Also referred to as sensory-driven development, the termrefers to neural development of the brain on the basis of stimulation it isexposed to. As a result ofstimulus-driven development, infants, for example, develop neural memory tracesfor their native language phonemes. Incontrast, the lack of specific stimulation retards the cortical regions thatwould otherwise process such stimuli, such as the auditory cortices in thecongenitally deaf. This notion has some bearing on that of experience-dependent (or expectant) development (Greenough, Black, & Wallace, 1987), both of which contrast with activity-dependent development.
See Activity-dependent organization, Experience-dependent processes, Information-processing theories, Phoneme
Greenough, W.T., Black, J.E., & Wallace, C.S. (1987). Experience and brain development. Child Development, 58, 539-559.