Sex

{
  "id": "MLC-T-ECS-001780",
  "term": "Sex",
  "field": "Economic statistics",
  "definition": "For the purpose of Census Bureau surveys and the decennial census, sex refers to a person's biological sex.\n\nDistinction between the concepts of gender and sex:In general discussions, the concept of gender is often confused with the concept of sex, and the terms are used interchangeably. The meanings of these two concepts are not the same: sex is based on the biological attributes of men and women (chromosomes, anatomy, hormones), while gender is a social construction whereby a society or culture assigns certain tendencies or behaviors the labels of masculine or feminine. These assignments may differ across cultures and among people within a culture, and even across time. Gender may or may not correspond directly to sex--depending on the society or culture or period. That means, for example, that people may associate themselves with femininity (as defined by their culture) while being biologically male. At the Census Bureau, the sex question wording very specifically intends to capture a person's biological sex and not gender. Ambiguity of these two concepts interferes with accurately and consistently measuring what we intend to measure--the sex composition of the population.",
  "see_also": [
    "Gender"
  ],
  "references": [
    "U.S. Census Bureau Glossary"
  ],
  "url": "https://mlchart.com/terminology/economic-statistics/sex/"
}