Page 115 - 5th APA Conference Program Book Final

1674 Can fathers breastfeed? A study to raise breastfeeding awareness and
encourage gender equality

Angga Rahadian
Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jakarta, Indonesia

Categories

13. Others (Education, Wellbeing and Happiness etc.)

Abstract

The advantages of exclusive breastfeeding for both babies and mothers are well-understood. The rate of exclusive
breastfeeding in the world has been low and it is also evident in Indonesia. The majority view asserts that
breastfeeding is only perceived as women’s responsibility, while many studies show that fathers’ involvement has a
positive influence on breastfeeding success. This article aims to examine the importance of fathers’ role in
breastfeeding practice. A qualitative approach by an in-depth interview was applied to answer the research
questions. After interviewing 10 couples in Jakarta, we found interesting insights. Fathers have a significant role to
contribute to breastfeeding practice. It is true that only women can breastfeed since they only have tools to
breastfeed, but to achieve breastfeeding success needs abundance support, particularly from partners. In addition,
there are many rooms for supporting mothers to fulfill exclusive breastfeeding. Psychological and physical support
from fathers is the key to support mothers to keep breastfeeding. It is important to raise awareness that
breastfeeding is not only women’s responsibility through supporting fathers breastfeeding-supporting, such as the
AyahASI Indonesia community. The government should consider fathers-specific policy, such as paternity leave to
support breastfeeding and to encourage gender equality.

463 The Prevalence and Determinants of Premarital Sex among Youth in Afghanistan

3
1,2
Rasoul SADEGHI , Victor AGADJANIAN
2
1 University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran, Islamic Republic of. National Institute of Population Research (NIPR), Tehran,
Iran, Islamic Republic of. University of California, Los Angeles, USA
3
Categories

3. Fertility, Fecundity, Reproductive Health and Reproductive Rights

Abstract

Premarital sex is socially and culturally considered taboo subject in Afghanistan. This study aims to understanding
of which factors affect the premarital sexual attitudes and behaviors of Afghani youth. The data come from a random
multistage survey of 1250 unmarried youth aged 15 to 29 conducted in ten big and small cities across Afghanistan.
The results shows that almost one-fourth of respondents have liberal sexual attitudes and have engaged in sexual
foreplay and intercourse. Multivariate results indicate that premarital sexual attitudes and behavior are significantly
associated with individual-level factors, family characteristics and relationships, and peer group influence. The
influence of peer group on premarital sexual attitudes and behavior appears stronger than that of individual and
family factors. We discuss the implications of our findings for the understanding of dynamics of premarital sexual
relations in this and similar contexts where such relations are traditionally stigmatized but multifaceted societal
changes increasingly challenge this stigma.

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