Empathy, social media, and directed altruistic living organ donation

• Published in: Bioethics 2018-06, Vol.32 (5), p.289-297
• Main Authors: Moorlock, Greg, Draper, Heather
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Altruism; Biological organs; Blood & organ donations; Campaigns; Directed Tissue Donation - ethics; Donors; Emotions; Empathy; Empathy - ethics; Ethical dilemmas; Ethics; Humans; kidney; Kidney Transplantation - ethics; Kidneys; Living donors; Living Donors - ethics; Motivation; organ donation; Organ donors; Original; Social Media; Social networks; Tissue and Organ Harvesting - ethics; transplant; Victims
• ISSN: 0269-9702; 1467-8519
• DOI: 10.1111/bioe.12438

In this article we explore some of the ethical dimensions of using social media to increase the number of living kidney donors. Social media provides a platform for changing non‐identifiable ‘statistical victims’ into ‘real people’ with whom we can identify and feel empathy: the so‐called ‘identifiable victim effect’, which prompts charitable action. We examine three approaches to promoting kidney donation using social media which could take advantages of the identifiable victim effect: (a) institutionally organized campaigns based on historical cases aimed at promoting non‐directed altruistic donation; (b) personal case‐based campaigns organized by individuals aimed at promoting themselves/or someone with whom they are in a relationship as a recipient of directed donation; (c) institutionally organized personal case‐based campaigns aimed at promoting specific recipients for directed donation. We will highlight the key ethical issues raised by these approaches, and will argue that the third option, despite raising ethical concerns, is preferable to the other two.