This presentation explores gender identity and why an understanding of gender identity will help designers make effective designs even stronger. We’ll focus on the “gender question”—form fields that ask users to indicate their gender. We’ll determine how to ask this question in a world where gender is more than the male/female binary.

1. Designing for
Gendered Audiences
jessicaivins@gmail.com
@jessicaivins
Jessica Ivins

2. Photo: http://www.kitf.photo/

4. The Gender Question

8. Customer (User)
Subscribers

11. Photo: http://goo.gl/aJzm8w

12. Photo: http://goo.gl/k66Wy6

13. Image: http://goo.gl/YeYyGc

14. Photo: http://goo.gl/dekpRd

18. “Octopus”
“Mold Spore”
“According to the US IRS; I am an alien”
“Badass”
“What?!?!!?”

19. I had no idea what I was doing.

20. What Do Designers
Need to Know About
Gender Identity?

21. Social Media

24. 1.39 billion
Monthly active users in Q4 2014
Source (PDF): http://goo.gl/7c9FQk

27. My Default Facebook Gender Settings

28. My Current Facebook Gender Settings

29. A Transgender Woman Friend on Facebook

30. Another Transgender Woman Friend on Facebook

31. A Transgender Man on Facebook

32. “I started making Facebook friends with people who
didn’t know me as [birth name].”

33. He untagged and removed all of his pre-transition
Facebook photos.

34. “I don’t need folks being curious about me in that kind
of way. I don’t want to be somebody’s sideshow.”

35. Facebook’s Gender Settings

36. Facebook has to provide expansive gender options.
Facebook is a personal place, and gender can be very
personal.

37. Patient Care

38. “Hilarious Grey Areas”

39. Nurse:“When was your last menstrual period?”
Trans woman:“Um, I don’t have menstrual periods.”

41. Healthcare Providers Need to Know
• Your medical history
• How to address you

43. Client Registration
Legal Name* Last First Middle Initial Preferred name:
Legal Sex (please check one)* Female Male
*While Fenway recognizes a number of genders / sexes, many insurance companies and legal entities
unfortunately do not. Please be aware that the name and sex you have listed on your insurance must be
used on documents pertaining to insurance, billing and correspondence. If your preferred name and
pronouns are different from these, please let us know.
Preferred pronouns:
Date of Birth Month Day Year
/ /
Social Security # State ID # or License #
Your answers to the following questions will help us reach you quickly and discreetly with important information.
Home Phone
( )
Ok to leave voicemail?
Yes No -
Cell Phone
( ) -
Ok to leave voicemail?
Yes No
Work Phone
( )
Ok to leave voicemail?
Yes No -
Best number to use:
Home Cell Work
Local Address City State ZIP
Billing Address (if different from above) City State ZIP
Email address:
Occupation Employer/School Name Are you covered under school or employer’s insurance?
Yes No
Emergency Contact’s Name Phone Number Relationship to you
If you are under 19, the Department of Public Health requires that you provide parent/guardian contact information.
Parent/Guardian Name Phone Number Relationship to you
Fenway Health will send certain correspondence, such as bills, to your mailing address. How would you prefer to receive
other types of written correspondence? (check one) Secure Email (MyFenway) Letter Other
The information in your medical record is
confidential and is protected under Massachusetts
General Laws Ch. 111, Sec 70. Your written
consent will be required for release of information
except in the case of a court order.
Medical Record #
(For office use only)

44. “When you’re seeking medical care, that’s huge. It
removes a barrier of care between you and your
doctor.”
- Trans Man, LGBTQ University Coordinator

46. Our form currently looks like this

47. Street Harassment & Safety

48. Yasmine Mustafa
Photo: http://goo.gl/t3Da19

49. Photo: http://goo.gl/kLY19v

50. Shortly after Yasmine returned to Philadelphia, a
woman was beaten and raped a block from Yasmine’s
Philadelphia apartment.

53. Many women aren’t comfortable using these self-
defense tools because they’re designed for combative
situations.

54. Photo: http://goo.gl/QuF3Fr

55. Yasmine contacted me one day via Google
chat.

56. “Hey Jess
Quick question for you
I'm on a call with my partner right now - we want to
add a gender field to our sign-up form”

57. “I remember you saying how to address it - how it
shouldn't just say male/female
Or other
What's the appropriate way to do it?”

58. "It depends.”

59. “It depends on why you're collecting the gender info
and what you're going to to do with it.”

61. “Why do you want to ask for gender information?"

62. $ $$$

64. “Do you think transgender people would be
interested in ROAR’s product?”

65. “The transgender people [I interviewed] have terrible
stories. They’ve been spit on, hit, followed… it’s really
disgusting.”

66. Goals of the Gender Form Field
• Be inclusive
• Find out if transgender or gender non-conforming
people are interested in the product
• Segment data by gender for targeted messaging

68. Yasmine plans to add the form to website very soon.

69. How Do I Know
When Gender
Matters for My
Product?

70. Ask, Does Gender Matter in the
Context of My Product?

71. Gender matters in certain contexts, but it doesn’t
matter in others.

74. “Octopus”
“Mold Spore”
“According to the US IRS; I am an alien”
“Badass”
“What?!?!!?”

80. As designers, we’re building the front lines of the
customer relationship.

81. Jessica Ivins
jessicaivins@gmail.com
@jessicaivins
Thank You!