Matthew A. Lapierre
About Matthew A. Lapierre
Professor Lapierre is an Assistant 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 want 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 currently seeking graduate students to work with him starting in Fall of 2021. He is interested in working with students who wish 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@email.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, first generation college students) are strongly encouraged to apply.
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., & 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
Lapierre, M.A. & Lewis, M. (2018). Should it Stay or Should it Go Now?: Smartphones and Relational Health. Psychology of Popular Media Culture, 7(3), 384-398. DOI: 10.1037/ppm0000119
Lapierre, M.A., Fleming-Milici, F., Rozendaal, E., McAlister, A.R., Castonguay, J. (2017). The effect of advertising on children and adolescents. Pediatrics, 140(Supplement 2), S152-S156. DOI: 10.1542/peds.2016-1758V
Contact Information

Degree(s)
B.S. (1998) Math/Philosophy, University of Massachusetts
M.A. (2006) Communication Sciences, University of Connecticut
Ph.D. (2013) Communication, University of Pennsylvania
Courses Taught
Health Communication (Graduate and Undergraduate)
Survey of Mass Communication
Media and Health
Children and Media