Matthew A. Lapierre

Professor Lapierre (Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania) is an Associate Professor of Communication.  His research explores how media affects health and well-being, particularly among children/families. Research projects include investigations of the influence of marketing cues on children’s consumer behavior, the development of children’s persuasion awareness/susceptibility, how media engagement influences gun attitudes among adults and children, and young people's responses to science communication.

If you would like an automatically updated list of publications or links to journal articles, you can check out Dr. Lapierre’s Google Scholar page here.

Professor Lapierre is interested in working with graduate students who would like to conduct research on the topics listed below. Please email Dr. Lapierre directly (mlapierre@arizona.edu) if you would like more information about his work in these areas. Students who come from underrepresented populations in academia (e.g., students of color, and first-generation college students) are strongly encouraged to reach out.

Dr. Lapierre will be accepting graduate students for Fall 2025.

Research Interests

• Children and Advertising
• Health Communication
• Message Effects and Message Processing
• Communication and Cognition
• Gun Depictions in Media
• Teen and Young Adult Responses to Climate Change Crisis