Investigating online recognition for blood donor retention: an experiential donor value approach

• Recognising that charitable behaviour can be motivated by public recognition and emotional satisfaction, not-for-profit organisations have developed strategies that leverage self-interest over altruism by facilitating individuals to donate conspicuously. Initially developed as novel marketing programmes to increase donation income, such conspicuous tokens of recognition are being recognised as important value propositions to nurture donor relationships. Despite this, there is little empirical evidence that identifies when donations can be increased through conspicuous recognition. Furthermore, social media's growing popularity for self-expression, as well as the increasing use of technology in donor relationship management strategies, makes an examination of virtual conspicuous tokens of recognition in relation to what value donors seek particularly insightful. Therefore, this research examined the impact of experiential donor value and virtual conspicuous tokens of recognition on blood donor intentions. Using online survey data from 186 Australian blood donors, results show that in fact emotional value is a stronger predictor of intentions to donate blood than altruistic value, whereas social value is the strongest predictor of intentions if provided with recognition. Clear linkages between dimensions of donor value (altruistic, emotional and social) and conspicuous donation behaviour (CDB) were identified. The findings provide valuable insights into the use of conspicuous donation tokens of recognition on social media and contribute to our understanding into the under-researched areas of donor value and CDB.

Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Model explaining the predisposition to donate blood from the social marketing perspective

• The purpose of this research is to develop a model of the explanatory factors that determine the predisposition to donate blood in order to improve the effectiveness of donor recruitment and retention programs. A personal survey was conducted on a sample of 303 potential donors between 18 and 60 years old and from both sexes, who are resident in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (Spain) and have either never donated blood or not donated in the last 3 years. The findings lead us to say that the predisposition to donate blood is positively influenced by the information that the potential donor has about the requirements to become a donor, and by the motivations to donate blood. It is negatively influenced by the inhibiting factor of fear of the extraction procedure and its after‐effects. However, prior experience as a donor and links with reference groups who are donors do not have any direct influence on the predisposition. These findings suggest that it is necessary (1) to design communication campaigns in which information and education are the goals, and which aim to make donation a habit; (2) to clarify to society the need for blood donation and to describe the process of donation in order to eliminate those inhibitors linked to fear and the perception of risks; (3) to design advertising campaigns focused on rational messages since information exercises a greater influence on the predisposition to donate than motivations linked to altruism; (4) to recommend that no great efforts be made to recapture previous donors, since experience is not a direct antecedent of the predisposition to donate but an indirect antecedent via information and (5) to stimulate word‐of‐mouth among reference groups using member‐get‐member programs whereby current donors bring new donors to the system.

Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The giving standard: conditional cooperation in the case of charitable giving

• In this study, we make a first attempt to investigate the mechanisms of conditional cooperation in giving outside experiments, using retrospective survey data on charitable giving (the Giving the Netherlands Panel Study 2005 (GINPS05, 2005 ; N = 1474)). Our results show that in the case of door‐to‐door donations, social information affects perceived social norms for giving and, through this perception, influences the level of actual donations. The effect of social information on actual door‐to‐door donations is fully mediated by perceived social norms for giving. Furthermore, we found empirical support for the giving standard hypothesis. People in different income categories donate roughly the same amounts in separate instances (they use the same social information), and as a result people in lower income households donate a higher percentage of their income to charitable organizations.

Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Does the intention to purchase cause-related products compared to charity donations indicate higher morality?

The growing competition among charity organizations provides individuals with a wide selection of ways how to support specific social causes. Donations to charity and purchase of cause-related products are two forms of pro-social behaviors that receive the most attention from researchers and practitioners. Though their aim (to help others) and many characteristics of campaigns are similar, usually these behaviors and factors affecting them are studied separately, using different theoretical backgrounds. This paper aims to investigate these two behaviors together on the basis of identity theory and analyze how moral identity and moral emotions impact them. Based on a survey of 571 respondents, SEM analysis disclosed the positive impact of the moral identity dimension internalization on the intention to purchase cause-related products (a private prosocial act), whereas the impact of the symbolization dimension on the intention to donate (a public prosocial act) was not revealed. The results also show that purchase intentions of a cause-related product are influenced by empathy, while donation intentions are influenced by guilt. The results indicate that although both behaviors can be explained using the same theoretical background (identity theory), the factors triggering them vary. Additionally, this study proposes several implications for non-profit organizations and cause-related marketing campaigns on how to make charity advertisements more appealing and increase consumers' direct and indirect donations.     

