Research Guides: Research Data Management Guide: Collecting Demographic Data on Identity (Sex, Gender, Race, etc.)

First, Ask Yourself...

Ask yourself whether you absolutely need the data for your purpose, and only collect the data you need.

Sex and Gender Research and Methods

Meet The Methods
"The goal of the Meet the Methods series is to equip researchers and trainees with practical tips and tools from prominent researchers on integrating sex, gender and other identity factors into various fields of health research."

Terms

The peer-reviewed Gendered Innovations project from Stanford University provides these clear, critical definitions for research purposes.

Suggestions for Open-Ended Demographic Data Questions, from NamasteData

Plain-text of infographic above:

Statements you can use to collect demographic data from an open-ended text box.

"If you don't see your identity represented in the options above, please feel free to share how you identify here: _____"
"Please describe your identity in your own words if the options provided do not accurately represent you: _____"
Our list may not encompass the vast diversity of backgrounds and cultures. If you identify with a group not represented above, we welcome you to share your background here: _____"
"We understand that identity is complex and unique to each individual. If the options above do not reflect your personal experience, please describe your identity as you wish it to be recognized: _____"
"Your identity is important to us. If you feel the categories provided do not capture your identity accurately, please share your preferred term(s) here: _____"

@namaste data

NamasteData
From website: "Our vision is to empower nonprofits to do good with data by centering equity and inclusion in all aspects of their data practices. We believe that data can be a powerful tool for social change, but only if it is collected, analyzed, and applied in ways that promote fairness, justice, and inclusion."

Recommended Best Practices for Demographic Data Collection

Do No Harm Guide: Collecting, Analyzing, and Reporting Gender and Sexual Orientation Data
From the Urban Institute. "By...employing data best practices, researchers, analysts, and other stakeholders can help ensure that such data are used for good—to help address disparities and inequities faced by LGBTQIA+ people and to assess the effects of policies, interventions, and societal attitudes on their lives."
Measuring Sex, Gender Identity, and Sexual Orientation: National Academies' Consensus Report (2022)
FREE PDF DOWNLOAD. Offers principles for data collection, guidelines for collecting sex and gender data, recommendations for specific questions that can be used to both assess these characteristics and identify people with transgender experience and intersex traits, and recommendations of topics for further research to improve these measures.
Gender and LGBTQUIA+ Data Collection Best Practice
From the Warwick International Higher Education Academy
Sex and Gender Equity in Research: rationale for the SAGER guidelines and recommended use
Heidari, S., Babor, T.F., De Castro, P. et al. Sex and Gender Equity in Research: rationale for the SAGER guidelines and recommended use. Res Integr Peer Rev 1, 2 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1186/s41073-016-0007-6
Learn about the SAGER Guidelines and Checklist
Learn about the Sex and Gender Equity in Research (SAGER) Guidelines, designed to help researchers during proposals, manuscripts, and peer review evaluation, as well as the checklist to help both authors and editors evaluate sex and gender reporting in each section of a paper.
Good Practices: Demographic Data Collection
From the University of Maryland's LGBTQ+ Equity Center.
Learning Resources — Collecting Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Data
From the National LGBTQIA+ Health Education Center, a program of the Fenway Institute
General and Field-Specific Methods of Sex, Gender, and Intersectional Analysis
From the Gendered Innovations project at Stanford University