Rational or altruistic: the impact of social media information exposure on Chinese youth's willingness to donate...

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Social Sciences
• Behavioral Science

Background:

• Non-remunerated blood donation is crucial for medical institutions but faces persistent supply shortages.
• Social media is a primary information source for youth, significantly impacting their behavioral decisions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the correlation between social media exposure to blood donation information and youth willingness to donate blood.

Main Methods:

• Data collected from 455 participants via online questionnaires.
• Structural equation modeling used for validation, with data analyzed for reliability, validity, and demographic differences.
• IBM-SPSS 26.0 and IBM-SPSS-AMOS 26.0 utilized for statistical analysis and model fit.

Main Results:

• Positive correlation found between social media exposure to blood donation information and willingness to donate (β=0.262, p<0.001).
• Altruism (β=0.203, p<0.001) and self-efficacy (β=0.170, p<0.001) also positively correlated with social media exposure.
• Self-efficacy showed a strong positive correlation with willingness to donate (β=0.371, p<0.001).

Conclusions:

• Increased social media exposure to blood donation information enhances youth willingness to donate.
• Information on altruism and self-efficacy via social media improves attitudes toward blood donation, further boosting willingness.