Training in the implementation of sex and gender research policies: an evaluation of publicly available online courses

IF 4.9 2区 医学 Q1 ENDOCRINOLOGY & METABOLISM Biology of Sex Differences Pub Date : 2024-04-03 DOI:10.1186/s13293-024-00610-6
Annika Gompers, Madeline T. Olivier, Donna L. Maney
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We reviewed each course with respect to their coverage of (1) What is required by the policy; (2) Rationale for the policy; (3) Handling of the concepts “sex” and “gender;” (4) Research design and analysis; and (5) Interpreting and reporting data. All three courses discussed the importance of including males and females to better generalize results, discover potential sex differences, and tailor treatments to men and women. The entangled nature of sex and gender, operationalization of sex, and potential downsides of focusing on sex more than other sources of variation were minimally discussed. Notably, all three courses explicitly endorsed invalid analytical approaches that produce bias toward false positive discoveries of difference. Our analysis suggests a need for revised or new training materials that incorporate four major topics: precise operationalization of sex, potential risks of over-emphasis on sex as a category, recognition of gender and sex as complex and entangled, and rigorous study design and data analysis. Recently implemented research policies requiring the inclusion of females and males have created an urgent need for effective training in how to account for sex, and in some cases gender, in biomedical studies. We evaluated three publicly available online trainings on this topic: (1) Integrating Sex & Gender in Health Research from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research; (2) Sex as a Biological Variable: A Primer from the United States National Institutes of Health; and (3) The Sex and Gender Dimension in Biomedical Research, developed as part of “Leading Innovative Measures to Reach Gender Balance in Research Activities (LIBRA)” from the European Commission. We reviewed each course with respect to their coverage of (1) What is required by the policy; (2) Rationale for the policy; (3) Handling of the concepts “sex” and “gender;” (4) Research design and analysis; and (5) Interpreting and reporting data. All three discussed the importance of including males and females to better generalize results, discover potential sex differences, and tailor treatments to men and women. The interconnectedness of sex and gender, how to operationalize sex, and potential downsides of focusing on sex more than other sources of variation were minimally discussed. Notably, all three courses explicitly endorsed invalid analytical approaches that lead to incorrect findings of differences. Our analysis suggests a need for revised or new training materials that cover four major topics: precise operationalization of sex, attention to potential risks of over-emphasizing sex, consideration of gender and sex as complex and intertwined, and rigorous study design and data analysis. Three major online trainings on implementing sex and gender research policies from Canada, the United States, and the European Union covered much of the same content. A common theme among the trainings was the importance of including males and females to better generalize results, discover potential sex differences, and tailor treatments to men and women. Topics that were not substantially addressed in the trainings included the extent to which sex and gender are inextricably entangled, the operationalization of sex using concrete, measurable variables, and the potential risks of focusing on sex more than other sources of variation. 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Abstract

Recently implemented research policies requiring the inclusion of females and males have created an urgent need for effective training in how to account for sex, and in some cases gender, in biomedical studies. Here, we evaluated three sets of publicly available online training materials on this topic: (1) Integrating Sex & Gender in Health Research from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR); (2) Sex as a Biological Variable: A Primer from the United States National Institutes of Health (NIH); and (3) The Sex and Gender Dimension in Biomedical Research, developed as part of “Leading Innovative measures to reach gender Balance in Research Activities” (LIBRA) from the European Commission. We reviewed each course with respect to their coverage of (1) What is required by the policy; (2) Rationale for the policy; (3) Handling of the concepts “sex” and “gender;” (4) Research design and analysis; and (5) Interpreting and reporting data. All three courses discussed the importance of including males and females to better generalize results, discover potential sex differences, and tailor treatments to men and women. The entangled nature of sex and gender, operationalization of sex, and potential downsides of focusing on sex more than other sources of variation were minimally discussed. Notably, all three courses explicitly endorsed invalid analytical approaches that produce bias toward false positive discoveries of difference. Our analysis suggests a need for revised or new training materials that incorporate four major topics: precise operationalization of sex, potential risks of over-emphasis on sex as a category, recognition of gender and sex as complex and entangled, and rigorous study design and data analysis. Recently implemented research policies requiring the inclusion of females and males have created an urgent need for effective training in how to account for sex, and in some cases gender, in biomedical studies. We evaluated three publicly available online trainings on this topic: (1) Integrating Sex & Gender in Health Research from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research; (2) Sex as a Biological Variable: A Primer from the United States National Institutes of Health; and (3) The Sex and Gender Dimension in Biomedical Research, developed as part of “Leading Innovative Measures to Reach Gender Balance in Research Activities (LIBRA)” from the European Commission. We reviewed each course with respect to their coverage of (1) What is required by the policy; (2) Rationale for the policy; (3) Handling of the concepts “sex” and “gender;” (4) Research design and analysis; and (5) Interpreting and reporting data. All three discussed the importance of including males and females to better generalize results, discover potential sex differences, and tailor treatments to men and women. The interconnectedness of sex and gender, how to operationalize sex, and potential downsides of focusing on sex more than other sources of variation were minimally discussed. Notably, all three courses explicitly endorsed invalid analytical approaches that lead to incorrect findings of differences. Our analysis suggests a need for revised or new training materials that cover four major topics: precise operationalization of sex, attention to potential risks of over-emphasizing sex, consideration of gender and sex as complex and intertwined, and rigorous study design and data analysis. Three major online trainings on implementing sex and gender research policies from Canada, the United States, and the European Union covered much of the same content. A common theme among the trainings was the importance of including males and females to better generalize results, discover potential sex differences, and tailor treatments to men and women. Topics that were not substantially addressed in the trainings included the extent to which sex and gender are inextricably entangled, the operationalization of sex using concrete, measurable variables, and the potential risks of focusing on sex more than other sources of variation. All three courses explicitly endorsed invalid analytical approaches that produce bias toward false positive discoveries of difference. Key areas for improved or new materials are: precise operationalization of sex, attention to the downsides of over-emphasis on sex as a category, recognition of gender and sex as complex and entangled entities, and rigorous study design and data analysis.
