Illinois Department of Motor Vehicle Customers’ Reasons for (Not) Registering as an Organ Donor

Context: Organ donation campaigns are maximized when promotional messages address salient issues among the intended audience. A diverse sample (N = 1573) was recruited to identify the reasons for (not) registering as an organ donor. Objective: Relying on an established coding scheme, an updated explanation for why individuals register (or not) as organ donors is provided. Moreover, registration trends with respect to race, biological sex, and age is presented. Method: Participants exiting Department of Motor Vehicle offices (N = 12) were surveyed to understand their reasons for registering and not registering as organ donors. Results: Benefits of donation followed by prior registration, rational arguments, and personal experiences represented nearly 90% of the coded responses for registering. Conversely, negative beliefs, decisional uncertainty, perceived disqualification, no reason, general fear/disgust, and lack of opportunity constituted nearly 90% of the coded responses for not registering as an organ donor. Whites and Latinx individuals were more likely to register as organ donors compared to African Americans. Participants in the lower (18-24) and upper (65+) age brackets had the lowest donor registration rates. Conclusion: Promotional efforts should continue to target younger and older audience segments with information about organ donation as well as African Americans. Results from the current study suggest emphasizing the benefits of organ donation as well as overcoming negative beliefs, decisional uncertainty, and perceived disqualifications.