Our Research
The PELICAN Lab conducts exciting and novel research in different disciplines. Our main goals are:
- To better understand how sentence comprehension and production change across the adult lifespan;
- To develop new treatment methods for sentence-level impairments in aphasia, and to better understand sentence processing in aphasia;
- To better understand how cognitive processes, such as memory and processing speed, affect sentence processing.
Some of our current research projects are detailed below. Feel free to reach out to us if you would like more information!
Webcam-based Eyetracking
Tracking where individuals look when they perform language tasks is a very valuable
source of information for researchers. But this method, known as eye-tracking, has only been available to in-person participants who can be physically present
in a laboratory. The PELICAN Lab is interested in applying eye-tracking online through
participants' own webcams, to extend the reach of our research and make participation
in science available to everyone!
This project is funded by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Foundation's New Investigators Research Grant. Dr Van Boxtel previously published the first-ever study using online eyetracking with individuals with aphasia: Van Boxtel et al. (2024).
PELICAN Lab undergraduate students Ally Miller, Allie Folse, and Callie Cody are taking the lead on this project.
Implicit/Explicit Memory and Language
There are two main types of memory: explicit, where knowledge is consciously retrieved
from memory, and implicit, where knowledge is acquired and retrieved without conscious
awareness. Both types of memory may be important for language processing, but we don't
know quite in what ways. We also don't know how age-related changes to memory affect
how memory serves language comprehension. The PELICAN Lab is conducting a large, online
study with participants across the lifespan to investigate how memory and language
really relate.
This study is being conducted by PELICAN Lab undergraduate students Zoey Gautreau, Ashley Hart, and Callie Cody.
EEG and Narrative Language
Can we detect the presence and severity of aphasia just by measuring the electrical
signals from someone's brain? How do brain signals relate to narrative language ability
(storytelling)? The PELICAN lab is interested in deveoping objective assessments of
aphasia through neuroimaging, specifically with a technique known as electroencephalography (or EEG for short), which measures electrical activity on the scalp.
PELICAN Lab undergraduate student Ally Miller is leading this project, advised by Dr Van Boxtel.
Production vs. Comprehension in Aphasia 
How are language production and comprehension related? Do they rely on the same cognitive skills and resources? The PELICAN Lab is reviewing existing research on aphasia and conducting a new experiment to answer this question. Do participants with aphasia struggle similarly with production and comprehension? What does this tell us about the nature of language in the brain?
This project is led by Dr Van Boxtel.
Structural Priming in Aphasia
The PELICAN Lab is at the forefront of the development of structural priming as a treatment for aphasia. Structural (or syntactic) priming happens when grammatical structures we process bias us to using the same structure later on.
We conduct experiments with individuals with aphasia and older adults to assess whether structural priming is intact and how it can improve sentence production. To get involved with our research, contact the PELICAN Lab at pelicanlab@lsu.edu or (225) 578-7600!
The PELICAN Lab is extremely grateful to our current and former participants, and to our collaborators, which include the Purdue Aphasia Lab (led by Dr Jiyeon Lee, CCC-SLP), Prof. Nadine Martin (Temple University), and Prof. Victor Ferreira (UCSD).