Background and Objectives: Although many studies have reported that kidney donation is not physically harmful to living kidney donors, there are few studies on the psychological changes that they experience, especially post-traumatic growth. This study aimed to investigate the influence of self-determination and social support on post-traumatic growth among living kidney donors. Materials and Methods: This study used a descriptive, cross-sectional design. Data were collected from 114 living kidney donors who visited the outpatient solid organ transplant center at Seoul National University Hospital. The data were analyzed using the t-test, one-way analysis of variance, and stepwise multiple regression. Results: The results showed that the mean for post-traumatic growth of living kidney donors was 4.24 (0.81), a level higher than the midpoint. The factors affecting total post-traumatic growth were the relatedness of self-determination, the social support of their significant other, and donor type. In particular, the relatedness of self-determination was a significant factor affecting changed perceptions of self, relating to others, and spiritual change, subscales of post-traumatic growth. Additionally, the social support of donors' significant others was a significant factor affecting relating to others and new possibilities, subscales of post-traumatic growth. Conclusions: Healthcare providers should endeavor to help living kidney donors experience post-traumatic growth, which can be facilitated by improving their self-determination and social support.
Keywords: kidney donor; post-traumatic growth; self-determination; social support.