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实施性与性别研究政策方面的培训:对公开在线课程的评估
最近实施的研究政策要求将女性和男性纳入研究范围,这就迫切需要对如何在生物医学研究中考虑性别因素以及某些情况下的性别因素进行有效的培训。在此,我们评估了有关这一主题的三套公开在线培训材料:(1) 加拿大卫生研究院(CIHR)的《在健康研究中整合性与性别》(Integrating Sex & Gender in Health Research);(2) 美国国家健康研究院(United States National Health Research)的《作为生物变量的性别》(Sex as a Biological Variable:美国国立卫生研究院(NIH)的《性别作为生物变量:入门》;(3) 作为欧盟委员会 "在研究活动中实现性别平衡的领先创新措施"(LIBRA)的一部分而开发的《生物医学研究中的性别与性别维度》。我们审查了每门课程在以下方面的覆盖范围:(1) 政策要求;(2) 政策依据;(3) "性 "和 "性别 "概念的处理;(4) 研究设计和分析;以及 (5) 解释和报告数据。所有三门课程都讨论了将男性和女性包括在内的重要性,以便更好地归纳结果,发现潜在的性别差异,并为男性和女性量身定制治疗方案。至于性与性别的纠缠本质、性别的可操作性,以及关注性别而非其他变异来源的潜在弊端,则讨论得很少。值得注意的是,所有这三门课程都明确认可了无效的分析方法,这些方法会导致对差异的假阳性发现产生偏差。我们的分析表明,有必要修订或编写新的培训材料,其中应包含四大主题:性别的精确操作化、过度强调性别作为一个类别的潜在风险、认识到性别和性别的复杂性和纠缠性,以及严格的研究设计和数据分析。最近实施的研究政策要求将女性和男性纳入研究范围,这就迫切需要进行有效的培训,以了解如何在生物医学研究中考虑性别因素,以及在某些情况下考虑性别因素。我们评估了有关这一主题的三种公开在线培训:(1) 加拿大健康研究所提供的《将性别与健康研究结合起来》;(2) 美国国家健康研究所提供的《作为生物变量的性别:美国国立卫生研究院提供的《性别作为生物变量:入门》;(3) 欧洲委员会提供的《生物医学研究中的性别与性别维度》,作为 "在研究活动中实现性别平衡的领先创新措施(LIBRA)"的一部分。我们审查了每门课程的内容,包括:(1) 政策要求;(2) 政策依据;(3) "性 "和 "性别" 概念的处理;(4) 研究设计和分析;以及 (5) 数据解释和报告。三人都讨论了将男性和女性纳入研究的重要性,以便更好地推广研究结果,发现潜在的性别差异,并为男性和女性量身定制治疗方案。至于性与性别之间的相互联系、如何操作性别以及关注性别而非其他变异来源的潜在弊端,讨论得很少。值得注意的是,这三门课程都明确认可了无效的分析方法,这些方法会导致错误的差异结论。我们的分析表明,有必要对培训材料进行修订或编写新的培训材料,其中应涵盖四大主题:性别的精确操作化、关注过度强调性别的潜在风险、考虑性别和性别的复杂性和交织性,以及严格的研究设计和数据分析。来自加拿大、美国和欧盟的三个关于实施性与性别研究政策的大型在线培训涵盖了大部 分相同的内容。这些培训的一个共同主题是,必须将男性和女性包括进来,以便更好地归纳结果、发现潜在的性别差异,并为男性和女性量身定制治疗方案。培训中没有实质性涉及的主题包括:性和性别在多大程度上不可分割地纠缠在一起;使用具体的、可测量的变量对性别进行操作;以及关注性别多于其他变异来源的潜在风险。所有三门课程都明确认可了无效的分析方法,这些方法会导致对差异的假阳性发现产生偏差。需要改进或编写新教材的关键领域包括:性别的精确操作、关注过度强调性别类别的弊端、认识到性别和性是复杂和相互纠缠的实体,以及严格的研究设计和数据分析。
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来源期刊
Biology of Sex Differences
Biology of Sex Differences ENDOCRINOLOGY & METABOLISM-GENETICS & HEREDITY
CiteScore
12.10
自引率
1.30%
发文量
69
审稿时长
14 weeks
期刊介绍: Biology of Sex Differences is a unique scientific journal focusing on sex differences in physiology, behavior, and disease from molecular to phenotypic levels, incorporating both basic and clinical research. The journal aims to enhance understanding of basic principles and facilitate the development of therapeutic and diagnostic tools specific to sex differences. As an open-access journal, it is the official publication of the Organization for the Study of Sex Differences and co-published by the Society for Women's Health Research. Topical areas include, but are not limited to sex differences in: genomics; the microbiome; epigenetics; molecular and cell biology; tissue biology; physiology; interaction of tissue systems, in any system including adipose, behavioral, cardiovascular, immune, muscular, neural, renal, and skeletal; clinical studies bearing on sex differences in disease or response to therapy.
期刊最新文献
Sex differences in the role of AKAP12 in behavioral function of middle-aged mice. Sex differences in the human brain related to visual motion perception. A call for inclusive research, policies, and leadership to close the global women's health gap. Sex differences in contextual fear conditioning and extinction after acute and chronic nicotine treatment. Sex dimorphism and tissue specificity of gene expression changes in aging mice.
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