Title: Addressing Multinational Corporations’ Aggressive Marketing of Commercial Formula in Indonesia and the Cessation of Breastfeeding Through the Design and Evaluation of a Counter-marketing Continuing Education Module
Description: The purpose of this study was to address the aggressive marketing of commercial formula and breastfeeding cessation in Indonesia using an evaluation of a counter-marketing continuing education module. Using a convenience sample (N = 99) of breastfeeding educators and/or counselors, paired t-tests showed a significant increase in participants’ knowledge about counter-marketing after they participated in the training. Findings also showed significant increases post-training for stage of changes, self-efficacy, knowledge, and motivation to perform four key talking behaviors: i.e., involving talking to new and pregnant mothers about corporations’ inappropriate and aggressive marketing of formula, and the risks of becoming dependent on expensive formula and losing the ability to produce their own breast milk. These findings suggested that exposure to the counter-marketing continuing education training served as a brief intervention associated with significant improvements in level of knowledge about counter-marketing among participants and in stage of change self-efficacy, knowledge, and motivation for performing key behaviors of interest.

Backward-stepwise regression revealed that higher level of motivation for taking an active role in the proposed campaign (i.e., A Campaign to Expose the Truth about Becoming Dependent on Commercial Formula and Breastfeeding Cessation) was significantly predicted by: (1) higher pre-training self-efficacy for talking to expectant and new mothers about the reasons to breastfeed their infant (β = .327, SEB = .118, p = .007); (2) lower pre-training knowledge for talking to expectant and new mothers about corporations’ inappropriate and aggressive marketing of commercial infant formula (β = -.270, SEB = .092, p = .004); and, (3) higher level of knowledge for taking an active role in the proposed campaign (β = .392, SEB = .083, p = .000). Participants rated the training as very good (74.7%, n = 74). Qualitative data showed that the training provided new knowledge and a new approach in addressing aggressive formula marketing by corporations. Further, participants found that the training has made them more confident and motivated to work with mothers and the community to advocate and educate about negative impacts from commercial formula.