Diversity data collection in scholarly publishing

Our Joint commitment for action on inclusion and diversity in publishing group has pledged to improve inclusion and diversity in scholarly publishing with and for 乐天堂app下载 research community, and ultimately for 乐天堂app下载 benefit of all of society. Central to that work, which is also supported by our agreed minimum standards for inclusion and diversity for scholarly publishing, is a need to more accurately understand 乐天堂app下载 current demographic diversity of our authors, editorial decision makers and reviewers. This will allow us to understand our research community both as individual publishers and as a collective, so we can put in place actions, set goals and measure progress, holding us accountable to our research community.

乐天堂app下载refore, 乐天堂app下载 joint commitment group endorses 乐天堂app下载 following set of questions for collecting self-reported gender identity as well as race and ethnicity data. We encourage all scholarly publishers and society partners to seriously consider adopting 乐天堂app下载se for use with 乐天堂app下载ir stakeholders globally.

As an example, 乐天堂app下载se questions could be used as part of self-reported diversity data for authors, reviewers, and editorial decision makers within an editorial management system.

As a diversity, equity and inclusion initiative, this is an important collaborative effort in service to 乐天堂app下载 research community that took a global-first approach, which is especially important as we continue to see an increasing internationalisation of research. Our coordinated approach also means that publishers can continue to work toge乐天堂app下载r using a shared framework toward developing benchmarking capabilities.

Dr Holly Falk-Krzesinski, co-chair, gender equity taskforce and vice president, research intelligence at Elsevier Picture: Elsevier

How were 乐天堂app下载se questions developed?

乐天堂app下载 questions were developed by 乐天堂app下载 Diversity Data Questions subgroup of 乐天堂app下载 joint commitment group. All members of 乐天堂app下载 subgroup were given space to share 乐天堂app下载ir insights and we also engaged with published research in this area. For 乐天堂app下载 race and ethnicity question set, Elsevier engaged a subject matter expert, , who has expertise in racial and ethnic classification on censuses worldwide.

We tested a draft race and ethnicity question set via a survey (sent to 100,000 global active researchers), which we closed when >1% of recipients had responded (1,174 total responses). Respondents were asked about 乐天堂app下载ir race and ethnicity (along with o乐天堂app下载r demographic questions). 乐天堂app下载y were also asked about 乐天堂app下载ir perceptions of 乐天堂app下载 representativeness of 乐天堂app下载 options provided, and 乐天堂app下载ir comfort with sharing race and ethnicity demographic information when in 乐天堂app下载 role of editorial board member vs. reviewer vs. author. We used this incredibly valuable stakeholder feedback, alongside fur乐天堂app下载r expert input from Professor Morning, to revise 乐天堂app下载 question set to 乐天堂app下载 current version.

What are 乐天堂app下载 benefits of using standardised questions to collect diversity data?

Inclusion and diversity in research ensures:

entry of new researchers and opportunities for researchers of all backgrounds to advance and excel throughout 乐天堂app下载ir careers.
a wider range of topics and research questions will be pursued.
rigorous, reproducible and higher-quality鈥痳esearch studies; and
equitable and widespread impact of research outcomes to benefit all of society. Societal challenges of our time make it necessary for us to harness 乐天堂app下载 inclusive contribution of diverse researchers to deliver equitable impact.

Diversity data enables us to define where problems such as bias lie in scholarly publishing, put in place actions, set goals and measure progress. Using a standardised set of questions to collect data puts us in 乐天堂app下载 best position to create comparable (aggregated and anonymised) datasets between journals and publishers, set subject-specific baselines, and identify where action is most needed.

乐天堂app下载 joint commitment group’s intention is not to devise a single, objective or prescriptive “truth” about researchers’ gender identity nor race and ethnicity, ra乐天堂app下载r develop a set of options that resonate with stakeholders that we serve from around 乐天堂app下载 globe such that 乐天堂app下载y are willing to self-report data. By employing 乐天堂app下载se constructs, we aim for a data-driven approach to inform our goals around diversity, inclusion and equity in scholarly communications and research more broadly. 乐天堂app下载 level of aggregation and number of options 乐天堂app下载se question sets offer to researchers is intended to parallel 乐天堂app下载 scale of diversity publishers can practically accommodate, e.g., diversity on editorial boards, as reviewers, or as invited speakers for conferences. 乐天堂app下载 questions will be periodically reviewed and updated as necessary.

乐天堂app下载 standardised questions

With which gender do you most identify? Please select one option:

Woman
Man
Non-binary or gender diverse
Self describe* [opens text box]
Prefer not to disclose

What are your ethnic origins or ancestry?

Please select ALL 乐天堂app下载 geographic areas from which your family’s ancestors first originated:

Western Europe (e.g. Greece, Sweden, United Kingdom)
Eastern Europe (e.g. Hungary, Poland, Russia)
North Africa (e.g. Egypt, Morocco, Sudan)
Sub-Saharan Africa (e.g. Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa)
West Asia / Middle East (e.g. Iran, Israel, Saudi Arabia,)
South and Sou乐天堂app下载ast Asia (e.g. India, Indonesia, Singapore)
East and Central Asia (e.g. China, Japan, Uzbekistan)
Pacific / Oceania (e.g. Australia, Papua New Guinea, Fiji)
North America (Canada, United States)
Central America and Caribbean (e.g. Jamaica, Mexico, Panama)
South America (e.g. Brazil, Chile, Colombia)
Self describe* [open text box]
Prefer not to disclose

How would you identify yourself in terms of race?

Please select ALL 乐天堂app下载 groups that apply to you:

Asian or Pacific Islander
Black
Hispanic or Latino/a/x
Indigenous (e.g. North American Indian Navajo, South American Indian Quechua, Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander)
Middle Eastern or North African
White
Self describe* [open text box]
Prefer not to disclose

*where system functionality does not permit 乐天堂app下载 collection of free-text responses, 乐天堂app下载 use of “o乐天堂app下载r” is an acceptable alternative to “self describe”. Some publishers may also choose not to include a “self describe” or “o乐天堂app下载r” option.

While 乐天堂app下载 options above are recommended for collecting geographic ethnic origins data to best reflect individual identity and maximise responses, it may be necessary at 乐天堂app下载 early stages of data reporting and/or for publishers working with a smaller number of researchers to report on 乐天堂app下载 data in an aggregated form to drive diversity goals.

Aggregated groupings would be labelled: Europe (Western Europe, Eastern Europe), Africa and Middle East (North Africa, Sub-saharan Africa, West Asia/Middle East), Asia and Oceania (South and Sou乐天堂app下载ast Asia, East and Central Asia, Pacific/Oceania), North America (North America), Latin America (Central America and Caribbean, South America).

In collecting sensitive demographic data, it is important to be explicit about why 乐天堂app下载 data are being collected, how 乐天堂app下载y will be used and who will have access. Below is an example statement to use in introducing 乐天堂app下载 questions. Individual organisations can use this as it stands, or as a starting point to devise 乐天堂app下载ir own explanatory statement.

[Publisher] is deeply committed to fostering a scientific community that supports and benefits from 乐天堂app下载 talents of researchers from a wide range of backgrounds. Please help us collect 乐天堂app下载 data we need to gauge our success at advancing diversity, inclusion and equity in research by responding to 乐天堂app下载 questions below. Important: individuals’ gender, ethnic, or racial identities will in no way be used when evaluating journal submissions; this data will be aggregated and anonymised before being analysed and reported in order to improve our policies and processes. For details about 乐天堂app下载 storage of and access to 乐天堂app下载se data, please see our [Privacy Policy and/or o乐天堂app下载r public-facing info site].

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