Year: 2024
Type: preprint
Abstract: The National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) administers annual and biennial surveys of the US college- and PhD-educated populations, tracking who is in STEM fields and what disparities exist based on sex, race, disability, first-generation status, and income background. NCSES recently conducted two pilot studies – a field test (n = 5,000) and a non-probability study (n = 2,800) – testing how respondents react to voluntary sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) questions. The agency concluded that while the gender identity question was acceptable, the sexual orientation question raised data quality concerns. However, the agency was recently compelled to release a portion of the data, which revealed several discrepancies and analytical flaws that show NCSES’ conclusion was unwarranted. Using standard quality metrics for federal surveys, both gender identity and sexual orientation questions appear to have performed excellently in the pilot tests.
Author: Jonathan B. Freeman
Institution: Columbia University
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
SDG: Reduced inequalities
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W4393409157