Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Parent Decision-Making and How to Influence Decisions

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Infant Safe Sleep

Abstract

Parents make multiple decisions on a daily basis, and health-care providers may not fully understand the reasons behind specific decisions. We describe some theoretical frameworks that may help explain how parents make decisions about infant sleep practices. The socio-ecological model suggests that parents’ infant sleep practices influence, and are influenced by, factors at the infant, maternal, family and household, and community and society levels. The integrated behavioral model presents several constructs, including attitudes, perceived norms, personal agency, knowledge and skills, salience of the behavior, environmental constraints, and habit that impact a parents’ intentions to practice safe sleep recommendations and actual infant sleep practices. We present a decision-making path that parents may use when weighing all of the sources of information about infant sleep. Finally, we provide suggestions for how providers may use this information to influence parental decision-making about infant sleep practices.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Ajao TI, Oden RP, Joyner BL, Moon RY. Decisions of black parents about infant bedding and sleep surfaces: a qualitative study. Pediatrics. 2011;128(3):494–502. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2011-0072.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  2. Chu T, Hackett M, Kaur N. Exploring caregiver behavior and knowledge about unsafe sleep surfaces in infant injury death cases. Health Educ Behav. 2015;42(3):293–301. https://doi.org/10.1177/1090198114547817.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Gaydos LM, Blake SC, Gazmararian JA, Woodruff W, Thompson WW, Dalmida SG. Revisiting safe sleep recommendations for African-American infants: why current counseling is insufficient. Matern Child Health J. 2015;19(3):496–503. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-014-1530-z.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Herman S, Adkins M, Moon RY. Knowledge and beliefs of African-American and American Indian parents and supporters about infant safe sleep. J Community Health. 2015;40:12–9. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-014-9886-y.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  5. Mathews A, Oden RP, Joyner BL, He J, McCarter R, Moon RY. Differences in African–American maternal self-efficacy regarding practices impacting risk for sudden infant death. J Community Health. 2016;41(2):244–9. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-015-0088-z.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  6. Mathews A, Joyner BL, Oden RP, He J, McCarter R Jr, Moon RY. Messaging affects the behavior of African American parents with regards to soft bedding in the infant sleep environment: a randomized controlled trial. J Pediatr. 2016;175:79–85. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpeds.2016.05.004.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Moon RY, Hauck FR. Hazardous bedding in infants’ sleep environment is still common and a cause for concern. Pediatrics. 2015;135(1):178. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2014-3218.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Moon RY, Mathews A, Joyner BL, Oden RP, He J, McCarter R. Health messaging and African-American infant sleep location: a randomized controlled trial. J Community Health. 2017;42(1):1–9. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-016-0227-1.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  9. Moon RY, Mathews A, Oden R, Carlin R. A qualitative analysis of how mothers’ social networks are established and used to make infant care decisions. Clin Pediatr. 2019;58(9):985–92. https://doi.org/10.1177/0009922819845332.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Salm Ward TC, Doering JJ. Application of a socio-ecological model to mother-infant bedsharing. Health Educ Behav. 2014;41(6):577–89. https://doi.org/10.1177/1090198114543010.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Salm Ward TC. Reasons for mother-infant bedsharing: a systematic narrative synthesis of the literature and implications for future research. Matern Child Health J. 2015;19(3):675–90. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-014-1557-1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Salm Ward TC, Ngui EM. Factors associated with bedsharing for African-American and White mothers in Wisconsin. Matern Child Health J. 2015;19(4):720–32. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-014-1545-5.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Salm Ward TC, Balfour G. Infant safe sleep interventions, 1990-2015: a review. J Community Health. 2016;41(1):180–96. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-015-0060-y.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Doering JJ, Salm Ward TC. The interface among poverty, air mattress industry trends, policy, and infant safety. Am J Public Health. 2017;107(6):945–9. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2017.303709.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  15. Hooker E, Ball HL, Kelly PJ. Sleeping like a baby: attitudes and experiences of bedsharing in Northeast England. Med Anthropol. 2001;19(3):203–22. https://doi.org/10.1080/01459740.2001.9966176.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Hauck FR, Tanabe KO, McMurry T, Moon RY. Evaluation of bedtime basics for babies: a national crib distribution program to reduce the risk of sleep-related sudden infant deaths. J Community Health. 2015;40(3):457–63. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-014-9957-0.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  17. Colson ER, Geller NL, Heeren T, Corwin MJ. Factors associated with choice of infant sleep position. Pediatrics. 2017;140(3):e20170596. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2017-0596.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Salm Ward TC, McClellan MM, Miller TJ, Brown S. Evaluation of a crib distribution and safe sleep educational program to reduce risk of sleep-related infant death. J Community Health. 2018;43(5):848–55. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-018-0493-1.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Ball HL, Volpe LE. Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) risk reduction and infant sleep location – moving the discussion forward. Soc Sci Med. 2013;79:84–91. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2012.03.025.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Doering JJ, Lim PS, Salm Ward TC, Davies WH. Prevalence of unintentional infant bedsharing. Appl Nurs Res. 2019;46:28–30. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apnr.2019.02.003.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Kendall-Tackett K, Cong Z, Hale T. Factors that influence where babies sleep in the United States: the impact of feeding method, mother’s race/ethnicity, partner status, employment, education, and income. Clin Lact. 2016;7(1):18–29. https://doi.org/10.1891/2158-0782.7.1.18.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Bronfenbrenner U. The ecology of human development. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press; 1979.

