Protocol - Sexual Orientation

Description

A multi-part question asking participants to describe their sexual orientation. Multiple response options are provided along with an open-ended option.

Specific Instructions

The three dimensions of sexuality—attraction, identity, and behavior—may not correspond to the same orientation.

Identity: A persons core internal sense of their sexuality.

Attraction: A multidimensional concept that includes the gender(s) to which a person is attracted and the strength of this attraction, including whether a person feels attraction at all.

Behavior: A multidimensional concept that includes the gender(s) of sexual partners, specific sexual activities, and frequency of activity.

A person’s sexual orientation does not always align with behavior or attraction. Sexual orientation is useful as basic demographic information.

Availability

This protocol is freely available; permission not required for use.

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Protocol

1a. Which of the following best represents how you think of yourself?

[ ] Gay

[ ] Lesbian

[ ] Straight; that is, not gay or lesbian, etc.

[ ] Bisexual

[ ] None of these describe me, and I’d like to see additional options

Branching logic: If ‘none of these describe me, and I’d like to see additional options’ selected:

1b. Are any of these a closer description of how you think of yourself?

[ ] Queer

[ ] Polysexual, omnisexual, sapiosexual or pansexual

[ ] Asexual

[ ] Two-spirit

[ ] Have not figured out or are in the process of figuring out your sexuality

[ ] Mostly straight, but sometimes attracted to people of your own sex

[ ] Do not think of yourself as having sexuality

[ ] Do not use labels to identify yourself

[ ] Don’t know the answer

[ ] No, I mean something else (optional free text) __________________

[ ] Prefer not to answer

Personnel and Training Required

None

Equipment Needs

The PhenX Steering Committee acknowledges these questions can be administered in a computerized or noncomputerized format (i.e., paper-and-pencil instrument). Computer software is necessary to develop computer-assisted instruments. The interviewer will require a laptop computer/handheld computer to administer a computer-assisted questionnaire."

Requirements

Requirement Category	Required
Major equipment	No
Specialized training	No
Specialized requirements for biospecimen collection	No
Average time of greater than 15 minutes in an unaffected individual	No

Mode of Administration

Self-administered or interviewer-administered questionnaire

Lifestage

Adult, Senior

Participants

Adults aged 18 and older

Selection Rationale

This protocol was selected because it is both the most up-to-date and in use by the national All of Us research program.

Language

English, Other languages available at source

Standards

Standard	Name	ID	Source
caDSR Form	PX011701 Phenx Sexual Orientation	14301610	caDSR Form

Derived Variables

None

Process and Review

The PhenX Management reviewed this protocol on Aug 28, 2024. Changes include:

Minor edits

Protocol Name from Source

All of Us Research Program, Participant Provided Information (PPI), 2018

Source

All of Us Research Program Participant Provided Information (PPI) Version: December 17, 2018

General References

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education; Committee on National Statistics; Committee on Measuring Sex, Gender Identity, and Sexual Orientation. Measuring Sex, Gender Identity, and Sexual Orientation. Becker T, Chin M, Bates N, editors. Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US); 2022 Mar 9. PMID: 35286054.

Perron, T., Kartoz, C., Himelfarb, C., LGBTQ Youth Part 1. National Association of School Nurses, 2017 Mar. 32(2): 106-115.

Perron, T., Kartoz, C., Himelfarb, C. LGBTQ Part 2. National Association of School Nurses. 2017 Mar. 32(2): 116-121.

The GenIUSS Group. (2014). Best Practices for Asking Questions to Identify Transgender and Other Gender Minority Respondents on Population-Based Surveys. J.L. Herman (Ed.). Los Angeles, CA: The Williams Institute.

Protocol ID

11701

Variables

Export Variables

Variable Name	Variable ID	Variable Description	dbGaP Mapping
PX011701_Sexual_Orientation_Description
	PX011701020100	Are any of these a closer description of how more you think of yourself? show less	N/A

Demographics

Measure Name

Sexual orientation

Release Date

June 4, 2019

Definition

Often defined based on the gender(s) of a person's desired or actual partner(s) relative to their own gender identity.

Purpose

To obtain a person’s self-reported sexual orientation related to who they might be attracted to or partner with.

Keywords

sex assigned at birth, gender, LGBTQ, LGBTQIA, gay, lesbian, bisexual, intersex, asexual, queer

Measure Protocols

Protocol ID	Protocol Name
11701	Sexual Orientation

Publications

Wright, B., et al. (2025) Exploring the Impact of the Caring Contacts Intervention on the Stress and Distress of Veterans and Service Members: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial. JMIR Research Protocols. 2025 August; 14: e72140. doi: 10.2196/72140

Flores, V. A., et al. (2025) Rationale for a 4-month, parallel-group, randomized controlled trial to assess the Feasibility and Efficacy of a Remotely delivered exercise training intervention for Hispanics/Latinos with Multiple Sclerosis (FERLA MS) Pilot and Feasibility Studies. 2025 May; 11(1): 16. doi: 10.1186/s40814-025-01641-5

