Classification of gender

Usage

The categories of the Classification of gender are derived using the standardized gender question.

Depending on the statistical program, the survey population may include children aged 14 or under. In such instances, the terms "boy" and "girl" are preferred to "man" and "woman".

Information on gender may be based on self-reported data or reported by proxy, depending on the statistical program. Therefore, the expression "reported gender" is used in these definitions.

The umbrella term "non-binary" is often used to refer to people who describe their gender as neither man nor woman. However, individuals who fall under the category of non-binary gender within this classification do not necessarily use this label to describe their gender identity.

Given that the non-binary population is small, data aggregation to a two-category gender variable is sometimes necessary for confidentiality and data quality reasons. In these cases, individuals in the category "non-binary persons" are randomly recoded into the other two gender categories and are denoted by the "+" symbol.

When data quality and confidentiality requirements are met to disseminate data specific to the non-binary people, it is recommended to examine data by gender diversity status (see Classification of gender diversity status and usage).