Study reveals changing attitudes toward openness and information sharing in sperm donation
Four decades of sperm donation: motivation and attitudes among donors (Lassen, 2024)
Lassen, E., Kesmodel, U. S., Bay, B., & Skytte, A. B. (2024). Four decades of sperm donation: motivation and attitudes among donors. Fertility and Sterility, 121(2), 349-352. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2023.11.014
Geographic Region: Denmark
Research Question: How have the motivations and attitudes of Danish sperm donors changed over four decades, particularly regarding anonymity preferences, altruism, information sharing, and feelings toward donor-conceived people?
Design: This was a cross-sectional comparative study that examined sperm donor attitudes across four time periods. Data were collected through questionnaire surveys conducted in 1992, 2002, 2012, and 2022. Anonymous questionnaires were administered to sperm donors at each time point to gather information about their motivations, attitudes toward anonymity, and feelings about donor-conceived people.
Sample: The study included 173 Danish sperm donors from Cryos International Sperm and Egg Bank in 2022 (41% response rate), compared with previous cohorts of 39 donors in 1992 (87% response rate), 58 donors in 2002 (92% response rate), and 91 donors in 2012 (92% response rate). Donor characteristics remained relatively stable across decades, with mean age consistently around 27-28 years and approximately half having partners across all time periods.
Key Findings
The main reason for donating stayed the same across all four decades. Helping childless people have babies was the top motivation for donors. Half of donors (52%) said they would stop donating if they weren't paid.
Over time, fewer donors would quit if forced to be identifiable. Only 44% of anonymous donors in 2022 said they'd stop donating if they couldn't stay anonymous, down from 70% in 2012.
In 2022, 54% were identity-release donors (allowing their identity to be shared with donor-conceived children) compared to 29% in 2012.
In 2022, most donors (70%) chose to provide extended profiles with additional personal characteristics.
Interest in pregnancy updates increased significantly overall - 59% of donors in 2022 wanted to know about pregnancies from their donations, up from 38% in 2002 and 46% in 2012. However, this varied greatly by donor type: In 2022, 71% of identity-release donors wanted pregnancy information compared to only 46% of anonymous donors.
Identity-release donors were 73% more likely to inform their current or future children about their sperm donation compared to anonymous donors.
In 2022, 58% said thinking about donor-conceived children makes them happy, with identity-release donors showing stronger positive feelings (66%) compared to anonymous donors (50%).
In 2022, 66% wanted to be informed if a donor-conceived child developed a hereditary disease, with identity-release donors more interested than anonymous donors.
Limitations: The study was conducted at a single sperm bank in Denmark, which may limit generalizability to other countries or contexts. There was a lower response rate in 2022 compared to earlier decades, and non-identity-release donors were less likely to participate, potentially creating selection bias. The research was industry-affiliated, with several authors being employees of the sperm bank. The study design was cross-sectional rather than longitudinal, preventing tracking of individual attitude changes over time.
Applications: Policy makers could consider implementing dynamic consent models that allow donors to update their preferences about information sharing and contact over time. The strong donor interest in health updates supports developing centralized registries that can efficiently share relevant health information between donors, recipients, and donor-conceived people while maintaining privacy protections. Clinics, banks, and matching programs should establish systems for maintaining contact with donors over time, given their increasing interest in pregnancy outcomes and potential for changing preferences about anonymity and information sharing.
Funding Source: Not explicitly stated in the article.
Lead Author: Emilie Lassen is a researcher at Cryos International Sperm and Egg Bank in Denmark. No personal connection to donor conception was disclosed.
Regulatory Context
Before 2007, only anonymous sperm donation was allowed. After 2007, both anonymous and non-anonymous sperm donation are permitted. Offspring can access non-anonymous donor’s identity at age 18.
Denmark is known for its large sperm banking industry.
Lesbian couples and single women gained access to fertility treatment in 2006.
No restrictions on donor compensation.
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