The Focus Study, conducted by the National Council of La Raza's Poverty Project, used structured discussions by focus groups to examine Mexican American women's opinions, needs, and attitudes as they relate to the implementation of the 1988 Family Support Act (FSA). FSA's primary objective is to move people off welfare through education, training, and employment. The purpose of the first-year focus groups was to identify subject areas to be explored in the second year. The project staff conducted eight focus groups in four communities: Phoenix, Arizona; Mora, New Mexico; Pharr, Texas; and Kansas City, Missouri. In each community, the Focus Study collaborated with a staff person from a Hispanic community-based organization. Focus group participants were 57 Mexican American mothers under the age of 21. The following findings challenge some common perceptions about young Mexican American women: (1) they believed they could improve their economic status and were actively working to do so; (2) they showed a high level of initiative and resistance to dependence on welfare, whether they used welfare or not; (3) they saw lack of jobs, lack of access to good jobs, lack of high quality child care, and lack of transportation as barriers to economic security; (4) they expressed serious concerns about the quality and safety of center-based child care, and a preference for child care provided by relatives; and (5) they showed resistance to traditional cponcepts of marriage. Community profiles, a participant profile, an overview of the Family Support Act, a first-year discussion guide, and a first-year background questionnaire are appended. (KS)