Exploring the role of charitable ethnocentrism and donation motives in international giving: Empirical evidence from Germany

The purpose of this study is to contribute to a better understanding of the drivers of international giving intention by examining the joint effect of ethnocentrism and donation motives. More specifically, this study analyzes the direct effect of charitable ethnocentrism on the intention to give to international causes. Additionally, the study investigates the moderating effect of charitable ethnocentrism on the relationships between donation motives and the intention to donate to international causes. This study's findings indicate that ethnocentric donors are less willing to donate to international causes. Moreover, the study results show that the effects of egoistic and tax-saving donation motives vary across different levels of charitable ethnocentrism: charitable ethnocentrism enhances the effect of the egoism motive on international donation intention, whereas the effect of the tax-saving motive on international giving intention is mitigated. Based on the empirical findings, this study discusses implications for theory and practice along with study limitations and avenues for future research.     

"捐还是不捐?" ——如何提高个体慈善捐助行为

慈善捐助行为指个体通过捐赠金钱、时间或物资等方式帮助有需要的群体或慈善组织。个人的慈善捐助行为能够促进社会资源再分配,提高社会整体福祉。因此,如何科学地对慈善活动进行宣传、吸引更多个体参与捐助,对于营销学者而言是一个十分重要的话题。一次捐助包括捐助者、捐助资源、受助者以及社会和文化四个方面,这四个方面的因素既可以单独影响消费者的慈善捐助行为,又可以相互影响对慈善捐助行为产生交互作用。由此可见,个体的慈善捐助行为是十分复杂的,将通过对这四方面因素的梳理以提高我国公益组织对个体捐助行为的理解,进而采取有效的宣传以募集更多的捐助。     

Determinants of donation amount in nonprofit membership associations

Nonprofit organizations depend heavily on charitable giving. Using survey data of 2,517 nonprofit professional association members, this study examines the factors influencing the donation amounts given to those organizations. The results of a hierarchical regression analysis suggest that gender, length of membership, and individuals' intrinsic motivation are predictors of their decisions about how much to donate. However, level of satisfaction and extrinsic motivation do not predict members' extent of generosity. This study offers empirical evidence of the positive effects of nonprofit organizations' building mutual relationships with their members regarding donation amounts. The findings contribute to further understanding of the factors that drive donation amount.     

External motivators for donation of money and/or goods

This research sought to identify and group the external motivators that encourage individuals in emerging countries to donate money and/or goods. Therefore, 46 external variables were identified in the literature that motivate an individual to donate. They were grouped by similarity into five external donation motivating factors (environmental and/or political motivation, the cause or circumstances of the donation, the organisation's characteristics, influence from third parties, and personal rewards) that resulted in a proposed donation model. This model was supported by semi‐structured interviews with 22 individuals who donate money and/or goods frequently. The results supported the existence of the five proposed factors in the model and three new variables were identified: a “lack of government support,” “service for the donor” and “donation tuition with low value.”     

“I'll donate money today and time tomorrow”: The moderating role of attitude toward nonprofit organizations on donation intention

Across two experiments, this study provides support for the concept that money and time are marked by psychologically distinct constructs. As temporal distance increases, preferences are more likely to be based on the value associated with a high‐level construal of options than the value associated with a low‐level construal of options. That is, as potential contributors are asked to donate later, high‐level featured resources (i.e., time) take focal precedent over low‐level ones (i.e., money) in judging preference for donation methods. This study also found that the match effect between temporal distance and construal level holds only when the level of attitude toward nonprofit organization (NPO) is relatively favorable. However, donation intention is enhanced under mismatch conditions when the level of attitude is less favorable. That is, when potential contributors hold relatively less favorable attitudes toward the NPO, those who are requested to make an expediting decision of donation are more likely to have higher intention to donate with a high‐level construal resource. This study attributed the finding to the shift of people's focal resource through their level of attitude toward the NPO.     

Exploring psychological determinants of sharing donor recognition on social networking sites.

