TABLE 5.

Path coefficients in adjusted mediation models of the association between obesity and exclusive BF among participants in the Infant Feeding Practices Study II¹

	Primiparous (n = 550)				Multiparous (n = 1181)
Path	1-mo Point estimate2	P	2-mo Point estimate	P	1-mo Point estimate	P	2-mo Point estimate	P
Obesity to mediator
a1, Insufficient Milk	0.30	0.004	0.27	0.02	0.24	<0.0001	0.27	<0.0001
a2, Breast Dysfunction	−0.04	0.51	0.02	0.76	−0.09	0.03	−0.11	0.01
a3, Too Much Milk	0.11	0.19	0.13	0.15	−0.13	0.012	−0.14	0.01
a4, Infant Feeding Difficulty	0.10	0.06	0.10	0.07	0.005	0.85	0.05	0.11
Mediator to exclusive BF
b1, Insufficient Milk	−1.22	<0.0001	−0.83	<0.0001	−1.26	<0.0001	−1.18	<0.0001
b2, Breast Dysfunction	−0.53	0.05	−0.30	0.28	−0.22	0.18	−0.15	0.38
b3, Too Much Milk	0.42	0.03	0.41	0.04	0.13	0.31	0.08	0.55
b4, Infant Feeding Difficulty	0.04	0.87	−0.23	0.44	0.34	0.12	0.25	0.28

¹Models were adjusted for maternal age, household income, maternal marital status, maternal race/ethnicity, delivery mode, prenatal smoking status, previous BF experience, intended duration of BF, social knowledge of BF, social influence toward BF, maternal confidence in BF, and behavioral beliefs about BF. Models were reduced with the use of backward stepwise regression with covariates removed if they were not significant in the adjusted model. Paths labeled a are paths from the independent variable to the mediating variable (factors I–IV). Paths labeled b are paths from the mediating variable to the dependent variable, exclusive BF. a_i, effect of independent variable on mediator; b_i, effect of mediator on dependent variable; BF, breastfeeding.

²Point estimates are unstandardized B coefficients.