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Life on the Margins: Survey Results on the Experiences of LGBTI People in Southeastern Europe 2017

Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Slovenia, 2017
Central
World Bank
Created on April 27, 2021 Last modified April 27, 2021 Page views 7737 Download 25040 Documentation in PDF Metadata DDI/XML JSON

Identification

Survey ID Number
ECA_2017_ELPSE_v01_M
Title
Life on the Margins: Survey Results on the Experiences of LGBTI People in Southeastern Europe 2017
Country/Economy
Name Country code
Albania ALB
Bosnia and Herzegovina BIH
Croatia HRV
Kosovo KSV
Montenegro MNE
Slovenia SVN
Study type
Other Household Survey [hh/oth]
Kind of Data
Sample survey data [ssd]

Scope

Notes
This survey was conducted to better understand the lives of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) people in seven countries in Southeastern Europe: five in the Western Balkans - Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, FYR Macedonia, and Montenegro; as well as two European Union (EU) member states, Croatia and Slovenia. The research adopted and adapted a 2012 survey of LGBT people carried out by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) in 27 EU countries plus Croatia (which joined the EU in 2013) (the “FRA survey”). The FRA survey set a benchmark for understanding the lives of LGBT people. In addition to the FRA survey, this current survey also gathered specific information on the lives of intersex people.

The collective experiences of LGBTI people in the countries surveyed paint a distressing picture of the harmful effects of discrimination, harassment, exclusion, and violence. The findings confirm that generally, most LGBTI people hide their identities for fear of discrimination or worse and have legitimate concerns about their safety, especially in public spaces, but also in their own homes. The survey indicates that the majority of LGBTI people are not involved in LGBTI movements and have limited knowledge of their rights and how to exercise them. Many are on the receiving end of offensive jokes, insults, abusive language, and expressions of hatred. Discrimination in the workplace and in the healthcare and education systems remains common, and incidents of exclusion and harassment are widespread.

This is the largest survey of LGBTI people ever carried out in Southeastern Europe. A total of 2,296 people responded. In a context of widespread stigma, the survey was conducted online to allow the widest number of people to participate privately and confidentially. Since respondents had to “opt in” to the survey, the data is from self-selected participants and is therefore not a random sample of LGBTI people in the participating countries. It is difficult to obtain a representative sample of LGBTI people, so online surveys are considered the most appropriate method for surveying sexual and gender minorities. The survey sampling method and recruitment is consistent with previous studies of these populations, including the FRA survey. The sample was weighted to population targets derived from a meta-analysis, and each country sample was weighted proportionately to the size of its adults’ population.

Coverage

Geographic Coverage
Southestern Europe: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, FYR Macedonia, and Montenegro; as well as two European Union (EU) member states, Croatia and Slovenia.

Producers and sponsors

Primary investigators
Name
World Bank
Producers
Name Role
IPSOS Strategic Marketing Data collection
ERA – LGBTI Equal Rights Association for the Western Balkans and Turkey Civil Society partner
Funding Agency/Sponsor
Name Abbreviation Role
Nordic Trust Fund NTF Funder

Sampling

Sampling Procedure
The survey was conducted with a self-selected, nonprobability sample. LGBTI people are a hard-to-reach population with at least two characteristics that make standard random sampling procedures inappropriate: the absence of a sampling frame (i.e., the characteristics of the total population are unknown) and the strong need for privacy protection. As a result, it cannot be said that respondents to the survey represent the LGBTI population as a whole. To address this concern, at least in part, the sample was weighted based on a study of the literature. The structure of LGBTI respondents by country is provided in the survey report.
Weighting
Representative surveys of LGBTI populations are difficult to conduct due to the small percentage of adults who identify as LGBTI. Weighting can adjust sample characteristics to population targets to correct over- and/or under-sampled groups. The challenge for populations not measured in administrative surveys (e.g., a census) or large-N studies is that these targets are unknown.
Additional details on weighting are provided in Annex 1 of the survey report.

Data Collection

Dates of Data Collection
Start End
2017-02-01 2017-04-26
Data Collection Mode
Computer Assisted Personal Interview [capi]
Supervision
At the World Bank, the team was led by Georgia Harley and Nicholas Menzies (Task Team Leaders), with the unwavering support of Dominik Kohler (Project Coordinator).
Data Collection Notes
Data collection method. Data collection was made possible by programming the questionnaire in all local languages using IPSOS’s own data entry program. All the logical checks in the questionnaire were implemented. The data collection program guaranteed full protection of respondents’ privacy and confidentiality, facilitating their participation in the survey.