Not‐for‐profit organizations (NFPs) are increasingly turning to online platforms to engage with donors. However, sharing rates of donation activity to social networking sites (SNSs) are low. Existing research has predominantly taken an aggregated approach to understanding SNS sharing behavior, therefore this study took a context‐specific approach and explored; why do donors choose to share (or not share) donor recognition on social networking sites? A qualitative research design was employed using interviews with 20 Australian donors. Social, organizational and individual factors were identified as influential to donors' decisions to share online donor recognition. This study extends understanding around online self‐disclosure and firm‐generated electronic word‐of‐mouth and provides strategic direction for NFPs to encourage greater donation sharing behavior on SNSs.     

An investigation into blood donation intentions among non‐donors

• In broad terms, the donation of blood along with organ and bone marrow donation is considered to be the ultimate act of humanity involving a voluntary and anonymous exchange between two people of a life saving commodity. Yet motivating people to donate blood is a significantly difficult task. The aim of this paper is to use the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) to examine non‐donors on the basis of their likely intention to donate blood in the future and to identify barriers on these more favourable non‐donors. This exploratory research finds that subjective norm, perceived behavioural control and time related barriers are related to intent to donate by current non‐donors. Differences between higher and lower intention donors are also explored.

Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Social norms,costly punishment and the evolution of cooperation

Within a co-evolutionary framework of reputations, strategies and social norms, we study the role of punishment in the promotion of cooperation. Norms differ according to whether they allow or do not allow the punishment action to be a part of the strategies, and, in the case of the former, they further differ in terms of whether they encourage or do not encourage the punishment action. In such a framework, depending on the applied social norm, players are first given different reputations based on their employed strategies. Players then update their strategies accordingly after they observe the payoff differences among different strategies. Finally, over a longer horizon, the evolution of the social norms may be driven by the average payoffs of all members of the society. The strategy dynamics are articulated under different social norms. It is found that costly punishment does contribute to the evolution toward cooperation. Not only does the attraction basin of the cooperative evolutionary stable state become larger, but the speed of convergence to the CESS also becomes faster. These two properties are further enhanced if the punishment action is encouraged by the social norm.     

Use of donor‐specified donation splitting: a technique to understand the impact of financial management on donor trust

• Two experiments investigated donors' willingness to split their donation into a proportion that the charity could use for administration costs and a portion that could be used to deliver the charity's services. Experiment 1 found that participants in the condition given the opportunity to split their donation into an amount for administration costs and an amount for service delivery gave a significantly smaller proportion of their overall donation to administration costs, when compared with participants in another condition who were simply asked what proportion of their donation they would be happy for the organization to use for administration costs. Experiment 2 manipulated the amount of information participants (donors) received about the breakdown of a charity's administration costs but found no significant change in the amount donated to administration. Both experiments show that donors were willing to donate approximately 15% of their donation directly to charity administration costs. Results are discussed in terms of understanding how a charity's financial management might be influencing donor's trust in the charity and providing charities with a degree of certainty in the proportion of donations they can spend on administration costs.

Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Toward a Dynamic Theory of Intermediate Conformity

The issue of conformity to social norms has been a major focus of research. Yet, intermediate conformity, which refers to actors who are neither total conformers nor non‐conformers, has received scant attention even though the behaviour is likely widespread. This paper aims to extend the literature on conformity to social norms by laying the foundations for a tractable theory of intermediate conformity. Here, a set of key factors hypothesized to lead actors into intermediate conformity is identified and formal arguments about the dynamic‐legitimacy and reputational effects of their intermediate conformity moves are formulated. Important building blocks include a taxonomy of norms that allows for norm heterogeneity and a recognition that conformity may change over time. The developed framework provides a new conceptual lever for better understanding how intermediate conformers cope over time with social norms of different types and importance.     

Online donation behavior in nonprofit organizations: The role of congruent processing styles

With the advent of technology, donors are increasingly donating via online channels. This shift deems it necessary for nonprofit organizations to better understand the online donor behavior. As such, the purpose of this paper is twofold. First, we investigate if nonprofit organizations are perceived differently in terms of their cognitive and affective natures. Then, we examine how different consumer processing styles, i.e. cognitive and affective, interact with consumer perceptions of nonprofit cognitive/affective orientations in influencing their donation intentions. Our results indicate that consumers with a high need for cognition are more willing to donate to predominantly cognitive nonprofit organizations, while those with high need for emotion are more willing to donate to predominantly affective nonprofit organizations. Based on these results, we suggest that nonprofit organizations can garner more donations if they request funds from donors whose processing styles are congruent with the organization. Additional recommendations for future research are provided.     

