This is problematic for various reasons, I think. I won't clutter this thread by starting a debate on those reasons (unless asked), but I think it's at least important (and relevant to endeavors like this survey) to recognize this distinction.
I see no harm in thread-cluttering, at least here - go for it.
Well, one issue is recruiting/evangelism/outreach/PR/etc. If you want to convince people[1] to both be altruistic and to attempt to optimize their altruism (i.e., the general form of the "effective altruism" concept), it does not do to conflate that general form with your specific form (which involves the specific, idiosyncratic ideas I listed in that comment I linked — a particular form of utilitarianism, a particular set of values including e.g. the welfare of animals, etc.).
Take me, for instance. I find the general concept to be almost obvious. (I'm an altruistic person by temperament, though I remain agnostic on whether certain forms of direct action are in fact the best way to bring about the sort of world toward which such action is ostensibly aimed, as compared with e.g. a more libertarian approach. As for the "effective" part — well, duh.) However, if you were to say: "Hey, Said Achmiz, want to join this-and-such EA group / organization / etc.? Or donate to it? Or otherwise contribute to its success?" I would demur, because in my experience, groups and organizations that self-identify as EA tend to have the aforementioned specific form of EA as their aim — and I have significant disagreements with many components of that specific form.
If you (this hypothetical organization) do not make it clear that you have, as your goal, the general form of effective altruism, and that the specific form is merely one way in which your members express it, then I won't join/contribute/etc.
If you in fact have only the specific, and not the general, form as your goal, then not only will I not join, but I will be quite cross about the fact that you would thereby be appropriating the term "effective altruism" (which would otherwise describe a perfectly reasonable concept with which I agree and a general ethical and practical stance which I support), and using it to describe something which I do not support and about which I have strong reservations, and leaving me (and others like me) without what would otherwise be the best term for a position I do support.
I have another concern, which I will discuss in a sibling comment.
Edit: Whoops, forgot to resolve the footnote:
[1] When I say "convince people", I mean both convincing non-altruists to become altruistic, and convincing ineffective altruists ("I'm a high-powered lawer who spends every weeknight volunteering at my local soup kitchen, while giving no money to charity!") to be more effective in their altruism. I realize these two aims may require different approaches; I think those differences are tangential to my points here.
I'm pleased to announce the first annual survey of effective altruists. This is a short survey of around 40 questions (generally multiple choice), which several collaborators and I have put a great deal of work into and would be very grateful if you took. I'll offer $250 of my own money to one participant.
Take the survey at http://survey.effectivealtruismhub.com/
The survey should yield some interesting results such as EAs' political and religious views, what actions they take, and the causes they favour and donate to. It will also enable useful applications which will be launched immediately afterwards, such as a map of EAs with contact details and a cause-neutral register of planned donations or pledges which can be verified each year. I'll also provide an open platform for followup surveys and other actions people can take. If you'd like to suggest questions, email me or comment.
Anonymised results will be shared publicly and not belong to any individual or organisation. The most robust privacy practices will be followed, with clear opt-ins and opt-outs.
I'd like to thank Jacy Anthis, Ben Landau-Taylor, David Moss and Peter Hurford for their help.
Other surveys' results, and predictions for this one
Other surveys have had intriguing results. For example, Joey Savoie and Xio Kikauka's interviewed 42 often highly active EAs over Skype, and found that they generally had left-leaning parents, donated on average 10%, and were altruistic before becoming EAs. The time they spent on EA activities was correlated with the percentage they donated (0.4), the time their parents spend volunteering (0.3), and the percentage of their friends who were EAs (0.3).
80,000 Hours also released a questionnaire and, while this was mainly focused on their impact, it yielded a list of which careers people plan to pursue: 16% for academia, 9% for both finance and software engineering, and 8% for both medicine and non-profits.
I'd be curious to hear people's predictions as to what the results of this survey will be. You might enjoy reading or sharing them here. For my part, I'd imagine we have few conservatives or even libertarians, are over 70% male, and have directed most of our donations to poverty charities.