Cross Cultural Adaptation, Validity, and Reliability of the Farsi Breastfeeding Attrition Prediction Tools in Iranian Pregnant Women

The rate of exclusive breastfeeding in Iran is decreasing. The breastfeeding attrition prediction tools (BAPT) have been validated and used in predicting premature weaning. We aimed to translate the BAPT into Farsi, assess its content validity, and examine its reliability and validity to identify exclusive breastfeeding discontinuation in Iran. The BAPT was translated into Farsi and the content validity of the Farsi version of the BAPT was assessed. It was administered to 356 pregnant women in the third trimester of pregnancy, who were residents of a city in northeast of Iran. The structural integrity of the four-factor model was assessed in confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and exploratory factor analysis (EFA). Reliability was assessed using Cronbach’s alpha coefficient and item-subscale correlations. Validity was assessed using the known-group comparison (128 with vs. 228 without breastfeeding experience) and predictive validity (80 successes vs. 265 failures in exclusive breastfeeding). The internal consistency of the whole instrument (49 items) was 0.775. CFA provided an acceptable fit to the a priori four-factor model (Chi-square/df = 1.8, Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA) = 0.049, Standardized Root Mean Square Residual (SRMR) = 0.064, Comparative Fit Index (CFI) = 0.911). The difference in means of breastfeeding control (BFC) between the participants with and without breastfeeding experience was significant (P < 0.001). In addition, the total score of BAPT and the score of Breast Feeding Control (BFC) subscale were higher in women who were on exclusive breastfeeding than women who were not, at four months postpartum (P < 0.05). This study validated the Farsi version of BAPT. It is useful for researchers who want to use it in Iran to identify women at higher risks of Exclusive Breast Feeding (EBF) discontinuation.