BLOOD DONATION BEHAVIOR OF HISPANICS IN THE LOWER RIO-GRANDE VALLEY

This study was designed to determine the blood donation behavior and a ttitudes of Hispanic residents of the Lower Rio Grande Valley for the purpose of developing promotional and educational approaches to enhanc e levels of donor participation. Personal interviews of 545 respondent s were conducted in English and Spanish using quota sampling and stand ard intercept techniques at lower- and middle-income supermarkets in f ive cities during a payday weekend. A number of research hypotheses we re established to test for demographic, behavioral, and attitudinal di fferences that were observed in donors and nondonors using chi-square analysis and multiple discriminant analysis. After analyzing the diffe rence between Hispanics and non-Hispanics for blood donation rates, al l non-Hispanics were eliminated from analysis, and the remaining 419 H ispanics were evaluated on the basis of their donor behavior. Donation among Hispanics was most likely to be by better-educated, English-spe aking, higher-job-status individuals who had participated in a blood d onation drive. Donors tend to have parent(s) who were donors, and they were also more likely to carry an organ donor card. Donors were found to vary in their behaviors as well as their attitudes and beliefs. Pe rceptions of a lack of safety in donating, the risk of contracting acq uired immune deficiency syndrome, and the financial motivation of dono rs were most pronounced among Hispanics, which indicated a need for im proved education on these issues.