How the linguistic style of medical crowdfunding charitable appeal influences individuals' donations

The utilization of linguistic style in crowdfunding appeals is crucial for the success of crowdfunding activities. While existing research predominantly focuses on linguistic styles in reward-based crowdfunding, this study addresses a notable gap by examining the impact of message concreteness on donation intentions within the context of medical crowdfunding. Through a between-group experiment, the study reveals that the level of message concreteness in charitable appeals of medical crowdfunding projects (abstract or concrete) elicits distinct moral emotions (pride and guilt), subsequently influencing donation intentions. Moreover, the study identifies interactions between social distance, disease acuteness, and message concreteness in relation to donation intentions. By elucidating the underlying mechanisms and boundary conditions of how message concreteness affects donation intentions, the study not only contributes to the evolving literature on medical crowdfunding but also responds to scholars' calls for investigating the effects of linguistic styles in diverse contexts. Additionally, it extends the application of construal level theory. The conclusions drawn provide valuable insights for crowdfunding platform managers and project initiators, aiding them in optimizing language expressions to more effectively achieve donation goals.