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Gender-related variables for health research.

Authors :
Nielsen MW
Stefanick ML
Peragine D
Neilands TB
Ioannidis JPA
Pilote L
Prochaska JJ
Cullen MR
Einstein G
Klinge I
LeBlanc H
Paik HY
Schiebinger L
Source :
Biology of sex differences [Biol Sex Differ] 2021 Feb 22; Vol. 12 (1), pp. 23. Date of Electronic Publication: 2021 Feb 22.
Publication Year :
2021

Abstract

Background: In this paper, we argue for Gender as a Sociocultural Variable (GASV) as a complement to Sex as a Biological Variable (SABV). Sex (biology) and gender (sociocultural behaviors and attitudes) interact to influence health and disease processes across the lifespan-which is currently playing out in the COVID-19 pandemic. This study develops a gender assessment tool-the Stanford Gender-Related Variables for Health Research-for use in clinical and population research, including large-scale health surveys involving diverse Western populations. While analyzing sex as a biological variable is widely mandated, gender as a sociocultural variable is not, largely because the field lacks quantitative tools for analyzing the influence of gender on health outcomes.<br />Methods: We conducted a comprehensive review of English-language measures of gender from 1975 to 2015 to identify variables across three domains: gender norms, gender-related traits, and gender relations. This yielded 11 variables tested with 44 items in three US cross-sectional survey populations: two internet-based (N = 2051; N = 2135) and a patient-research registry (N = 489), conducted between May 2017 and January 2018.<br />Results: Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses reduced 11 constructs to 7 gender-related variables: caregiver strain, work strain, independence, risk-taking, emotional intelligence, social support, and discrimination. Regression analyses, adjusted for age, ethnicity, income, education, sex assigned at birth, and self-reported gender identity, identified associations between these gender-related variables and self-rated general health, physical and mental health, and health-risk behaviors.<br />Conclusion: Our new instrument represents an important step toward developing more comprehensive and precise survey-based measures of gender in relation to health. Our questionnaire is designed to shed light on how specific gender-related behaviors and attitudes contribute to health and disease processes, irrespective of-or in addition to-biological sex and self-reported gender identity. Use of these gender-related variables in experimental studies, such as clinical trials, may also help us understand if gender factors play an important role as treatment-effect modifiers and would thus need to be further considered in treatment decision-making.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
2042-6410
Volume :
12
Issue :
1
Database :
MEDLINE
Journal :
Biology of sex differences
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
33618769
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1186/s13293-021-00366-3