PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Eiling Yee, Associate Professor
Department of Psychological Sciences; Cognitive Science Program; Connecticut Institute for Brain and Cognitive Sciences
The goal of much of the research in my lab is to understand how meaning is represented (how do you know what a lemon, or joy is?) —particularly the cognitive and neural representations of concepts. An area of particular interest is the relationship between context (e.g., perceptual information and experiences) and language and/or conceptual processing. I also have interests in spoken word recognition and language processing more broadly.
CV. See Publications page for downloads.
Contact: eiling.yee@uconn.edu
Office: Bousfield 170; Lab: Arjona 310
Ph.D STUDENTS
Hannah Mechtenberg’s previous research interests focused on the frontal lobe and its function in speech perception, and the role of the basal ganglia during category learning. Her current interests are in how analogical reasoning interacts with language processing during learning. She anticipates using behavioral and functional neuroimaging methods to investigate the interplay between these two systems. She is also interested in the utility of analogies during learning of STEM concepts. She is co-advised by Dr. Emily Myers.
Contact: hannah.mechtenberg@uconn.edu
Office: Arjona 300, Phillips Communication Sciences Building, Room 143
Nathan Lautz studies the neurocognitive basis of concepts. He’s interested in how conceptual knowledge comes to be grounded through experience in the world, with at least some aspects of meaning consequently stored in corresponding sensorimotor and affective systems in the brain. His research addresses how this grounding affects the format and content of mental representation.
Contact: nathan.lautz@uconn.edu
Office: Arjona 300
Caitlin Senni is interested in Theory of Mind, intersubjectivity, social coordination, expressive language, and abstraction and generalization in learning.
Contact: caitlin.senni@uconn.edu
Office: Arjona 306
POST-DOC AFFILIATE
Gitte Joergensen: My primary interest is eye tracking and how to integrate eye movements with other measures such as fMRI and EEG. I work on a variety of experiments broadly related to language/reading comprehension, event representation, social communication, and emotion perception. I am also a research advocate for the Lobular Breast Cancer Alliance (LBCA) and have an interest in breast cancer research with a focus on quality of life.
Contact: gitte.joergensen@uconn.edu
Office: Arjona 308
LAB MANAGER
Lauren Miller is a recent graduate of the University of Connecticut, where she majored in Cognitive Science with Neuroscience and Spanish minors in the Honors Program. She hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in the future and research neurodegenerative diseases. She is interested in connections between language, cognition, and conceptual integration.
UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS & RESEARCH ASSISTANTS
Ishrat (Ishy) Khan is an individualized major studying Systems Neuroscience in the Honors Program. She wishes to pursue a PhD after her undergrad and is interested in research in sensory systems, behavioral neuroscience, cognition, and cognitive disorders.
Fanola Dede is a Physiology and Neurobiology major, minoring in Healthcare Management and Insurance Studies. She hopes to pursue Optometry School after her undergraduate studies. She is interested in cognition and conceptual integration.
Joshua Budnik is a Physiology and Neurobiology/Molecular and Cell Biology double major in the Honors Program. He hopes to attend medical school after his undergraduate studies and is interested in how semantic memory is leveraged in the formation of conceptual similarity relationships.
Angelina Rodriguez is currently majoring in physiology and neurobiology. She plans to attend medical school after her undergraduate years to later become a pediatric physician. She is interested in child and adolescent neurological disorders.
Gabrielle Green is majoring in linguistics and psychology in the Honors Program. After her undergraduate studies, she plans on pursuing a PhD. Within the lab, she is interested in the acquisition and representation of conceptual knowledge.
Sisira Vandara is a Biological Sciences and Statistics double-major with minors in Neuroscience, Psychology, and Religion. After her undergraduate studies, she hopes to pursue a Ph.D. Sisira is deeply interested in dreams research involving eye-movement and fMRI analysis.
Ashley Bejar is a Psychology and Human Development & Family Science double major in the Honors Program. She hopes to go to graduate school to work with children and family as a therapist. She is interested in the cognition and conceptual skills in children, adolescents, and adults.
LAB ALUMNI
Ph.D ALUMNI
Jovana Pejovic (Lab Fonetica e Fonological & Baby Lab (FULL), University of Lisbon) is interested in early language development; Preverbal infants; Infant speech perception development; Infant (audio-visual) speech processing; Bilingual language acquisition; Eye-tracking with infants; Electroencephalography (EEG) with infants; Behavioural looking time techniques with infants. Jovana completed her PhD in 2019 at the Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language (BCBL) in San Sebastian, Spain, where she was co-supervised by Monika Molnar (now at University of Toronto).
Contact: jpejovic89@gmail.com
Peter Boddy (Adoc Talent Management) During his PhD, Peter studied the semantic representation of concepts in the brain. He focussed on sensorimotor/grounded accounts of knowledge and how context, whether it be the environment you are in, the activities you are multitasking or the idiosyncrasies of your previous experiences, affects how you think about objects. Peter completed his PhD in 2020 at the Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language (BCBL) in San Sebastian, Spain, where he was co-supervised by Kepa Paz-Alonso.
Contact: p.j.boddy@googlemail.com
Charles Davis (Postdoctoral Fellow, Duke University) is interested in how the mind makes meaning. His research program emphasizes the interactivity of this meaning-making process -- how the brain works together with the body, the language that we speak, and the environment around us to give rise to conceptual knowledge. Charles completed his PhD in Psychological Sciences (Language and Cognition) in 2021 at UConn.
Contact: cpdavis90@gmail.com
Hannah Morrow is interested in the neural organization of semantic memory, particularly the ways in which we acquire and use our knowledge of concepts. Her current work focuses on the integration of concept knowledge across modalities and the neural circuits supporting this process. She is also interested in the differences between the representations of abstract compared to concrete concepts, and the different mechanisms underlying how these types of concepts are stored and retrieved. Hannah completed her PhD in Psychological Sciences (Language and Cognition) in 2024 at UConn.
Contact: hannah.morrow@uconn.edu
UNDERGRADUATE LAB ALUMNI
Kagnica Seng
Khadijah Hayes
Spencer Ferris
Brandon Strom
Jonathan Serino
David Bachoy
Isabella Caban
Jordan Barry
Khalil Bradley
Conor Hylton
Alexandra Guarino
Cherrise Kenton
Shaina Selvaraju
Jamie Pergolizzi
Kayla Morgan
Roshini Senthilkumar
Jhoan Rodriguez
Genesis Rosario
Athena May
Kiana Klafter