The Committee on Gay and Lesbian Concerns in Statistics

• Activity Number: 483
• Type: Invited
• Date/Time: Wednesday, August 6, 2014 : 10:30 AM to 12:20 PM
• Sponsor: Committee on ASA Archives and Historical Materials
• Author(s): Christopher H. Johnson*+ and Diane Herz and Arthur B. Kenickell
• Companies: CDC and Mathematica Policy Research and Federal Reserve Board
• Keywords: ASA committees ; sexual orientation ; sampling rare populations ; questionnaire design ; measurement error ; hard-to-reach populations

Abstract

The Committee on Gay and Lesbian Concerns in Statistics was established by the American Statistical Association in 1992 to explore and address issues related to sexual orientation. Reflecting the concerns of a broad range of statisticians, the Committee was founded by a group of gay, lesbian, bisexual and straight statisticians. Since its founding, the Committee has sponsored and organized many sessions at the Joint Statistical Meetings, such as panels on best practices in measuring sexual orientation in surveys. The Committee works to support research on statistical issues of concern to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) individuals, as well as the larger statistics profession, and to eliminate discrimination in employment and education. It encourages research on LGBT populations' characteristics and needs, helping the statistical community keep up with social changes. The Committee serves as a resource about statistical issues related to LGBT populations to researchers, the media, and others. It provides information on LGBT data collection strategies, including sampling rare and hard-to-reach populations and minimizing measurement error in standardized questionnaires.