Table 2.
Description of the interventions in included studies
| Authors (year) | Type of intervention | Primary aim | Format | Frequency, duration, and timing of provision | Content description of interventions |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Randomized control trials | |||||
| Bunik et al. (2010) | Support | To evaluate the effectiveness of a telephone‐based BF support and education intervention on duration and exclusivity of BF in low‐income, primarily Latina women. | Telephone counselling | Daily for 2 weeks postpartum. | Advantages of colostrum and importance of a good latch, engorgement, concerns about unnecessary formula supplementation, supply and demand, assessing milk supply, causes of infant crying, modesty, family support, violation of la cuerentena (i.e., 40‐day postpartum), support groups, mother's illness, baby blues versus postpartum depression, medications and diet, pumping and milk storage, return to work or school or time away from baby, growth spurts, and cluster feeding. |
| Chan et al. (2016) | Self‐efficacy based (education and support via telephone counselling) | To investigate the effectiveness of a self‐efficacy‐based BF educational programme in increasing BF self‐efficacy, BF duration and exclusive BF rates among Hong Kong mothers. | Workshop, telephone counselling | One 2.5‐hr prenatal workshop and one 30 to 60‐min follow‐up call 2‐week postpartum. | Group discussion, sharing of experience, evaluation of emotional/physiological condition and breastfeeding status. |
| Edwards et al. (2013) | Education and support | To develop and evaluate a first‐generation tablet laptop‐based computer agent designed to improve exclusive BF rates in mothers interested in BF. | Informational material on a tablet/laptop | Participants had access to the tablet or laptop based information from the third trimester until hospital discharge after birth. | Benefits of BF |
| Joshi et al. (2016) | Education and support | To explore the effect of a bilingual, interactive touch screen computer based BF educational programme on improving BF knowledge, BF self‐efficacy and predicting BF attrition among pregnant Hispanic rural women living in Scottsbluff, Nebraska. | Informational material on a tablet | Seven 30‐min postpartum interactive sessions on a tablet between hospital discharge and 6 months postpartum. | Baseline assessment was done on a tablet kiosk and participants received interactive tailored BF education |
| Kronborg et al. (2012) | Education | To assess the effect of an antenatal training programme on knowledge, self‐efficacy and problems related to BF, and the BF duration. | Workshop, informational material on paper, movie | Three hour prenatal sessions. | Instrumental guide (doll) in infant care and BF practice, delivery process, pain relief, coping strategies, infant care and BF, parental role, relationship between the woman and her partner. |
| Kronborg et al. (2007) | Psychosocial health education and support | To assess the impact of a supportive intervention on the duration of BF. | Individualized session at home, informational material on paper | One to three home visits in the first 5‐week postpartum. | Effective BF technique, learning to know the baby, self‐regulated BF, interpretation of baby cues, sufficient milk and interaction with the baby. |
| McQueen et al. (2011) | Self‐efficacy based (support) | To pilot test a newly developed BF self‐efficacy intervention. | Individualized sessions | Two postpartum sessions (within 24 hr of delivery and within 24 hr of the first session) and one follow‐up by phone 1‐week postpartum. | Assessment, strategies to increase breastfeeding self‐efficacy, and evaluation. |
| Nichols et al. (2009) | Self‐efficacy based | To examine the effect of a self‐efficacy‐based educational intervention on BF duration and exclusivity. | Workbook | Participants kept the workbook for a maximum of 2 weeks and they returned it before the birth of their baby. | Enhancing BF self‐efficacy |
| Noel‐Weiss et al. (2006) | Self‐efficacy based and education | To determine the effects of a prenatal BF workshop on maternal BF self‐efficacy and duration. | Workshop |
One 2.5‐hr prenatal workshop. |
Performance accomplishment, vicarious learning, social/verbal persuasion, and emotional/physiological arousal. |
| Olenick (2006) | Self‐efficacy based and education | To determine whether group prenatal education improves BF outcomes. | Class | One 2‐hour prenatal class. | Group exercises and take‐home handouts for later reference. |
| Wilhelm et al. (2006) | Motivational interview (support) | To explore the feasibility of using motivational interviewing to promote sustained BF by increasing a mother's intent to breastfeed for 6 months and increasing her BF self‐efficacy. | Individualized session | Three postpartum sessions (2‐ to 4‐day, 2‐week, and 6‐week postpartum). | The four principles used in motivational interviewing: express empathy and reflecting what the client is saying, create discrepancy, roll with resistance to hear the reasons for ambivalence and support self‐efficacy by emphasizing the client's abilities and resource availability. |
| Wu et al. (2014) | Self‐efficacy based | To evaluate the effects of a BF intervention on primiparous mothers' BF self‐efficacy, BF duration and exclusivity at 4‐ and 8‐week postpartum. | Individualized session | Two postpartum sessions (1‐ and 2‐day postpartum) and a follow‐up phone call 1 week after hospital discharge. | Assessment, self‐efficacy‐enhancing strategies and evaluation |
| Quasi‐experimental studies | |||||
| Awano and Shimada (2010) | Education and support | To develop a self‐care programme for BF aimed at increasing mothers' BF confidence and to evaluate its effectiveness. | Informational material on paper, movie | One intervention 4‐ to 5‐day postpartum, before discharge. | Recommendations and supporting evidence, advantages and basics of BF, baby's feeding cue, positioning, latch‐on, positive signs of baby's feeding and self‐check list for BF. |
| Coffey (2014) | Education | To examine the level of self‐efficacy for new mothers attending a formal BF education compared to those that did not. | Class | One 2‐hr prenatal class. | NR |
| Hatamleh (2012) | Breastfeeding self‐efficacy based (education and support) | To test the efficacy of the Breastfeeding Self‐Efficacy Intervention Program to increase BF duration. | Class, movie, telephone counselling | One 2‐hr prenatal class where an informational video was shown and phone calls follow‐up until 6‐week postpartum | Normal physiological postpartum changes, evaluation of milk supply and infant cues. |
| Hauck et al. (2007) | Breastfeeding self‐efficacy based (education and self‐management) | To assess the effects of a BF journal on BF prevalence, and perceptions of conflicting advice, self‐management and BF self‐efficacy from birth to 12‐week postpartum. | Workbook (BF journal) | Participants had access to the BF journal before and after the birth of their infant. | Evidence‐based and standardized information, development of plans to deal with conflicting advice, identify solutions to problems and develop breastfeeding goals. |
| Otsuka et al. (2014) | Self‐efficacy based | To evaluate the effect of a self‐efficacy intervention on BF self‐efficacy and exclusive BF in two types of hospitals: a baby friendly certified hospital and a regular hospital. | Workbook | Participants received a workbook in their third trimester and were encouraged to complete it before deliver (completion time: About 30 minutes). | Exploring aspects of confidence (providing an explanation of the workbook), mastery (performance accomplishment), building confidence by learning from others (vicarious experiences), using encouragement (verbal persuasion), exploring how we respond to stress (physical responses) and keeping motivated (concluding the workbook). |
Note. BF = breastfeeding; NR = not reported.