I’m a big taker of LGBT surveys and participant in LGBT research studies because I think that “trans voices” need to be heard, if possible.
But although I’ve complained before that multiple choice is not trans friendly, I think that, after 13 years of survey-taking and research-participating, it did not truly dawn on me until now how useless the term “transgender” is, by itself, in data collection.
A recent survey offered me a choice of the following in response to the question “How do you identify?” – gay, lesbian, transgender, bisexual, queer, or something else.
This isn’t the first time I’ve been confronted with something similar, and I’m always stymied. But in order to have my “trans voice” heard, I have to pick “transgender.”
So tell me – from that answer alone, what do you know about me?
Am I a man, a woman, both, or neither? Was I born male or female? Am I the same sex now that I was at birth? What public restroom do I use? Who do I date, sleep with, fall in love with? Could I legally marry that person? Do I, or might I, face any discrimination? Does my identity affect my life at all? You have no idea.
Even if the question before it on the survey is “What sex are you?” – male or female (rarely is there another option) – how much more would that tell you? You’d know what sex I considered my body to be, but you still wouldn’t know the answer to any of the questions above, especially since “transgender” has become so diverse in meaning.
It’s not that I mind the word. I gave up long ago trying to fully differentiate between “transgender” and “transsexual,” even though I still do so in my head. But as a one-word descriptor, “transgender” does not stand alone – particularly in anonymous surveys, and particularly when lumped in with sexual orientation.
And I could answer every related question in the demographic section of a questionnaire – sex, gender, and sexual orientation – without ever using the word “transgender.”
If I felt that my “gay” identity was stronger than my “transgender” identity, and I only had the choice of one, I might choose “gay.” This would skew the data, because you would not then get the “transgender” results to report in your survey. (And the complete dismissal of trans people’s sexual orientation in surveys or even discussion focused on “LGBT” issues is a whole other post.)
It’s important to me that I’m “counted” in surveys and research, which is why I will generally choose “transgender” no matter where it happens to be stuck. But if that’s all you know – or if there’s no way to put all the pieces together into a whole that accurately reflects me as a respondent – then your data will be flawed.
And “trans voices” will continue to be silent.
(I’d like to ask readers this:
What do you think about having an entirely separate question on those surveys that are targeted directly to the LGBT population – a question apart from sex, gender, or sexual orientation – that said, “Are you transgender, transsexual, both, or neither? If a, b, or c, do you identify as FTM, MTF, trans man, trans woman, man, woman, genderqueer, or something else?”
Even if you could only pick one, it would give a better representation of the survey respondent. Is it too cumbersome? Would it at least serve the purpose of providing more accurate data?)
I think a separate question would be the right way to go. If you want to know if your survey-takers are trans, ask them! Lumping it in under some other question is silly.
Surveys and questionnaires are the the tools Big Brother uses to analyze the most efficient way of screwing you over and taking away your rights while at the same time inevitably making you pay for the privilege by raising your taxes. The last thing I want is to remind Big Brother that I am trans.
Hello Matt,
Survey is research, for me, it truly depends on what the survey aims at accomplishing, and also as important, who are the people amassing the data. Therefore, there quite a few surveys that can be ignored. If I deem the data collected will not help the trans community, either because it’s collected by groups who are not allies, or surveys that are too poorly structured, they will remain unheeded.
Knowing these helps me pick what it is I will tell them. For example, if such data is being collected on a census, being given the option, checking the all encompassing box “transgender” would give policy makers an idea of the size of the population to cater to in regards to health services targeted at our specific needs.
If the data was collected say, in a university research project on specific population for the sake of assigning labels to all the “colours of the rainbow” in a given province, state or city, much more details would be required, just as you suggest in your post.
Love reading you!
Thanks for all your comments. I generally do like to participate in research studies that I think could have beneficial results for the trans community – for example, the other day, I was involved in a study regarding trans aging and the need for services, because that one really hit home.
