The Effects of Cognitive Neglect on Infant & Early Childhood Development

As an infant interacts with his caregiver and his environment, chemical messengers transmit his experiences to specific memory storage areas in the brain. Transmission occurs via neuronal pathways stimulated by sensory perception. In "BrainWorld Magazine," Kenneth Wesson describes this chemical reaction as the process of learning. The memories accumulated from environments filled with love and kindness or neglect and abuse form the knowledge base that provides the infant with the tools needed to interact with his world.

Delayed Learning

• The primary caregiver provides an infant's initial learning experience. Weakened neuronal pathways resulting from neglect of a child's cognitive, emotional or social needs deprives the child of achieving age-related developmental milestones, like language development, as cited by the Child Welfare Information Gateway. Infants deprived of a nurturing caregiver who routinely speaks to them and responds to their baby talk experience a delay in forming the neuronal circuits necessary for language formation. Lack of sensory stimulation also contributes to arrested brain development, which results in a smaller brain size and slower transmission of neuronal signals.

Stunted Emotional Development

• A loving environment provides a healthy foundation for future emotional relationships.

  Infants need physical and emotional contact with their caregivers. Watching facial expressions helps the infant decipher emotional cues and to develop proper responses. Neglected infants fail to form an emotional attachment or to bond with their caregivers. The failure of future social relationships and emotional attachments stems from depriving the infant of this vital learning experience. The Child Welfare Information Gateway informs us that raising a child in a nurturing environment enhances his ability to learn, while neglect robs children of the ability to succeed academically as well as emotionally.

Cognitive, Coping and Problem Solving Skills

• A stimulating environment helps the infant build strong cognitive, coping and problem-solving skills as his development progresses into early childhood. Neglected infants develop learning difficulties and memory impairments, according to "BrainWorld" magazine. Instead of focusing his attention on absorbing new sensory experiences and developing the foundation and skills for future growth, the neglected child's brain remains occupied with his daily needs. This slows the formation of new neuronal pathways while the child attempts to negotiate a confusing and often hostile environment. The failure of his caregivers to provide a stimulating environment with the encouragement and validation needed for healthy cognitive, emotional and social development prevents the child from achieving the developmental milestones normally attained by children in the same age group.

Lacking the Foundation for Healthy Development

• A child's experiences from infancy to early childhood build the foundation for intellectual growth, emotional stability and personality development. Neglect places a child at risk for cognitive delays, anxiety and depression as cited by the Child Welfare Information Gateway. Neglected infants become insecure and fearful; they lack trust, feel threatened by their environment and lack self-esteem and initiative. Their arrested development from infancy to early childhood through age 4 establishes the possibility of lifelong failure and disappointment.

Consequences of Stress and Fear

• The neglected child has relationship difficulties and is usually considered a "loner."

  The prolonged stress suffered by a neglected child makes her highly sensitive to fear. She develops a condition known as "hyperarousal." Memories of stress and fear created by the neuronal pathways are overly sensitive and often cause exaggerated responses to triggers like being touched or making eye contact. Perceiving these actions as threats elicits inappropriate responses, according to the Child Welfare Information Gateway, thereby preventing the child from participation in normal social interaction.