    Google Scholar 

  23. Stokols D. Establishing and maintaining healthy environments: towards a social ecology of health promotion. Am Psychol. 1992;47(1):6–22.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  24. Bombard JM, Kortsmit K, Cottengim C, Johnston EO. Infant safe sleep practices in the United States. Am J Nurs. 2018;118(12):20–1. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.NAJ.0000549685.59006.ad.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  25. Shapiro-Mendoza CK, Colson ER, Willinger M, Rybin DV, Camperlengo L, Corwin MJ. Trends in infant bedding use: National Infant Sleep Position Study, 1993–2010. Pediatrics. 2015;135(1):10–7. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2014-1793.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  26. Moon RY, Carlin RF, Cornwell B, Mathews A, Oden RP, Cheng YI, et al. Implications of mothers’ social networks for risky infant sleep practices. J Pediatr. 2019;212:151–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpeds.2019.05.027.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  27. Rimer BK, Glanz K. Theory at a glance: a guide for health promotion practice. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health. NIH Publication No. 05-3896; 2005.

    Google Scholar 

  28. Alio AP, Richman AR, Clayton HB, Jeffers DF, Wathington DJ, Salihu HM. An ecological approach to understanding black-white disparities in perinatal mortality. Matern Child Health J. 2010;14:557–66. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-009-0495-9.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  29. Gamble VN. Under the shadow of Tuskegee: African Americans and health care. Am J Public Health. 1997;87(11):1773–8. https://doi.org/10.2105/ajph.87.11.1773.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  30. Krieger N, Chen JT, Waterman PD, Rehkopf DH, Yin R, Coull BA. Race/ethnicity and changing US socioeconomic gradients in breast cancer incidence: California and Massachusetts, 1978–2002. Cancer Causes Control. 2006;17:217–26. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10552-005-0408-1.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  31. Jones CP. Levels of racism: a theoretical framework and a gardener’s tale. Am J Public Health. 2000;90(8):1212–5. https://doi.org/10.2105/ajph.90.8.1212.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  32. Smedley BD, Stith AY, Nelson AR. Unequal treatment: confronting racial and ethnic disparities in health care. Institute of Medicine; 2003. https://www.nap.edu/read/10260/chapter/1#R1.

  33. Acegbembo A, Tomar S, Logan H. Perceptions of racism explains the differences between blacks’ and whites’ level of healthcare trust. Ethn Dis. 2006;16:792–8.

