Abstract

The aim of the present project is to record and investigate the beliefs, perceptions, attitudes and positions of the Electrical and Computer Engineering first year students of Democritus University of Thrace (DUTH) regarding computer programming. The data was analysed through implicative statistical analysis and CHIC software, which provided the following analyses: a) the similarity dendrogram, b) the hierarchical dendrogram and c) the implication chart. The research results showed that: a) students’ confidence in their ability to learn computer programming enhances their positive attitude towards its value and maximises the use of programming in their profession; b) student attitudes that are characterised by stress are influenced by the denial of the value, contribution and presence of programming in their future professional careers; and c) another factor that causes negativity in students is their lack of confidence, which results in them feeling that they must make a maximum effort to meet the demands of the course.