On the Design, Development, and Testing of Sexual Identity Questions: A Discussion and Analysis of Kristen Miller and J. Michael Ryan's Work for the National Health Interview Survey

Abstract

A remarkable article by Kristen Miller and J. Michael Ryan, working at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, deserves wider attention. They developed two sexual identity-related questions for the (U.S.) National Health Interview Survey: one pertaining to gender identity and one to sexual orientation. They conducted 386 indepth cognitive interviews and concluded that there are substantial problems with existing sexual identity questions. Words such as 'heterosexual' and 'bisexual' are often grossly misunderstood (especially by those with less education), triggering substantial measurement errors. Revised questions substantially reduced missingvalue responses and increased validity, even though responses used phrases such as 'straight, that is, not gay' and avoided the words 'heterosexual' and 'homosexual.' Spanish translation was neither straightforward nor intuitive. These questions should generate improved estimates of the lesbian, gay, and bisexual population and raise important issues that must be considered by anyone designing sexual orientation questions in the future.

A Longitudinal Study of Adolescents’ Pornography Use Frequency, Motivations, and Problematic Use Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic

“…Sexual orientation was measured with one item based on prior recommendations (Weinrich, 2014): "People describe their sexual orientation in different ways. Which expression best describes your current sexual orientation?…”

Validity and reliability of the short version of the Problematic Pornography Consumption Scale (PPCS-6-A) in adolescents.

“…Adolescents' gender identity was assessed with the following question based on prior recommendations (Bauer et al, 2017): "What gender or gender identity do you identify with?," answer options were: masculine/man; feminine/woman; indigenous or other cultural gender minority identity (e.g., two-spirit); non-binary, gender fluid or something else (e.g., genderqueer); and other (with specification). Adolescents' sexual orientation was assessed with the following item based on prior recommendations (Weinrich, 2014): "People describe their sexual orientation in different ways. Which expression best describes your current sexual orientation?…”

International Sex Survey: Study protocol of a large, cross-cultural collaborative study in 45 countries

“…Models will be evaluated based on commonly used goodness-of-fit indices (Browne & Cudeck, 1993;Marsh, Hau, & Grayson, 2005;Schermelleh-Engel, Moosbrugger, & M€ uller, 2003), such as the Comparative Fit Index or Root-Mean-Square Error of Approximation with its 90% confidence interval. To ensure that comparisons between groups (e.g., genders, countries) are meaningful and to reduce the possibility of measurement biases and invalid comparisons between groups, we will conduct measurement invariance tests (Milfont & Fischer, 2010;Millsap, 2011;Vandenberg & Lance, 2000).…”