Organ donation: who is not willing to commit? Psychological factors influencing the individual's decision to commit to organ donation after death.

One hundred thirty-nine students in Israel answered 3 questionnaires, Attitudes Toward Organ Donation, Trait-State Anxiety, and Fear of Death. A minority (17%) had signed an organ-donor card. This was found related to age, religious affiliation, viewing donation as a good idea for oneself, knowing people with organ donor cards, and higher scores on the Fear of Death Scale. The combination of the personality scales explained 5% of the total variance of the 'donor card' variable. Factor analysis identified 3 factors representing the reasons preventing the commitment to donate, 'Avoidance,' 'Lack of Interest,' and 'General Intention.' Cluster analysis showed that different combinations of the factors created 3 different clusters. The personality variables explained 18% of the variance of belonging to a specific nondonor cluster. It was concluded that failure to possess an organ donor card does not necessarily reflect opposition to donation and that there are different dimensions of ambivalence toward the commitment to donate one's organs after death.