Abstract
The study. The purpose of the study was to determine characteristics of the data-processing business community and to determine what patterns and central themes are emerging concerning computer usage. This information was to be used to develop curriculum content for data-processing education.The data consisted of (1) reporting on languages, hardware, operating systems, and software utilized by the data-processing business community; (2) information from the data processing business community related to where and at what level the data processing graduate is being employed; and (3) projections of future computer-related skills which will be needed for student employment. Data from a search of the literature for the trends and patterns of computer usage was included.Design. The study design consisted of developing a questionnaire instrument for obtaining information from the data-processing business community; gathering data by submitting the questionnaire to the business community; searching current periodicals for the future themes and patterns applicable to the computer science area; and analyzing the data from both the questionnaire and the periodical search.Findings. The findings indicated emerging computer usage areas; current trends involving the integration and usage of applications software, systems software and language packages; and changes taking place regarding the nature of data processing hardware.