ACCURACY OF EXPECTANT MOTHERS PREDICTIONS OF FATHERS ATTITUDES REGARDING BREAST-FEEDING

Background. Breast-feeding plays a well-recognized role in lowering in fant morbidity and mortality during the first year of life. Previous r esearch has demonstrated that fathers contribute to the decision of wh ich infant feeding method will be used, and can be effective promoters of breast-feeding. A woman's decision to breast-feed her infant may r est on her assumptions of the father's attitude regarding this feeding method. As the perception of a negative paternal attitude toward brea st-feeding may discourage some women from breast-feeding, this study w as designed to determine whether a mother can accurately predict the f ather's attitude on this subject. Methods. Subjects were 268 pairs of expectant mothers and fathers enrolled in childbirth preparation class es at five private hospitals in Houston, Texas. Participants individua lity completed pretested surveys assessing their attitudes regarding b reast-feeding. Mothers' surveys additionally assessed their partner's attitudes toward breast-feeding. Results. More mothers than fathers re ported exclusive breast-feeding as their preferred feeding plan (69% v s 58%), whereas only 54% of partners both responded they preferred bre ast-feeding. Overall, fathers had more favorable attitudes toward brea st-feeding than their partners predicted, but large numbers of fathers harbored misconceptions and negative attitudes toward breast-feeding. Mothers' predictions were little more accurate than random guessing i n predicting their partner's response (range: 56% to 83%). Conclusions . A mother's perception of her partner's attitudes toward breast-feedi ng influences her choice of infant feeding method. If she perceives th at the father has a negative attitude about breast-feeding, she will p robably not choose this method. Additional efforts to dispel misconcep tions about breast-feeding should be made during childbirth preparatio n classes and prenatal visits.