2.1 Definition

A. Sex refers to one’s anatomical details, such as genitals, reproductive organs, chromosomes, and hormones, thought to define a person’s biological status as male or female and are generally assigned at birth.²

B. Gender refers to the roles, behaviours, activities, and attributes that a given society may construct or consider appropriate for the categories of “men” and “women”.³ Gender identity is an internal and deeply felt sense of being a man or woman, both or neither. A person’s gender identity may or may not align with the gender typically associated with their sex.²

2.2 Considerations and Limitations

Gender can be used to understand:

• Which genders are, or are not, being served e.g., using a GBA+ lens, or to support specific populations, meet expected numbers, or understand eligibility requirements.
• How programming may need to be adapted and responsive to reflect the gender diversity of participants.
• Aspects of operational planning or reporting such as that may be required by funders.

Gender cannot be used to understand:

• Sexuality⁴ and sexual orientation^{3, 5}
• A person’s gender journey unless asked in a way that might capture that level of nuance^{6, 7}
• Sex assigned at birth is a different question that may be appropriate to ask when it’s important to understand a person’s biology for the purpose of medical care, for example^{4, 5, 8, 9}

Additional considerations:

• • Whether to ask at all? Is it relevant to the supports that agencies are providing to clients?
  • It is important to note that these terms and ideas around gender identity may not be accepted or understood by all cultures and in all contexts. As well, the range of conceptions for understanding gender diversity around the world is not fully captured here. It will be important to adapt this question and response options to best fit the communities and populations in which your organization works.

2.3 Suggested Collection Methods

The minimum suggested data collection method, or “basic” option reflects a synthesis of practices, considerations from nonprofit stakeholders, and recognized standards in capturing demographic data. The suggested method is modeled after what might be asked on an intake form during an initial meeting with a client. The process by which intake or registration occurs can vary widely depending on the context within which you are working. For example, the way questions are asked and data are recorded will vary for clients in crises, as compared to walk-in or drop-in sessions, or when registering for a program that requires people to meet certain eligibility requirements. In those cases, the suggested collection method can be used as a starting point but adapted to fit the needs of the context within which the data are being collected.

As a standard practice we suggest always including an option for people to write in an answer that may not fit within the options provided, along with an option not to answer. These are both important for creating inclusive demographic questions.^{1, 10, 11}

2.3.1 Basic Question(s)