How anxiety relates to blood donation intention of non-donors: the roles of moral disengagement and mindfulness

ABSTRACT

Blood donation anxiety is a major psychological obstacle for blood donation. However, it remains unclear what the mechanism underlying the relationship between anxiety and blood donation intention is and what factor(s) will buffer the negative effects of anxiety. Based on social cognitive theory, we theorized a model delineating the mechanism with which blood donation anxiety was related to blood donation intention. Data were collected in a three-wave online survey including 425 individuals and was analyzed using hierarchical multiple regression with SPSS 24.0 software. The results indicated that the negative relationship between blood donation anxiety and blood donation intention was mediated by moral disengagement. Meanwhile, mindfulness was found to play a buffering role in the relationship between blood donation anxiety and moral disengagement as well as the indirect relationship between blood donation anxiety and blood donation intention via moral disengagement. Our findings advanced the understanding of the detrimental consequences of blood donation anxiety and demonstrated that while blood donation anxiety came at a high cost, it can be managed.

KEYWORDS:

• Blood donation anxiety
• moral disengagement
• mindfulness
• blood donation intention

Data availability statement

The data described in this article are openly available in the Open Science Framework at http://osf.io/ev8jw.

Open Scholarship

This article has earned the Center for Open Science badges for Open Data and Open Materials through Open Practices Disclosure. The data and materials are openly accessible at http://osf.io/ev8jw.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [71701072,71702015].

Notes on contributors

Liangyong Chen

Liangyong Chen is an Associate Professor of management at School of Business Administration, Huaqiao University. His research interests include moral cognition, and helping behavior.

Yufeng Zhou

Yufeng Zhou is a Professor of management at School of Management Science and Engineering, Chongqing Technology and Business University. His research interests include blood supply chain management and blood donation behavior.

Sai Zhang

Sai Zhang is a Master Degree Candidate at School of Business Administration, Huaqiao University. His research interest is helping behavior.

Mo Xiao

Mo Xiao is a Lecturer at School of Medical Examination and Preventive Medicine, Quanzhou Medical College. Her research interests include public health management and preventive medicine.