walking when expected and if during certain critical periods an infant is not exposed to the correct stimuli (such as not hearing language) the child may never be able to learn the skill or develop it to its' potential.

The signs of too much stimulation are not as evident earlier on as deprivation, nor are the effects as devastating. Too much stimulation may be a waste of time if the infant has not reached a state of readiness, where him or her have the traits to be able to acquire a skill. Programming methods used by parents may optimize the stimuli at the correct critical period, allowing the child the ability to fully optimize his or her potential in that area, but it may also turn the child off to that skill or activity later in life (such as the Suzuki method of playing the violin; too much exposure to Classical Music and playing the violin while younger may produce a dislike for it later on).