    Google Scholar 

  34. Thomas S, Quinn S. The Tuskegee Syphilis Study, 1932–1972: implications for HIV education and AIDS risk education programs in the black community. Am J Public Health. 1991;1(11):1498–505.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Shavers VL, Fagan P, Jones D, Klein WMP, Boyington J, Moten C, et al. The state of research on racial/ethnic discrimination in the receipt of health care. Am J Public Health. 2012;102(5):953–66. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2012.300773.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  36. Gamble VN. A legacy of distrust: African Americans and medical research. Am J Prev Med. 1993;9(Suppl 6):35–8.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  37. Hwang SS, Rybin DV, Kerr SM, Heeren TC, Colson ER, Corwin MJ. Predictors of maternal trust in doctors about advice on infant care practices: the SAFE study. Acad Pediatr. 2017;17(7):762–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acap.2017.03.005.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  38. Hwang SS, Rybin DV, Heeren TC, Colson ER, Corwin MJ. Trust in sources of advice about infant care practices: the SAFE study. Matern Child Health J. 2016;20(9):1956–64. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-016-2011-3.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  39. Moon RY, Hauck FR, Colson ER. Safe infant sleep interventions: what is the evidence for successful behavior change? Curr Pediatr Rev. 2016;12:67–75. https://doi.org/10.2174/1573396311666151026110148.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  40. Montano DE, Kasprzyk D. Theory of reasoned action, theory of planned behavior, and the integrated behavioral model. In: Glanz K, Rimer BK, Vishwanatha KV, editors. Health behavior and health education: theory, research, and practice. 5th ed. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass; 2015. p. 95–124.

    Google Scholar 

  41. Fishbein M. A reasoned action approach to health promotion. Med Decis Mak. 2008;28:834–44. https://doi.org/10.1177/0272989X08326092.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  42. Fishbein M, Triandis HC, Kanfer FH, Becker M, Middlestadt SE, Eichler A. Factors influencing behavior and behavior change. In: Baum A, Revenson TA, Singer JE, editors. Handbook of health psychology. Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates; 2001. p. 3–17.

    Google Scholar 

  43. Rosenstock IM. What research in motivation suggests for public health. Am J Public Health. 1960;50:295–301.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  44. Hochbaum GM. Public participation in medical screening programs: a sociopsychological study. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, United States Public Health Service. Report # 572; 1958.

    Google Scholar 

  45. Hirsch HM, Mullins SH, Miller BK, Aitken ME. Paternal perception of infant sleep risks and safety. Inj Epidemiol. 2018;5(Suppl 9):9. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40621-018-0140-4.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  46. Roehler DR, Batra EK, Quinlan KP. Comparing the risk of sudden unexpected infant death to common causes of childhood injury death. J Pediatr. 2019;212:224–227.e5. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpeds.2019.05.028.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  47. Fishbein M, Ajzen I. Predicting and changing behavior: the reasoned action approach. New York: Psychology Press; 2010.

    Google Scholar 

  48. Hauck FR, Signore C, Fein SB, Raju TN. Infant sleeping arrangements and practices during the first year of life. Pediatrics. 2008;122(2):S113. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2008-1315o.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  49. Kendall-Tackett K, Cong Z, Hale TW. Mother-infant sleep locations and nighttime feeding behavior: U.S. data from the Survey of Mothers’ Sleep and Fatigue. Clin Lact. 2010;1:27–31. https://doi.org/10.1891/215805310807011837.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  50. Tomori C, Palmquist AL, Dowling S. Contested moral landscapes: negotiating breastfeeding stigma in breastmilk sharing, nighttime breastfeeding, and long-term breastfeeding in the US and the UK. Soc Sci Med. 2016;168:178–85. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2016.09.014.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  51. Moon RY, Mathews A, Oden R, Carlin R. Mothers’ perceptions of the internet and social media as sources of parenting and health information: qualitative study. J Med Internet Res. 2019;21(7):e14289. https://doi.org/10.2196/14289.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  52. Ramos KD, Youngclarke DM. Parenting advice books about child sleep: cosleeping and crying it out. Sleep. 2006;29(12):1616–23.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  53. Chung M, Oden RP, Joyner BL, Sims A, Moon RY. Safe infant sleep recommendations on the internet: Let’s Google it. J Pediatr. 2012;161(6):1080–4. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpeds.2012.06.004.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  54. Sadeh A, Mindell JA, Luedtke K, Wiegand B. Sleep and sleep ecology in the first 3 years: a web-based study. J Sleep Res. 2009;18(1):60–73. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2869.2008.00699.x.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  55. Galland BC, Taylor BJ, Elder DE, Herbison P. Normal sleep patterns in infants and children: a systematic review of observational studies. Sleep Med Rev. 2012;16:213–22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.smrv.2011.06.001.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  56. Hagan JF, Shaw JS, Duncan PM. Bright futures: guidelines for health supervision of infants, children, and adolescents pocket guide. 3rd ed. American Academy of Pediatrics: Elk Grove Village; 2008.

