Solutions Inventory

Improving questions to record sex assigned at birth and gender identity

There is increasing concern among researchers about collecting data on sex and gender variables, yet many researchers are unsure of how to deal meaningfully with these variables. To address these concerns, providing two questions on sex assigned at birth and on gender identity are recommended for the reduction of measurement error and the ethical treatment of gender minority individuals. These demographic questions are crucial to methodological and ethical rigor of research engaging sex and gender data.