Like teenagers who watch MTV and sports fans of all ages who enjoy ESPN, record numbers of preschool children are tuning in to Nickelodeon's "Blue's Clues."

On the Old Dominion campus, it's also a popular TV show among 36 undergraduate students from Thomas Socha's "Children's Communications in Contemporary Society" course from last semester. The students participated in a research study of "Blue's Clues," and their findings will soon be shared with the show's creators.

Geared to youngsters ages 3 to 5, the show features Steve and his dog named Blue who search for clues to solve puzzles and mysteries. Children who watch the show learn analytical and research skills, as well as communication skills, said Socha, associate professor of communication.

It is in the area of communication that the Old Dominion group conducted its study, an area of research that has not been covered since the show began in 1996. It is only the second study of the program to be conducted by a research team outside the show.

An expert in family communication, Socha created a research project for the children's show "Rugrats" nearly two years ago, and decided to do a similar project for his class last fall. He met the co-creator and researcher of "Blue's Clues" at a conference in New York last year, and explained his interest in researching the communication aspect of the program.

As part of their project, each student interviewed at least two preschool children and their parents. Socha hopes that the results of the research will raise questions and prompt Nickelodeon to further examine some of the findings.

Although he is still compiling the data, Socha has discovered two interesting findings. First, the children his students interviewed believe that Steve, the main character, talks too much. Socha said this may suggest that the children really want to hear more from other characters on the show.

Another finding involves the "thinking chair," a special, quiet place where the show's characters can go to think. While most of the children who were interviewed indicated that they, too, had a "thinking chair" at home, for some it was also a "timeout chair" used for discipline.

"Blues Clues'" own research team at Nickelodeon is likely to take the students' findings seriously. The group consults a 90-page curriculum guide to ensure that each episode contains an "analytical induction" of language arts, colors, numbers and auditory skills, Socha noted.

"They've found in previous studies that preschoolers are internalizing information and developing their research skills from watching 'Blues Clues,'" he said. He hopes that the research findings he collects will determine whether or not "Blues Clues" helps preschoolers become better communicators.

For many of his undergraduate students, this was their first research study, Socha said. "My goal was to help them learn how to talk to kids and be in touch with 3- to 5-year-olds." Another goal was "to collectively analyze what types of television programs children are consuming."

While the students in Socha's class may definitely learned more about communicating with children through their study, they also became more tuned into "Blues Clues." TV Guide has called the show a "campy hit in college dorms."

But for its primary audience,"Blues Clues" is currently the show to watch. And research like that conducted at Old Dominion may make it even better and more educational.