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Largest ever study into online sperm donation launched at Leeds Beckett
The four-year study will explore the relationships involved in online sperm donation, what influences sperm donation journeys, and what the impacts are.
Led by Dr Rhys Turner-Moore, Reader in Psychology at Leeds Beckett, the study aims to shine an academic light on online sperm donation – to understand what is working well, what is not working so well - and to work alongside people who are actively involved to identify, and bring about, positive changes.
Many people need help from a sperm donor to start or build their family - and there are lots of barriers to them receiving this help at an NHS or private clinic. So, instead, many people are looking for a sperm donor online via connection websites and social media groups – which are unregulated. However, there is very little information available about what this involves and how it might change their lives - for the better, or, possibly, for the worse.
Dr Turner-Moore explained: “The initial idea for the research came from watching a BBC documentary on online sperm donation and seeing that this could sometimes create problems for those involved. We recruited two research students at Leeds Beckett to explore the issues further.
"Their research found that recipients often reported many benefits to online sperm donation via connection websites and social media groups. For example, that it was usually free, being able to meet and know the donor, possibly having the donor involved in their child’s life, and having greater control over the donation process than in a clinic.
“On the other hand, recipients reported being subjected to a range of online and offline abusive behaviours. Also, interviews with donors found that they reported lying about their identity, convincing recipients that sex is more effective than artificial insemination, breaching recipients' privacy, and prejudice-based discrimination.”
PhD student, Francesca Taylor, followed seven recipients’ and four partners’ journeys over the course of 12 months – from their initial point of starting their online search. Masters by Research student, Georgina Forshall, spoke to three active sperm donors in the unregulated online community and five women who had had less than positive experiences.
Dr Turner-Moore said: “These pilot studies confirmed that we need to increase the knowledge and understanding we have about online sperm donation via connection websites and social media, and that a large-scale research project was needed.”
The project has received funding of £910,358 from the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) and is a collaboration between academics at Leeds Beckett and the Universities of Manchester, Sheffield, Sussex, and the West of Scotland, as well as US-based social psychologist, Dr Aleksandra Krotoski.
Inspired by early discussions with Dr Turner-Moore, Dr Krotoski produced a 10-part BBC Radio 4 series - Male Order – which investigated the online sperm donation marketplace.
Dr Turner-Moore said: “Our PhD student, Ms Taylor, examined the policies and practices that we have in the UK for clinical donor insemination – and found they are so restrictive that they are likely to be one of the reasons that people are taking the online route to finding a sperm donor. This is particularly the case for women in same-sex relationships and single women. The restrictive National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines mean that they often can’t access NHS funding and have to self-fund instead – which is so financially prohibitive."
Ms Taylor also mapped the online sperm donation sites, finding that there are over 350,000 potential recipients on over 60 English-speaking connection websites and social media groups around the world. Online sperm donation falls outside of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority’s (HFEA) regulatory control, and yet this market dwarfs the clinical route to sperm donation.
The new ESRC-funded research will involve two main stages: firstly, the team will explore the interpersonal relationships at the heart of online sperm donation that occurs via connection websites and social media groups. This includes research with people receiving sperm, people donating sperm, their life partners - if they have one – online site users, and site owners. From the results, the researchers will create a set of comics and drawings to illustrate people’s experiences of online sperm donation.
In the second stage, people involved in online sperm donation will be invited to workshops to reflect on the comics and drawings. They will explore their ideal futures for online sperm donation – and work with the research team to develop an agenda for change. Key parts of this agenda will then be put into action together - for example, this could include producing a public awareness and information campaign, advocating for changes in the law, or better informing support services.
Dr Turner-Moore explained: “We want the project to be led by those who are actively involved in online sperm donation – we recognise them as experts through their experiences and want to listen to what they have to say and work with them to implement the changes that they think are important.”
For more information, please visit the project website and follow the team on Twitter.
In this article
Dr Rhys Turner-Moore
Rhys specialises in research into sexual harm, such as sexual violence, abuse, bullying and harassment. His research in these areas extends to victim-survivors and perpetrators, as well as adults, young people and children. Rhys's overarching interest is in informing policy, practice and theory regarding sexual violence and abuse, identifying the forms that sexual violence and abuse take, and what supports and prevents these in individuals, families, communities and societies. His work also encompasses sex and sexuality, including sexual thoughts and fantasies, and socially stigmatised sexual practices.
Professor Georgina Jones
Georgina Jones is a Professor of Health Psychology. Her research uses both quantitative and qualitative research methods and focuses on patient-reported outcome measure development, psychometrics, and patient decision-making with a special focus on women's reproductive health.
Dr Lauren Smith
Lauren is a Senior Lecturer in Psychology with a strong commitment to creative and inclusive approaches in both teaching and research. Their work explores themes such as sex, gender, and sexuality in everyday contexts; social justice and power; and critical forensic psychology. Lauren is the co-lead of the QUALMS network and currently serves as Chair of Ethics in Psychology.
Dr Francesca Taylor-Phillips
Francesca a Research Fellow, currently working on the APPRAISE (A Patient-reported outcome measure for PRolApse, Incontinence and meSh complication surgery) and Cancer, Fertility and Me projects. She is a feminist researcher, interested in researching and teaching topics related to genders, sexualities, and reproduction. Francesca has experience using and teaching qualitative, participatory, narrative and creative methods. Francesca's PhD, awarded in September 2024 is titled "It's not the sort of thing you bring up over dinner with your grandma": recipient expereinces of online sperm donation.