Tross, S., Laschober, T. C., Paschen-Wolff, M., Ertl, M., Nelson, C. M., Wright, L., Lancaster, C., Feaster, D. J., Monger, M., Toal, P., Fegley, J. P., Meche, D., Hankey, C., Woodhouse, C., Spector, A., Dresser, L., Moran, L., Jelstrom, E., Haynes, L., Shoptaw, S. and Hatch, M. A. (2025) Willingness to Use Oral and Long-Acting Injectable PrEP in Substance-Using Men who have Sex with Men (SU-MSM) in High HIV Incidence Southern US Cities: A NIDA Clinical Trials Network Study Aids and Behavior. 2025 April; 29(4): 1192-1204. doi: 10.1007/s10461-024-04594-7

Beach, L. B., Flentje, A. and Freeman, J. B. (2025) In order to count, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual people must be counted Health Psychology. 2025 March; 44(3): 332-334. doi: 10.1037/hea0001478

Levites Strekalova, Y. A., et al. (2024) Policy instruments for the governance of the social drivers of health data in clinical and research settings: a policy mapping brief Front Public Health. 2024 November; 12: 1369790. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1369790

Fu, S. S., et al. (2024) Evaluating chronic disease approaches to ameliorate tobacco-related health disparities: Study protocol of a hybrid type 1 implementation-effectiveness trial Contemporary Clinical Trials Communications. 2024 October; 42: 10. doi: 10.1016/j.conctc.2024.101380

Ruggiero, C. F., et al. (2024) Perceived Discrimination Among Food Pantry Clients in Massachusetts Preventing Chronic Disease. 2024 September; 21(14): E70. doi: 10.5888/pcd21.240009

Zamarripa, K., et al. (2024) Strengthening the Voices of Hispanic/ Latine Immigrants Managing Chronic Disease: A Mixed Methods Approach to Understanding Perspectives of Health Healthcare. 2024 July; 12(15): 1519. doi: 10.3390/healthcare12151519

Levites Strekalova, Y. A., et al. (2024) Application of the Delphi method to the development of common data elements for social drivers of health: A systematic scoping review. Translational Behavioral Medicine. 2024 June; 14(7): 426-433. doi: 10.1093/tbm/ibae020

Klein, E. G., et al. (2024) A Randomized Clinical Trial of a Quitline Vaping Cessation Intervention: Baseline Characteristics of Young Adult Exclusive E-Cigarette Users Seeking Treatment. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2024 June; 21(6): 809. doi: 10.3390/ijerph21060809

Burnett-Bowie, S. A. M., et al. (2024) The American Society for Bone and Mineral Research Task Force on clinical algorithms for fracture risk report. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research. 2024 May; 39(5): 517-530. doi: 10.1093/jbmr/zjae048

Kosyluk, K., et al. (2024) Mental Distress, Label Avoidance, and Use of a Mental Health Chatbot: Results From a US Survey. JMIR Formative Research. 2024 April; 8(17). doi: 10.2196/45959

Hatch, M. A., et al. (2024) PrEP for people who use opioids: A NIDA clinical trials network survey study in Southern US cities where HIV incidence is high. Drug and Alcohol Dependence. 2024 April; 257(9). doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2024.111133

Bartholomew, T. S., et al. (2024) Project CHARIOT: study protocol for a hybrid type 1 effectiveness-implementation study of comprehensive tele-harm reduction for engagement of people who inject drugs in HIV prevention services Addiction Science & Clinical Practice. 2024 March; 19(1). doi: 10.1186/s13722-024-00447-9

Cleverley, K., et al. (2024) The Toronto Adolescent and Youth Cohort Study: Study Design and Early Data Related to Psychosis Spectrum Symptoms, Functioning, and Suicidality. Biological Psychiatry-Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging. 2024 March; 9(3): 253-264. doi: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2023.10.011

Sharma, P., et al. (2023) A Christian Faith-Based Facebook Intervention for Smoking Cessation in Rural Communities (FAITH-CORE): Protocol for a Community Participatory Development Study JMIR Research Protocols. 2023 December; 12: e52398. doi: 10.2196/52398

Chan, N. W., et al. (2022) Social determinants of health data in solid organ transplantation: National data sources and future directions. Am J Transplant. 2022 October; 22(10): 2293-2301. doi: 10.1111/ajt.17096

Pomeroy, A., et al. (2022) Protocol for a Longitudinal Study of the Determinants of Metabolic Syndrome Risk in Young Adults. Translational Journal of the American College of Sports Medicine. 2022 April; 7(2): 8. doi: 10.1249/tjx.0000000000000197

Young Hye, K., et al. (2021) Predicting multilingual effects on executive function and individual connectomes in children: An ABCD study. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 2021 December; 118(49): 1-11. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2110811118

Purvis, R. S., et al. (2021) Trusted Sources of COVID-19 Vaccine Information among Hesitant Adopters in the United States. Vaccines. 2021 December; 9(12): 1418. doi: 10.3390/vaccines9121418

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