Blood donation fears inventory: development and validation of a measure of fear specific to the blood donation setting

Background and objectives: Although individual differences in fear of stimuli related to blood donation is a key determinant of donor recruitment and retention, a donation-specific fear measure has yet to be developed.

Materials and methods: A donation-related fear measure was developed and tested on an initial sample of donors and non-donors, and then re-evaluated on a second sample to confirm the observed factor structure.

Results: Analyses supported a four-factor structure, with subscales related to fear of: (1) syncopal symptoms, (2) blood and needles, (3) social evaluation, and (4) health screen results.

Conclusion: The Blood Donation Fears Inventory is a novel measure to assess fears held by current and potential blood donors.