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The Impact of a Self-Efficacy Intervention on Short-Term Breast-Feeding Outcomes

University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales, Australia

Nicola S. Schutte, PhD

University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales, Australia, nschutte{at}une.edu.au

Rhonda F. Brown, PhD

University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales, Australia

Cindy-Lee Dennis, PhD, MScN, BScN

University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Ian Price, PhD

University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales, Australia

Maternal self-efficacy for breast-feeding may contribute to success in breast-feeding. This study aimed to increase breast-feeding self-efficacy and actual breast-feeding through an intervention based on Bandura's self-efficacy theory. A total of 90 pregnant women participated in the study. The women who were assigned to a breast-feeding self-efficacy intervention showed significantly greater increases in breast-feeding self-efficacy than did the women in the control group. Furthermore, at 4 weeks postpartum, women in the intervention group showed a trend toward breast-feeding their infants longer and more exclusively than did those in the control group. Greater increases in breast-feeding self-efficacy were associated with a significantly higher level of breast-feeding. Replicating previous research, breast-feeding self-efficacy was significantly related to concurrent breast-feeding behavior, and high antenatal breast-feeding self-efficacy predicted a higher level of later breast-feeding in control-group women. These findings have implications for breast-feeding support programs and for the potential general utility of self-efficacy-based interventions in health education.

Key Words: self-efficacy • breast-feeding • intervention

This version was published on April 1, 2009

Health Education & Behavior, Vol. 36, No. 2, 250-258 (2009)
DOI: 10.1177/1090198107303362


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