I also think it’s important, depending on the topic and the purpose, because so many study results come out that say something like, “The LGBT population does this or feels this way about something,” and it’s pretty obvious that it’s really the LG population that they’re talking about.
Sometimes survey results are reported as LGBT results to be inclusive when they really have nothing to do with the T at all. I say, if you just surveyed gay men and lesbians, then say that. Don’t say the results are LGBT results when they really aren’t.
Okay, I’m off on another tangent. It’s time to be quiet!
A recent survey offered me a choice of the following in response to the question “How do you identify?” – gay, lesbian, transgender, bisexual, queer, or something else.
Part of the problem is that some of the question refers to orientation and part of it refers to identity. If a survey is poorly designed, the results will be worthless. Yes, it is cumbersome to ask lots of questions, but by doing so, the results will be more valid.
A couple of years ago NCTE was involved with a very good survey with lots and lots of questions. I eagerly await the results of it.
Thanks for your post Matt.
As long as the word “transgender” is used to represent a diverse population inclusive of many folks that don’t identify as “trans” it will remain a checkbox whose only meaning is a weak attempt at inclusion.
My sex reassignment was long ago, the last time I answered a survey as trans(anything) was before then. I keep wondering what survey takers are actually trying to glean with a “transgender” check box… it’s not an orientation, identity, or sex assignment. If it’s an “LGBT” survey I check lesbian. That’s descriptive of my sexual orientation, my identity and my community. My gender: soft butch, sporty femme… My sex assignment: female
If I think the history of my sex assignment is relevant demographic data for a particular survey I make use of comment boxes if offered.
Good idea with regard to a comment box (which is often not available). There are times when I would love clarify further in a comment box, because the choices offered simply don’t add up, and then the results are worthless, like Shari said above.
And there are many people who would be defined by others as trans, but who do not define themselves as trans, like you said. For me, my sexual orientation would be gay, my gender would be masculine, my sex would be male. Transgender does not fit into any of those categories.
I do, however, have a personal identity of trans man. Where that would fit in a questionnaire, I do not know, except for under a separate question entirely.
surveys, studies, forms… the only one i’ve ever seen which comes even approximately close to doing it right is the one in your profile at fetlife (social networking site for kinksters).
otherwise it’s a comedy of errors. there’s the obvious error seen in the example here: trans(gender/sexual) is not a sexual orientation.
nor is it a gender identity: man, woman, bigender, queer, androgyne, agender, genderfluid, and so on are gender identities. but my gender identity isn’t “trans”, it’s femme, or possibly queer.
adding it to (biological/anatomical) sex doesn’t really work either (and never mind how sex is almost always represented as a hard binary). if the survey is actually interested in sex they’d do better to include option(s) for intersex people.
if the survey is actually interested in the trans status of respondents, they need a separate question: options would (minimally) be cisgender, transgender, other. the surveyor might then consider adding further questions in regards to how that is lived, or whether physical transition is pursued, etc. (that is supposing that the survey is actually interested in this).
and yes, trans status requires “other”, just as does “sex”, or sexual orientation, or gender identity. when creating the question, you might think you’ve covered all options. but one thing is for sure, there will always be an other.
personally i’ve become so affronted at the bad science evident in these things (not to mention that they’re personally frustrating) that i’ve started not filling them out even when i support the goal of the survey.
I do understand that frustration. Transgender isn’t any of those things: it’s not a sexual orientation, a sex, a gender, or even a gender identity. Most people who use trans (transgender, transsexual, or just trans) as a personal identity use it as a modifier, like I do: I’m a trans man.
It does get to the point where, if the choices are too limited or frustrating enough, it makes you not want to fill it out. I wish there was a comment box, like Glenda mentioned above, where I could put “I’m not completing this survey because your choices are too limited (or wrong).” And then I would explain why so they would (might) learn for the future.
But it’s not like we have a bunch of time on our hands to be doing that, either. And you’re right, too, about never covering all the options.
Has anyone ever seen a survey with unambiguous questions?
Any question which has any possibility of misinterpretation can only have been written by an idiot or by someone wishing to massage results.