The impact of message content and framing in blood donation appeals: An experimental approach to donor recruitment and retention.

This project adopts an interdisciplinary approach to bring new insight on blood donation behavior by drawing on research from marketing, persuasive communication, and psychology. Based on recent evidence showing that different factors drive donation behavior of donors at different stages of their career, it experimentally investigates the relative effectiveness of different blood donation appeals for different donor groups (non-donors, first-time donors, experienced donors, lapsed donors). Specifically, it examines how message framing –that is, different ways of presenting information in a persuasive message– affects donation intentions and behavior. For instance, we compare messages that emphasize avoiding the negative consequences of not donating with those stressing the positive consequences of donating (loss/gain framing), and we test whether highlighting accumulated (i.e., blood collected) or missing contributions (blood still needed) yields better results. In light of the pervasive influence of social media and the growing importance of online word-of-mouth (eWOM), we also explore the impact of these interventions on donors' eWOM intentions, which would be useful for online campaigns. The findings of our studies will advance current understanding of blood donation behavior and will also aid blood collection agencies in calibrating their communication strategies to enhance both recruitment and retention of donors in an easy-to-implement, cost-effective manner.

Keywords:THEORETICAL STUDY, EXPERIMENTAL STUDY

Disciplines:Applied sociology, Policy and administration, Social psychology, Social stratification, Social theory and sociological methods, Sociology of life course, family and health, Other sociology and anthropology