EFFECTOFPSYCHOSOCIALFACTORSONWOMEN’SBEHAVIORTOWARDSINFANT&YOUNGCHILDFEEDING

THECASEOFHOMABAYCOUNTY,KENYA

JanetMwende,CarlJohanLagerkvist,JuliusOkello,PeninaMuoki&WillisOluoch Kosura

Introduction

§ Vitamin A deficiency (VAD) is a major problem in

developing countries.

§ Children < 5yrs are most vulnerable to VAD

§ Inadequate dietary intake is the leading cause of VAD.

ü Their diets consist mainly staple cereals

ü Only 1/5th of kids < 6 months are exclusively breastfed

ü < 1/4 of kids 6-23 months receive MAD

Introductioncontd…

§Thepoorfeedingpracticeshasledtoeffortstochangewomen’sbehaviortowardsinfantandyoungchildfeeding(IYCF)practices§SeveralstudieshaveexaminedthefactorsinfluencingIYCFpractices§SomeofthesestudieshavespecificallyfocusedonhowtochangebehaviortowardsIYCF§However,mostofthesestudiesnormallyfocusonsocioeconomicfactors§Therefore,littleisknownabouttheroleofpsychosocialfactorsonbehaviorchangerelatingtoIYCFpractices

Studygoal(general)

• Inthisstudy,weusethedatacollectedfrom764womentoexaminetherolepsychosocialfactorsplayinwomen’sbehaviortowardsIYCF•Behaviorisproxiedbytheintention toundertakeapractice(i.e.,IYCF).•Theliteraturesuggeststhatbehaviorintention isthemostproximalpredictororactualbehavior

•ThestudyinvolvedwomentargetedbySUSTAINproject•TheprojecthasbeenpromotingactivitiesaimedatchangingbehaviorofwomenrelatingtoIYCFpractices

ResearchQuestions&hypotheses

§RQ#1:Whatistheeffectofpsychosocialfactorsonbehavioral intentiontoperformexclusivebreastfeeding?§RQ#2:WhatistheeffectofpsychosocialfactorsoncomplementaryfeedingincorporatingOFSP?

§Thestudytested2hypotheses:•H1: Psychosocial factors have no effect on behavioralintention to undertake exclusive breastfeeding

•H2: Psychosocial factors have no effect on behavioralintention to undertake complementary feedingincorporating OFSP

Theory>>>AugmentedModelofGoal-DirectedBehavior

Theexperiment

§ Thisstudywasconductedasafieldexperiment

§RespondentwererandomlyrecruitedandassignedtointotwotreatmentsüTreatment0(Control):ReceivedinformationaboutbabyfoodsmadefromOFSPandotherlocalfoodsüTreatment1:InadditiontoinformationaboutOFSP-basedfoods,theywereshownactualsamplesofsuchfoods

1. Mashed OFSP (125g)

2. Mix/mash: boiled OFSP root + eggs + pumpkin leaves +

boiled water into a fine/uniform mix/blend and then feed to the

child.

3. Mix/mash: boiled OFSP root +avocado +milk into a

fine/uniformmix/blend and then feed to child

4. Mix/mash: boiled OFSP root + beans (de-hulled) + pumpkin

leaves + boiled water into a fine/uniformmix/blend

Thefoodsshownwere

Sampling&data

§ThestudyfocusedonHoma baycountywhereSUSTAINhasimplementedBCCactivitiessince2014.

§ NineCUswerepurposivelyselected

§IneachCU,villageswererandomlyselectedusingprobabilityproportiontosize(PPS)sampling

§Withineachvillage,alistofwomenstratifiedstatusofthewoman wasobtained,andarandomsampledrawnfromeachstratumusingPPSsampling

Sampling&Datacontinued

§ Thestratificationstatuswere:üPregnantwomenüWomenwith0-5month-oldchildüWomenwith6-23month-oldchildüPotentialmother(16-49yrs,butnotinabovestrata)

§Datawascollectedon:demographics,attitudes,knowledge,behavioralaspects,norms(subjective&anddescriptive),self-efficacy,habits,motivationalfactors,perceivedbehaviorcontrolaswellasparticipationinprojectandotherBCCactivities

Studyarea

Estimationmodels:

§ ThemodelswereestimatedusingPartialLeastSquaresPathModelling(PLS-PM)technique

§ PLS-PMisvariance-basedstructuralequationmodelingtechnique

§ Involvesestimationof:ü Ameasurementmodel(innermodel)and,ü structuralmodel(outermodel)

Empiricalestimationmodelscontd….

Measuringperceivedbehaviorcontrol:Anexample

Response

• Sowhatdidwefind?

Characteristicsofrespondents

Effectofpsychosocialfactorsonexclusivebreastfeeding

EffectofpsychosocialfactorsoncomplementaryfeedingincorporatingOFSP

Treatmenteffectsonmodelestimates

EffectofpsychosocialfactorsoncomplementaryfeedingwithOFSP:bywomencategories

Conclusion

§ExclusivebreastfeedingandcomplementaryfeedingincorporatingOFSParestronglyaffectedby:üSelf-efficacyüSubjectivenormsüGoal-settingpursuit

§ FindingsthereforeindicatethepsychosocialfactorsdoinfluenceIYCFpractices

Implications

1. Wrt goal-setting:PromotionofchangesinIYCFpracticesshouldinvolve:

üEquippingwomenwithvariousplanningtoolsand/orstrategies,e.g.,planningcards

üGoalsbrokenintosmallertasks

2. Wrt Self-efficacy:PeermodellingshouldbeincorporatedineffortstopromoteimprovedIYCF>>Mom-to-Momclubsagoodcase,impartsskills

3. Wrt Subjectivenorms:Spousesandin-lawsneedtobeincorporatedinBCC&promotionofbenefitsof:

üOFSPincomplementaryfeeding,andüExclusivebreastfeeding

• Thankyou!!!