The CAWI (Computer Assisted Web Interviewing) method of data collection was used. CAWI makes it possible to conduct interviews through a website or via e-mail to collect information on the characteristics and attitudes of respondents. The questionnaire appears in the browser as a webpage. Responses are sent directly to a server, so the results of the research and data collection can be continuously monitored.

The survey was available in all the main web browsers, including Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Chrome, Safari, and Opera, and was adjusted for use on different types of devices—desktop computers, personal computers/laptops, tablets, and smartphones.
Data Collectors
Name
IPSOS Strategic Marketing

Data Processing

Other Processing
In order to minimize disclosure risk and sensitive questions, the public-use data file for the FRA has been altered from the original dataset. The following steps were taken to minimize disclosure risk and restrict access to sensitive questions:
1 - Discretize age: variable A1.
2 - Removed: A3_B (intersex)
3 - Removed: A3_A (gender identity for transgender people)
4 - Removed any variables that contain write-in responses
5 - Removed: TR1 - TR9 (Transgender section)
6 - Removed: IN1 - IN9L (Intersex section)
7 - Removed C6_A
8 - Removed Section F: Physical/Sexual Violence and Harassment
9 - Removed: G3 (transgender openness)
10 - Removed: G3_1 (intersex openness)
11 - H7: Recode to Urban / Suburban / Rural (1/3/5 = Urban; 2/4 =Suburban; 6/7 = Rural)
14 - Removed: H8
15 - Removed: H9_1 - H9_3
16 - H16 - Recoded such that "other minority" or a "minority with a disability" are collapsed to the same category.
17 - HA1 - Recoded and collapsed the "Yes" responses
18 - HA4 - Recoded and collapsed the "Yes" responses
19 - HA5 - Recoded and collapsed the "Yes" responses
20 - HA6 - Recoded and collapsed the "Yes" responses
21 - Removed: I1
22 - Removed: J1 and J2
All individuals seeking to have access to the FRA should take the steps necessary to gain access to the restricted data file.

Access policy

Access authority
Name URL
World Bank Microdata Library microdata.worldbank.org
Contacts
Name Affiliation Email
Dominik Koehler Consultant dkohler@worldbank.org
Confidentiality
Before being granted access to the dataset, all users have to formally agree: 1. To make no copies of any files or portions of files to which s/he is granted access except those authorized by the data depositor. 2. Not to use any technique in an attempt to learn the identity of any person, establishment, or sampling unit not identified on public use data files. 3. To hold in strictest confidence the identification of any establishment or individual that may be inadvertently revealed in any documents or discussion, or analysis. Such inadvertent identification revealed in her/his analysis will be immediately brought to the attention of the data depositor.
Access conditions
- Public use files, accessible to all
Citation requirements
Citation requirement is the way that the dataset should be referenced when cited in any publication. Every dataset should have a citation requirement. This will guarantee that the data producer gets proper credit, and that analytical results can be linked to the proper version of the dataset. The Access Policy should explicitly mention the obligation to comply with the citation requirement. The citation should include at least the primary investigator, the name and abbreviation of the dataset, the reference year, and the version number. Include also a website where the data or information on the data is made available by the official data depositor.

Example:

Use of the dataset must be acknowledged using a citation which would include:
- the Identification of the Primary Investigator
- the title of the survey (including country, acronym and year of implementation)
- the survey reference number
- the source and date of download

Example:
World Bank. Life on the Margins: Survey Results on the Experiences of LGBTI People in Southeastern Europe. Ref. ECA_2017_ELPSE_v01_M.Downloaded from [url] on [date].

Metadata production

DDI Document ID
DDI_ECA_2017_ELPSE_v02_M_WB
Producers
Name Abbreviation Affiliation Role
Development Economics Data Group DECDG The World Bank Documentation of the DDI
Date of Metadata Production
2018-09-27
DDI Document version
DDI Document - Version 02 - (04/27/21)
This version is identical to DDI_ECA_2017_ELPSE_v01_M_WB but country field has been updated to capture all the countries covered by survey.

Version 01 (September 2018)

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