Maternal-infant health beliefs and infant feeding practices: The perception and experience of immigrant Vietnamese women in Sydney
Joh Chin Rossiter
Lecturer, Faculty of Health Studies, University of Western Sydney, Westmead NSW
PP: 075 - 082
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to describe and compare the health beliefs and infant feeding behaviour of Vietnamese women before and after immigration to Sydney.
Findings from 20 in-depth face to face interviews conducted in the women's homes revealed that infant feeding behaviour was shaped by the women's beliefs about maternal, infant and family health. Through a process of adaptation these health beliefs had been modified under the influence of the social, cultural, and economic environment of the host country.
The findings offer a greater understanding of Vietnamese culture and infant feeding behaviour on which to base nursing intervention programs to promote breast feeding.
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