Within breastfeeding research, there's a widely recognized need to move beyond using only duration of breastfeeding as the measure of "successful breastfeeding" and to integrate person-centered outcomes.
According to Yale School of Medicine (YSM)'s Deanna Nardella, person-centered outcomes - such as the parent's well-being, emotional health, and other outcomes - are essential to better measure people's experience of their breastfeeding journey and support received. Whether a person meets or doesn't meet their prenatal breastfeeding goal, for instance, is one outcome that provides a person-centered perspective.
In a new study, Nardella and her fellow researchers intentionally avoided assessing what parents' specific goals were for the duration of their breastfeeding journey but rather asked if participants met, didn't meet, or were still working toward their personal prenatal breastfeeding goal more broadly. Recognizing that prenatal goals may change throughout the infant feeding journey, they asked whether participants "felt okay with" or were "disappointed by" their unmet prenatal goal if reported. They also assessed how satisfied and successful individuals felt with breastfeeding overall, measured on a five-point Likert scale.
