Progress on the current year's goals is as follows:

• Goal 1 was to establish communication among a broad base of researchers through a web site. Researchers at Nottingham Trent with direction from Auburn have developed an interactive web page for the interchange of ideas relative to the women's in the U.S. and the international community. This page is being linked to related resources and will serve as a centralized place for dialogue on the topic of fit preferences of women.

• Goal 2 involved understanding the body of literature that currently exists on fit of women's apparel. Researchers are currently exploring research tools used to measure body cathexis, clothing attitudes and behaviors, and fit preference by apparel product. Other variables being explored include ready-to-wear sizing, reported problem areas in fitting, and basic demographics. A survey conducted in year 1 will be used as a pre-test of constructs and concepts on fit which will then be tested in a national survey ( to be conducted in the second year). Three graduate students at Auburn and UNGC are preparing to use the survey developed by the research team to collect data surveying college students, business and professional women, and a group of black business and professional women. One of the surveys will be a web based questionnaire seeking responses over the web.

• Goal 3 included developed probing and projective techniques and potential scenarios to be used in focus group research. Researchers have organized a series of projective techniques that may include body scanning, fit prototypes, and personal "best fit' articles of clothing. Researchers will finalize probing and projective techniques in a December research meeting in Auburn with team members [TC]2, Nottingham Trent and UNCG.

• Goal 4 for this year is to conduct a series of five focus groups with women in various market and size segments to discuss beliefs, attitudes, and purchase behavior relative to fit. This process will take place in March in either Atlanta or Raleigh. These focus groups will be a key element in understanding how consumers think about and express fit preferences. There is no research available in the public domain that focuses on a dialogue on fit. Focus groups will be taped and transcribed for content analysis by the research team. Analysis will include a pre-determined coding format based on current literature and dialogue among researchers using the web site. Initially, a panel of experts will examine the qualitative data for patterns of consistency and diversity. Validation will be supported through publishing the results of the panel of experts to the web site for discussion from a broader group of researchers.

• Goal 5 focuses on the development of a research model. Researchers have found that the key element in developing any type of national survey involves understanding how the consumer thinks about and expresses herself regarding a topic. Following the categorical analysis of the focusgroup dialogue, a research model will be developed to serve as a path to understanding and testing concepts related to fit from consumers perspective.