{
  "abstract": "Breastfeeding is universally recognized as the optimal method of infant feeding, and fathers, as mothers’ intimate partners, serve a critical supportive function throughout the breastfeeding process; however, the specific pathways through which paternal breastfeeding support self-efficacy is associated with early postpartum breastfeeding behavior remain unclear. This cross-sectional study, conducted between February and December 2024, recruited 454 mother–father dyads at 6 weeks postpartum from a tertiary maternal and child health hospital in Fujian Province, China. Data were collected using the Paternal Breastfeeding Support Self-Efficacy Scale, the Maternal Breastfeeding Behavior Scale for the Puerperium, and the Breastfeeding Knowledge Questionnaire, and were analyzed using Pearson correlation, multiple linear regression, and structural equation modeling with bootstrap mediation testing in the lavaan package in R 4.3.1. Paternal breastfeeding support self-efficacy (PBSSE) was positively correlated with maternal breastfeeding knowledge and with maternal breastfeeding behavior at 6 weeks postpartum, and maternal breastfeeding knowledge was positively correlated with breastfeeding behavior (all p < 0.01). Path analysis indicated that PBSSE was indirectly associated with breastfeeding behavior at 6 weeks postpartum through maternal breastfeeding knowledge (indirect effect β = 0.131, 95% CI: 0.030–0.234), with the mediating effect accounting for 24.14% of the total effect; the direct effect remained significant (β = 0.412, p < 0.001), indicating partial mediation. These findings suggest that, in clinical practice, attending to fathers’ self-efficacy and strengthening breastfeeding knowledge education for mothers may help optimize breastfeeding behavior during the early postpartum period. Because the design was cross-sectional, the observed mediation should be interpreted as a statistical association rather than a causal mechanism.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Nursing Department, Shenzhen Bao’an District Songgang People’s Hospital, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China",
    "Nursing Department, Fujian Provincial Maternity and Children's Hospital, Fuzhou, Fujian, China"
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 8,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Minghui Li"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Yingping Wang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Cuiling Xie"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Jingyi Li"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Xiaoqian Chen"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Yuqing Pan"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Fang Chen"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Xiumin Jiang"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/c7fv2b3pfejdc.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1915683",
  "fulltext_url": "https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13730893/",
  "id": "c7fv2b3pfejdc",
  "issns": [
    "1664-1078"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1915683",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "Original Research"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2713|Breastfeeding Practices and Influences"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7223099220",
  "pdf_url": "https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1915683/pdf",
  "pmcid": "PMC13730893",
  "pmid": "42984696",
  "published": "2026-10-21",
  "publisher": "Frontiers Media SA",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/c7fv2b3pfejdc.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-07T12:23:52Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13730893",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2026.1915683"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "openalex:2713|Breastfeeding Practices and Influences",
      "subfield": "epidemiology-public-health"
    }
  ],
  "title": "The relationship between paternal breastfeeding support self-efficacy and maternal breastfeeding behavior at 6 weeks postpartum: the mediating role of breastfeeding knowledge",
  "title_text": "The relationship between paternal breastfeeding support self-efficacy and maternal breastfeeding behavior at 6 weeks postpartum: the mediating role of breastfeeding knowledge",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-08T12:21:12Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/c7fv2b3pfejdc",
  "venue": "Frontiers in Psychology",
  "versions": []
}