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. 2018 Jun 25;5(1):2055102918782172. doi: 10.1177/2055102918782172

Table 1.

Recipient perceptions of the organ, the donor, and the donor’s family (Sanner, 2003).

Dimension Description of the extremes of the continua
Joy–sorrow Joy: Immediately after transplant, recipients typically experienced euphoria and relief. Sorrow: Acknowledging that a premature death has left another family grieving contributed to sorrow.
Gratitude–indebtedness Gratitude was experienced towards the donor and their family. Indebtedness: Recipients often felt the need to somehow ‘repay’ the ‘gift’.
Guilt–innocence Guilt: Recipients found it hard to reconcile their hope for an organ being linked to someone else dying. Innocence: Randomness involved in donation–transplantation implied that they are not responsible for the death.
Inequity–equilibrium Inequity: Recipients reported that they saw it as unfair that someone had to die for another to live. Equilibrium: Some recipients signed a donor card or behaved in a generous and helpful way themselves.
Influence–identification Influence: Some denied changes, while others wondered whether the donor’s organ influenced them. Identification: Recipients accepted changes in their identity post-transplant without feeling threatened.