Relative Effectiveness of Altruistic vs. Egoistic Messages in Influencing Non-donors' Intention to Donate Blood in Hong Kong

Abstract

Prior research found that egoistic (vs. altruistic) messages were more effective in influencing the willingness to blood donation in Caucasian British students who were committed blood donors. We investigated what types of messages could effectively influence the blood donation intention of young Chinese students who had never donated blood (non-donors). Participants were asked to read a poster showing either an altruistic or egoistic message that was framed either positively or negatively. Results revealed that Chinese non-donors were more willing to donate blood when they read an altruistic rather than an egoistic message. The negatively-framed egoistic-focused message was the least effective in persuading Chinese non-donors to donate blood. Suggestions for future blood donation promotion campaigns and advertisements were made.