Cognitive Aging Lab

Welcome to the Cognitive Aging Lab!

About Us

The Cognitive Aging Lab aims to investigate the changes in cognitive functions occurring with human aging and the potential learning capacity of older adults. The research methods being used in the lab primarily include behavioural experiments and psychometric assessments. We also occasionally adopt neuroimaging or electrophysiological techniques (fMRI and/or ERP) to examine the underlying brain mechanisms for cognitive functioning. The goal of our research is to better understand age-related changes in cognition (e.g., attention, memory, and learning) and the associated brain functions. Meanwhile, we have been dedicated to develop optimal cognitive and physical training programs that could help elderly people to maximally maintain their cognitive and neural functions.

Recruitment is now completed for the Active Aging project! Thank you to all who participated in the study. Preliminary results will be posted on our website as soon as they are available.

Core Research Areas

Aging and Cognition

Plasticity and the Aging Brain

Culture and Memory

COVID-19 and the Chinese Community

Participant Recruitment

The Cognitive Aging Lab is currently recruiting for two active studies right now. If you meet the eligibility criteria, please contact us!

Recent News

April 2025: Research at the CAL was featured in University of Toronto’s EmpowART newsletter. You can access it by clicking here.

April 2025: Congratulations to incoming CAL graduate student, Yusuf Ghauri, on being awarded the NSERC CGS-M scholarship!

March 2025: Congratulations to the CAL director, Dr. Lixia Yang, who was awarded the Dean’s Scholarly Research and Creative Activity Award! You can find more by clicking here.

February 2025: The CAL director Dr. Lixia Yang was featured on the Faculty of Arts news page for the International Day for Women and Girls in Science. Congratulations! You can find the full story by clicking here.

January 2025: The CAL welcomes new research assistant Jennifer Preman and practicum students Tris Kinder and Abinaya Kathaharan. Welcome to the team!

August 2024: Kathryn Bolton gave a keynote address at the Centre for New Immigrant Well-being (CNIW) Research Summer Camp defence and graduation ceremony.

June 2024: Congratulations to CAL member Kathryn Bolton who was awarded the Canadian Psychological Association, Clinical Section’s Student Research Grant!

May 2024: CAL graduate student Kathryn Bolton delivered a virtual webinar to the Canadian Psychological Association, Clinical Neuropsychology Webinar Series.

May 2024: The CAL’s 2024 newsletter has been released! You can access it by clicking here.

March 2024: CAL alumna Angela Xiang was accepted in the graduate program in Counselling & Clinical Psychology at UofT OISE. Congratulations, Angela!

February 2024: Congratulations to Kesaan Kandasamy on his new position as a Predoctoral Intern in Clinical Neuropsychology at Baycrest Health Sciences! Way to go, Kesaan!

Community Dissemination

Active Aging Workshop

Graduate students in the Cognitive Aging Lab collaborated with The LIFE Institute at Toronto Metropolitan University to deliver this Active Aging Workshop. View the workshop below to hear members of the Cognitive Aging Lab discuss current research on activities that contribute to healthy aging processes.