9401200 Lawrence The Department of Communication at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is conducting a two-year research project to identify and assess the impact of specific communication variables that may contribute to an underrepresentation of Hispanics in computer science (CS) graduate programs and academic professions. The project is based on the assumption that various external messages, if internalized, can affect the decision-making process of undergraduate Hispanic students by either encouraging or discouraging them to enter or remain in the discipline. The study combines qualitative and quantitative methodologies to ferret out messages that occur at the macro (institutional/societal) and the micro (interpersonal) levels. It begins with a series of focus groups to obtain a listing of the sources of beliefs, attitudes, values, and concerns about computer science and CS professionals that exist among Hispanic undergraduates. The list is being used to design, pilot-test, and employ a survey instrument for collecting and comparing cross-sectional and longitudinal data from stratified random samples of 600 students. The significance of the project lies in the promise that its findings can be used to identify problems that can be ameliorated by advocating the construction of effective CS recruiting messages specifically targeted toward Hispanics. UTEP is located on the United States-Mexico border, and it is the largest Hispanic-majority (60.5%) university in the continental United States. ***
