CHAPTER 4
Risk Behavior Survey (http://amplifyyourvoice.org/ allstudentscount), tested a version of Conron’s measure with response options that were modified to fit with Youth Risk Behavior Survey formatting. Findings from individual cognitive testing interviews with 25 youth ages 14-18 who varied on gender (10 transgender, 15 cisgender), as well as race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, and geography indicated no discomfort, confusion, or difficulty selecting a response. The item was then pilot tested in the Harris Interactive sample of secondary students (N=519, ages 14-18), described earlier in this chapter, using an online survey. Most (99.2%) of the sample selected “no” as their response to the transgender status question and selected concordant male/male or female/female responses to questions about assigned sex at birth and gender identity and, thus, may be cisgender. Only nine respondents selected a transgender response option and over half (n=5) of these reported concordant responses to assigned sex at birth and gender identity items. Findings suggest that either this item misclassified a small percentage of cisgender youth as transgender and/or that responses to the assigned sex at birth and/or gender identity measures were inaccurate for half of transgender respondents (GLSEN, in press). In an effort to reduce misclassification, the response options were further revised (“yes,” “no,” and “not sure” responses were offered) and evaluated. GLSEN conducted a second wave of cognitive testing with 12 youth ages 14-18 (6 transgender, 6 cisgender) and found that the item remained acceptable to adolescents. Most (99.6%) respondents in a second, large (N=1,017) Harris Interactive sample selected “no” as their response to the transgender status question and selected concordant male/male or female/female responses to questions about assigned sex at birth and gender identity and, thus, may be cisgender. Preliminary results suggest that a small number (n=24) of cisgender youth may have been misclassified as transgender or that a large proportion of transgender respondents (24 of 32) may have answered the assigned sex at birth or gender identity measures inaccurately (GLSEN, in press).
Additional analyses suggest that ordering or priming (prior exposure to terminology) impacts the question-response process. Pilot testing was conducted in two subsamples in order to assess potential item order effects. In the first subsample, assigned sex and gender identity items were presented first, followed by several unrelated items and then the transgender status measure (Order A). In the second subsample, the transgender item was presented first (Order B). Misclassification appears to have been reduced by presenting the transgender status item prior to the assigned sex at birth and gender identity items (1.2% of sample potentially misclassified in Order B compared to 4.9% in Order A sample). Further research is needed to understand these response patterns and to understand the performance of these measures when used in school-based settings (GLSEN, in press). GLSEN 1st adaption of Conron’s measure: When a person’s sex and gender do not match, they might think of themselves as transgender. Sex is what a person is born. Gender is how a person feels. Which one response best describes you?
I am not transgender I am transgender and identify as a boy or man I am transgender and identify as a girl or woman I am transgender and identify in some other way
GLSEN 2nd adaption of Conron’s measure: Sex is what a person is born. Gender is how a person feels. When a person’s sex and gender do not match, they might think of themselves as transgender. Are you transgender? No Yes Not sure Conclusions Related to Transgender Status Measures Pilot testing of the original transgender status measure developed by Conron, as well as GLSEN’s first adapted version, is recommended in school-
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