Psychometric properties of the Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale Short Form in an Ethnically Diverse United Kingdom Sample

OBJECTIVE: To psychometrically assess the Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy Scale-Short Form (BSES-SF) among a multicultural U.K. sample and to examine the relationship between breastfeeding self-efficacy and maternal demographic variables. DESIGN: A cohort study where breastfeeding women completed questionnaires in-hospital and at 4 weeks postpartum. SAMPLE: 165 breastfeeding women at the maternity ward in Birmingham Women's Hospital inpatient department. MEASUREMENTS: BSES-SF. RESULTS: The Cronbach's alpha co-efficient was .90 and evidence for predictive validity was demonstrated through exclusively breastfeeding mothers at 4 weeks postpartum having significantly higher in-hospital BSES-SF scores (M=49.4, SD=12.9) than mothers who were partially breastfeeding (M=44.7, SD=9.5) or bottle-feeding, M=42.4, SD=11.7; F(2)=1.62, p