Demographics

Every survey has it you know the general questions that they ask; age, location, race, occupation, etc. but when you get to sex, gender, birth gender, then the nightmare begins… it is a quagmire. What is meant by “sex” or “gender?” If someone says they are “trans” what does that mean? Are they living full time? Do they mean it as an umbrella term or do they mean someone live full time? Or do they mean only those who have had Gender Confirming Surgery?

Then how do find out what they meant?

When I was working with a group on developing an instrument (a survey) to survey the trans community on AIDS we spent most of the time trying to develop the demographic question, the question on AIDS were just a cut and paste from a list of standard question.

But the demographic we developed a tree…

What was you gender assigned at birth?
Do you ever dress in clothes opposite from gender assigned at birth?
How often do you dress in clothes opposite from gender assigned at birth?

Do you crossdress for entertainment?

Etcetera. Etcetera. Etcetera.

We had about ten or twelve questions that we asked to figure out what they meant when they fill-in the last question. “My gender identity is _____ .

Sexual orientation is a piece of cake!

I am attracted to the same gender.

I am attracted to the opposite gender.

Whoa… that just got complicated. What happens if the person is trans do they mean the gender they were assigned at birth or the gender that they are currently living? 

So the next time you take a survey sometimes a lot of thought goes into them.

In case you are wondering where this came from?

I am on a committee do that right now, and we are working on a needs survey for the LGBTQ+ community in Connecticut for the Departments of Health and the Commission on Women, Children, Seniors, Equity & Opportunity.

The survey should be out this fall.