Factors underlying intention to donate to Caring for Children in Belize: A qualitative inquiry

Background. Understanding factors influencing why individuals contribute to community and humanitarian projects is important for sustainability of development efforts. In 2004, the Cornerstone Foundation of Belize established Caring for Children (CFC) to assist children affected by HIV/AIDS. CFC relies on local community members and organizations to donate food, clothing, and school and medical supplies. The purpose of this qualitative inquiry was to identify factors underlying intentions to donate to CFC. Methods. A salient-belief elicitation was conducted to identify perceived advantages/disadvantages, approving/disapproving social referents, and facilitating/impeding circumstances of donating to CFC. Ninety Belizean adults participated. Content and frequency analysis revealed the most-frequently mentioned responses. Results. Most-frequently mentioned perceived advantages of donating were: Helping people (90%), feeling good/being rewarded (34%), and, they'll know someone cares (19%). Almost half (47%) reported misuse of donations as a disadvantage, while 40% reported no disadvantages. Most-frequently mentioned perceived approving referents were: Social and health services (34%), family (27%), and church (22%). Over half (52%) said no one disapproves. Having resources (89%) was the most-frequently mentioned circumstance influencing donating, followed by not having misuse of donations (23%), and knowing how CFC works (21%). Implications. Results suggest implications for program design and interventions to increase donations. Marketing campaigns may highlight helping people, feeling good, and support of approving referents as benefits of donating. As many people were concerned about having resources, campaigns may benefit from emphasizing the importance of small donations. Since many expressed concerns about misuse of donations, systems to ensure transparency of management may increase donations.