The unexpected factors that determine British sperm donor choice

Brits are crazy about Viking sperm, and buyers systematically filter by height, hair color, and eye color when shopping for sperm. However, insights from a Danish sperm bank reveal that British customers’ donor choices are not rationally decided but instead reflect dating culture.

Danish sperm banks are among the most popular in the United Kingdom. New insights from Donor Network show that British customers’ donor decisions are far less systematic than they themselves think. Most people who visit the sperm bank’s website do so with a set plan. They sort, click, deselect: Blue eyes; yes. Brown hair; no. 180 centimeters. IQ above 100. The perfectly rational choices in the pursuit of a Viking baby.

– There is no doubt that Danish donors are in demand for their physical traits, and we can see that our British customers filter based on appearance. But that is rarely what determines the final choice. Once the filters are set and the list has been narrowed down to a manageable number of donors, something else happens, says Jakob Schölhammer Knudsen, founder and CEO of the Danish sperm bank Donor Network.

When one image overrides all filters

According to Donor Network, it is often a single element that tips the decision: a childhood photo or a personal text in which the donor describes himself and his motivations for being a donor.

– Many people find it difficult to explain why they ended up choosing a particular donor. They expect to be systematic and methodical but end up choosing based on different criteria. It can be a single image where you perceive a warm smile. It can be a short personal text where you sense the person behind it, says Jakob Schölhammer Knudsen.

In Denmark, sperm donation is a more open topic than in the United Kingdom, and there is a long tradition of research - not only into fertility treatment itself, but also into the psychosocial aspects of treatment. One such researcher is psychologist Yoon Frederiksen, a specialist in health psychology who has worked extensively with the psychosocial aspects of fertility treatment. She compares choosing a sperm donor to dating:

– It’s about what we are attracted to in a person and the values we believe the person has or expresses. When we date, many of us have a list of pros and cons, but in the end, the choice is determined by a feeling that tells us what feels right in our gut, even if everything on paper points in a different direction, says Yoon Frederiksen. She elaborates:

– Images of a donor often evoke emotions because many of us are highly visual. We attribute certain traits and values to the person in the picture - traits we ourselves have or desire - without actually having any basis for knowing whether that is the case.

Why the British gut feeling beats the data

According to the Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority (HFEA), up to 2,500 Britons travel abroad each year for fertility treatment. Denmark is popular both as a destination for fertility treatment and as a supplier of donor sperm, with more than one in five imported sperm donors in the UK coming from Denmark. According to Yoon Frederiksen, the donor choice initially revolves around creating the “perfect” genetic combination, but when the decision is made, emotions take over:

– There has been a lot of research into what we might call decision psychology - for example, why we play the lottery. Everyone knows that the odds of winning the lottery are extremely low, yet we still do it. It’s about hope and dreams. We envision the dream: how our future child will fit into our lives, our values, and our future.

The five most important criteria for donor choice, according to Donor Network:

• Personal text:The personal messages are often short but highly significant. Even small details can evoke emotions in prospective parents - a particular phrasing or a thought about being a donor.
• Description of family: In Denmark, the concept of “family” is associated with a high degree of equality, which appeals to many British donor sperm buyers who are used to more conservative family structures.
• Scandinavian outlook on life: Many Britons are attracted to Danish donors’ approach to life, their future, and society. They specifically describe how donors radiate trust and openness.
• Adult photos:It is not necessarily about a specific appearance, but something more intangible, such as a certain smile, a sparkle in the eyes, or dimples.
• Childhood photos: It is often easy to relate to a childhood photo, as it helps people imagine their future child - therefore, a childhood photo alone can be the reason a donor is chosen.