Reinventing the rattling tin: How UK charities use Facebook in fundraising

Using a multicase study approach, this paper explores how the three biggest UK cancer charities by donations use Facebook in their fundraising campaigns, in order to facilitate understanding of the dynamics of philanthropic asking in a social networking site‐mediated environment. The analysis reveals that Facebook is primarily used to strengthen relationships with supporters, mainly via humanising the brand, fostering obligations, and encouraging social interaction. The mobilization of these relationships in fundraising is facilitated by persuasive strategies, including public recognition, authority, and the fostering of a sense of efficacy among fans, and the most common outcome of this mobilization is public endorsement of charities' fundraising campaigns via sharing. At a time when harsh public spending cuts have left gaps in charity funding that need to be filled by philanthropy, this study aims to make a practical contribution to knowledge by examining what works and how in Facebook fundraising.     

The social dilemma of big data: Donating personal data to promote social welfare

When using digital devices and services, individuals provide their personal data to organizations in exchange for gains in various domains of life. Organizations use these data to run technologies such as smart assistants, augmented reality, and robotics. Most often, these organizations seek to make a profit. Individuals can, however, also provide personal data to public databases that enable nonprofit organizations to promote social welfare if sufficient data are contributed. Regulators have therefore called for efficient ways to help the public collectively benefit from its own data. By implementing an online experiment among 1696 US citizens, we find that individuals would donate their data even when at risk of getting leaked. The willingness to provide personal data depends on the perceived risk level of a data leak but not on a realistic impact of the data on social welfare. Individuals are less willing to donate their data to the private industry than to academia or the government. Finally, individuals are not sensitive to whether the data are processed by a human-supervised or a self-learning smart assistant.     

Attracting potential blood donors: The role of personality and social marketing

Globally, society has been facing several and growing health problems, which increased the importance of efforts towards social change. In this context, using social marketing to create and implement programs that foster behavioural change has increased in the public health community. One of the health problems that society has been facing is the unceasing need for blood products, so the subject of blood donation became an important research topic in the area of social marketing, as social marketing strategies can contribute to solving this problem. It is essential to understand the factors that motivate individuals to donate blood, to enhance the recruitment and retention of blood donors. Our study aims at evaluating the key personality factors that influence blood donation behaviour to reach a higher understanding of what concerns this global issue. The method used to analyse the data is ANOVA. We conclude that the Personality of potential donors is significantly different from the non-donors' regarding Openness to Experience and Agreeableness. These results suggest that potential donors might perceive blood donation, as well as the associated barriers, differently from non-donors. Based on our findings, we suggest some perspectives for future research in this area.     

Psychographic clustering of blood donors in Egypt using Kohonen's self‐organizing maps

• Blood donation has historically been marketed as one of the purest examples of altruistic or pro‐social behavior. The recruitment of blood donors is, however, a challenge as transfusion centers worldwide strive to attract and retain blood donors. This study uses self‐organizing maps (SOM) to examine the effect of various psychographic and cognitive factors on blood donation in Egypt. SOM is a machine learning method that can be used to explore patterns in large and complex datasets for linear and nonlinear patterns. The results show that major variables affecting blood donation are related to altruistic values, perceived risks of blood donation, blood donation knowledge, attitudes toward blood donation, and intention to donate blood. The study also shows that SOM models are capable of improving clustering quality while extracting valuable information from multidimensional data.

Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Influence of knowledge,bodily integrity,religion and media on attitudes toward organ donation on the university campus

This study examines the influence of knowledge, bodily integrity, religion, and media on attitudes toward organ donation on University campus. A total of 724 participants completed surveys for this study a multivariate regression model was used to test the effects of these factors on participants' attitudes toward organ donation. The variable sets considered are the knowledge of organ donation, bodily integrity, religion, media, and attitudes toward organ donation. The results suggest that the effect of knowledge, bodily integrity, religion, and media influences the intention to donate organs. There is a positive relationship between the knowledge levels of participants on the University campus and belief levels and organ donation attitudes, and the fear of disintegration of their bodies is still an obstacle to organ donation. The paper indicates how it is possible to distinguish different components of organ donation behavior and to present the conclusions regarding the context on a University campus. The findings extend the exchanges with respect to the part of beliefs in the intentions of organ donation and arrangement of attitudes and have a significant incentive in making open approaches that further promote organ donation.