A Conversation on the Elevation of Sex and Gender in Publishing Academic Research

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of Research on Women’s Health, “A growing body of health research demonstrates how sex differences can influence a person’s vulnerability to disease, experience of symptoms, and response to treatment.” Accounting for these factors can be critical for ensuring equity in health research; equipping our nation with the capacity to provide personalized, evidence-based medical care; and improving our understanding of the factors affecting women’s health across the lifespan. Yet, a historical and systemic lack of female representation in all stages of research has resulted in gaps in medical knowledge and left women vulnerable.

In 2016, the NIH implemented its Policy on Sex as a Biological Variable (SABV), which outlined NIH’s expectation that SABV will be factored into research designs, analyses, and reporting in vertebrate animal and human studies. While this policy marked an important step forward at the NIH, reporting on SABV is not comprehensively incorporated within the broader research enterprise, including in academic publishing.

During this special web event, the Society for Women’s Health Research brings together representatives from academic journals for a conversation about what they are doing to elevate the importance of sex differences research and how the journals are approaching policies related to reporting on sex and gender in research studies.

This event is free and open to the public.