Breastfeeding self-efficacy, body image, body acceptance, and partner support: Associations in Israeli postpartum women

PROBLEM: Research suggests that breastfeeding self-efficacy (i.e., a mother's perceived ability and confidence to breastfeed her new-born) is associated with body image experiences and wider psychosocial factors. However, much of this work is focused on negative body image and has relied on samples from predominantly Westernised, industrialised nations.

BACKGROUND: To extend knowledge, we sought to examine the extent to which indices of positive body image (body appreciation), negative body image (body dissatisfaction, breast size dissatisfaction), and psychosocial factors (body acceptance by others, postpartum partner support) are associated with breastfeeding self-efficacy in sample of mothers from Israel.

HYPOTHESIS: We hypothesised that body appreciation, body dissatisfaction, breast size dissatisfaction, body acceptance by others, and postpartum partner support would each be significantly associated with breastfeeding self-efficacy in Israeli mothers.

METHOD: A total of 352 mothers from Israel, with an infant aged six months or younger, were asked to complete an online survey that measured the aforementioned constructs.

FINDINGS: Correlational and linear model analyses indicated that only body appreciation was significantly associated with breastfeeding self-efficacy. Body acceptance by others was significantly associated with breastfeeding self-efficacy in correlational but not regression analyses. These effects were consistent across primiparous and multiparous mothers.

DISCUSSION: In Israeli mothers, at least, a limited set of body image and body image-related indices appear to be associated with breastfeeding self-efficacy.

CONCLUSION: Overall, these findings suggest that positive body image may be associated with breastfeeding self-efficacy in women from Israel, though more research is needed.