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 the role smartphones play in shaping our interpersonal relationships and well-being.

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 will likely be looking for graduate students to start in the Fall of 2023. He is interested in working with graduate students who would like to conduct research on 1) children and advertising, 2) smartphone engagement and well-being, and 3) gun depictions in the media. 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.

Research Interests

• Children and Advertising
• Health Communication
• Message Effects and Message Processing
• Communication and Cognition
• Gun Depictions in Media
• Smartphones and Interpersonal Relationships

Selected Publications

Lapierre, M.A., & Choi, E. (2021). Parental awareness of new online advertising techniques targeting children: An exploratory study of American parents. Young Consumers. https://doi.org/10.1108/YC-12-2020-1271

Lapierre, M.A., & Zhao, P. (2021). Smartphones and Social Support: Longitudinal Associations between Smartphone Use and Types of Support. Social Science Computer Review. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894439320988762

Lapierre, M. A., Krcmar, M., Choi, E., Haberkorn, K. A., & Locke, S. J. (2020). Take a deep breath: The effects of television exposure and family communication on family shopping-related stress. International Journal of Advertising.https://doi.org/10.1080/02650487.2020.1820205

Lapierre, M.A., & Rozendaal, E. (2019). A Cross-National Study Examining the Role of Executive Function and Emotion Regulation in the Relationship between Television Exposure and Children’s Purchase Requests and Purchase Related Conflict. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 48(10), 1980-2004. DOI: 10.1007/s10964-019-01119-7

Lapierre, M.A., Zhao, P., & Custer, B.E. (2019). Longitudinal Effects between Smartphone Use/Dependency and Mental Health. Journal of Adolescent Health, 65(5), 607-612. DOI: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2019.06.001

Lapierre, M.A. (2019). Advertising literacy and executive function: Testing their influence on children’s consumer behavior. Media Psychology, 22(1), 39-59.DOI:10.1080/15213269.2017.1345638

Lapierre, M.A., & Rozendaal, E. (2018). Cross-national differences in consumer socialization, development, and behavior: A comparison of children in the United States and the Netherlands. Journal of Children and Media, 12(4), 388-405. DOI: 10.1080/17482798.2018.1474481

Lapierre, M.A. & Farrar, K.M. (2018). Learning to love guns? Gun-based gameplay’s links to gun attitudes. Psychology of Popular Media Culture, 7(3), 216-230. DOI:10.1037/ppm0000132