The 15th annual Huber Population Lecture will feature Dr. Christopher (Kitt) Carpenter, Vanderbilt University, E. Bronson Ingram Chair and Professor of Economics
The talk will take place from 3:00-4:30, with reception to follow.
Title of Talk: "Understanding Transgender and Gender Minority Populations: Challenges, Opportunities, and New Evidence on Family Structure"
Abstract: This talk will review the current landscape of population-based approaches for understanding transgender and gender minority populations with a focus on how scholars identify these individuals in large datasets. It will also present new evidence on gender minority status and family outcomes in the United States using the Census Bureau’s 2020-2022 Household Pulse Survey and the 2014-2021 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS). Household Pulse is the only nationally representative dataset in the US that includes two direct questions about sex assigned at birth and current gender to identify gender minority status, resulting in over 15,000 individuals who are not cisgender. BRFSS data include direct questions about transgender status in topical modules administered to the majority of US states. These datasets allow investigation into marital status, household composition, childrearing, and the intersections among gender minority status and other demographics such as sex at birth, sexual orientation, age, and race/ethnicity. New directions for research on gender minority populations will also be discussed.
Christopher (‘Kitt’) Carpenter is the E. Bronson Ingram University Distinguished Professor at Vanderbilt University with tenure in both Economics and Health Policy. He also holds courtesy appointments in Law; Education; Medicine, Health, and Society; and Gender & Sexuality Studies. Carpenter is Founder and Director of the Vanderbilt LGBTQ+ Policy Lab, Co-founder and Co-Chair of the American Economic Association’s Committee on the Status of LGBTQ+ Individuals in the Economics Profession, President of the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management, Director of the Health Economics Program at the National Bureau of Economic Research, and an Elected Member of the National Academy of Medicine. Carpenter earned a BA from Albion College and a PhD from UC Berkeley. He studies the causes and consequences of risky and preventive health behaviors, especially the role of public health policies, as well as LGBT issues in economics and demography. His research has been continuously supported by the National Institute of Health, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and the American Cancer Society.
Talk also available on zoom.
