The importance of need‐altruism and kin‐altruism to blood donor behaviour for black and white people

Ferguson, Eamonn; Dawe‐Lane, Erin; Ajayi, Oluwafemi; Osikomaiya, Bodunrin; Mills, Richard; Okubanjo, Abiola

Abstract

Background
Need-altruism (a preference to help people in need) and kin-altruism (a preference to help kin over non-kin) underlie two hypotheses for voluntary blood donation: (i) Need-altruism underlies motivations for volunteer blood donation and (ii) Black people express a stronger preference for kin-altruism, which is a potential barrier to donation. This paper tests these hypotheses and explores how need- and kin-altruism are associated with wider altruistic motivations, barriers, and strategies to encourage donation.

Methods
We assessed need- and kin-altruism, other mechanisms-of-altruism (e.g., reluctant-altruism), barriers, strategies to encourage donation, donor status, and willingness-to-donate across four groups based on ethnicity (Black; White), nationality (British; Nigerian), and country-of-residence: (i) Black-British people (n = 395), and Black-Nigerian people (ii) in the UK (n = 97) or (iii) across the rest of the world (n = 101), and (v) White-British people in the UK (n = 452). We also sampled a Black-Nigerian Expert group (n = 60).

Results
Need-altruism was higher in donors and associated with willingness-to-donate in non-donors. Levels of kin-altruism did not differ between Black and White people, but need-altruism was lower in Black-British people. Kin-altruism was associated with a preference for incentives, and need-altruism with a preference for recognition (e.g., a thank you) as well as an increased willingness-to-donate for Black non-donors. Need-altruism underlies a blood-donor-cooperative-phenotype.

Conclusion
Need-altruism is central to blood donation, in particular recruitment. Lower need-altruism may be a specific barrier for Black-British people. Kin-altruism is important for Black non-donors. The blood donor cooperative phenotype deserves further consideration. Implications for blood services are discussed.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jan 7, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Feb 2, 2024
• Publication Date: 2024-04
• Deposit Date: Jul 9, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Jul 9, 2024
• Journal: Transfusion Medicine
• Print ISSN: 0958-7578
• Electronic ISSN: 1365-3148
• Publisher: Wiley
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 34
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 112-123
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/tme.13032
• Keywords: Hematology
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/30665471
• Publisher URL: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/tme.13032