Counting Ourselves is a study specifically designed to understand the health and well-being of trans and non-binary people in Aotearoa New Zealand. One thing that makes this survey different from larger, general population surveys is that it’s a community-based study. But what exactly does that mean, and why does it matter? Let’s break it down.
What is a community-based study?
As a community-based study, the goal of Counting Ourselves is to reach out to trans and non-binary people across Aotearoa New Zealand to better understand their health and well-being. This meant that we could ask questions specific to our communities and gather rich insights into experiences such as gender-affirming healthcare, identity documents, discrimination for being trans or non-binary and the positive aspects of their lives and resilience.
It’s important to note, however, that participants in community-based studies like Counting Ourselves, don’t always fully represent the general population of trans or non-binary people. For example, community samples often include more people who are NZ European (Pākehā) and have higher levels of education. This happens because some groups might be more connected with certain networks and are more likely to hear about and participate in these types of studies.
How Counting Ourselves reached a diverse group
The Counting Ourselves team worked hard to reach a wide range of trans and non-binary participants across Aotearoa. Our outreach extended through partnerships with trans, rainbow, takatāpui, and MVPFAFF+ organisations, who helped promote the survey, including in smaller cities. We connected with rural and older trans people, people who transitioned long ago, and trans or non-binary disabled community members, and created specific social media posts for their networks, including a New Zealand Sign Language video. These steps and social media posts in te reo Māori, Pacific, and Asian languages helped to extend the survey’s reach to smaller cities, rural areas, and groups often underrepresented in studies. We focused our outreach efforts on making our study more representative of the diversity within Aotearoa’s trans and non-binary communities, bringing our results closer to what we might see in a general population survey.
Why both community and general population studies are needed
General population surveys, such as the New Zealand Health Survey and the Youth 2000 surveys, are designed to capture a representative cross-section of the entire population, including those who may be less connected to community networks. These types of surveys, however, often don’t have a large enough number of trans and non-binary participants to provide detailed insights. Community surveys can fill this gap by gathering comprehensive and in-depth data from within trans or non-binary communities. With a larger participant base, community surveys often allow us to do more complex statistical analyses, revealing important associations between experiences, such as discrimination and health outcomes. They also enable researchers to explore insights into groups within our communities—such as takatāpui, MVPFAFF+, Māori, Pasifika, and other trans and non-binary people of colour—who may have unique experiences and needs.
Together, community-based studies and general population studies can offer a fuller picture of trans and non-binary health in Aotearoa New Zealand, informing our efforts to build a more inclusive healthcare system and a fairer, more equitable society. Together, community-based studies and general population surveys provide a fuller picture of trans and non-binary health in Aotearoa New Zealand, guiding efforts toward a more inclusive healthcare system and a fairer, more equitable society. For those interested in participating in community surveys, we hope to conduct a future wave of the Counting Ourselves survey.
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