Impact of theory of planned behavior based intervention on breastfeeding patterns of the mothers with preterm infants: a randomized trial

Abstract Background The birth of a preterm infant is considered a crisis for the mother and the family. Given the significance of breastfeeding for these high-risk infants, failure to initiate and maintain exclusive breastfeeding in this group of infants is a prevalent and serious problem. The aim of this research was to investigate the impact of Theory of Planned Behavior based intervention on breastfeeding patterns of the mothers with preterm infants: a randomized trial. Materials and methods This study is a field trial conducted in Isfahan, Iran in 2021–2022. It included 72 mothers of late preterm infants, divided into the intervention (n = 36) and control (n = 36) groups. The intervention group received four training sessions focused on breastfeeding patterns based on the Theory of Planned Behavior. Before, immediately after, and two and four months after the intervention, the constructs of the Theory of Planned Behavior related to breastfeeding patterns were assessed using a researcher-made questionnaire, and the infant’s breastfeeding pattern was recorded. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS version 19, g repeated measures ANCOVA, Bonferroni post hoc test, and chi-square test. Results The results indicated that immediately after the intervention, as well as two and four months later, the mean scores for attitude (P