    Google Scholar 

  57. Bandura A. Toward a psychology of human agency. Perspect Psychol Sci. 2006;1(2):164–80.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  58. Bandura A. Self-efficacy: toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychol Rev. 1977;84:191–215.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  59. Moon RY, Oden RP, Joyner BL, Ajao TI. Qualitative analysis of beliefs and perceptions about sudden infant death syndrome in African-American mothers: implications for safe sleep recommendations. J Pediatr. 2010;157(1):92–7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpeds.2010.01.027.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  60. Becker MH. The health belief model and personal health behavior. Health Educ Monogr. 1974;2:324–473.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  61. Walcott RL, Salm Ward TC, Ingels JB, Llewellyn NA, Miller TJ, Corso PS. A statewide hospital-based safe infant sleep initiative: measurement of parental knowledge and behavior. J Community Health. 2018;43(3):534–42. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-017-0449-x.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  62. Hutton J. Sleep baby safe and snug. Cincinnati: Blue Manatee Press; 2013.

    Google Scholar 

  63. Hutton JS, Gupta R, Gruber R, Berndsen J, DeWitt T, Ollberding NJ, et al. A randomized trial of a children’s book versus brochures for safe sleep knowledge and adherence in a high-risk population. Acad Pediatr. 2017;17(8):879–86. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acap.2017.04.018.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  64. Carlin RF, Abrams A, Mathews A, Joyner BL, Oden R, McCarter R, et al. The impact of health messages on maternal decisions about infant sleep position: a randomized controlled trial. J Community Health. 2018;43(5):977–85. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-018-0514-0.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  65. Moon RY, Hauck FR, Colson ER, Kellams AL, Geller NL, Heeren T, et al. The effect of nursing quality improvement and mobile health interventions on infant sleep practices: a randomized clinical trial. JAMA. 2017;318(4):351–9. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2017.8982.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  66. Triandis HC. Values, attitudes, and interpersonal behavior. In: Howe HE, Page M, editors. Nebraska symposium on motivation, 1979. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press; 1980. p. 195–259.

    Google Scholar 

  67. Chu T, Hackett M, Kaur N. Housing influences among sleep-related infant injury deaths in the USA. Health Promot Int. 2016;31(2):396–404. https://doi.org/10.1093/heapro/dav012.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  68. Ramos KD. Intentional versus reactive co-sleeping. Sleep Res Online. 2003;5:141–7.

    Google Scholar 

  69. Ramos KD, Youngclarke DM, Anderson JE. Parental perceptions of sleep problems among co-sleeping and solitary sleeping children. Infant Child Dev. 2007;16(4):417–31.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  70. Ramos KD. The complexity of parent-child cosleeping: researching cultural beliefs. Mothering. 2002;114:48–51.

    Google Scholar 

  71. Blair PS, Sidebotham P, Evason-Coombe C, Edmonds M, Heckstall-Smith EMA, Fleming P. Hazardous cosleeping environments and risk factors amenable to change: case-control study of SIDS in south west England. BMJ. 2009;339:b3666. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.b3666.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  72. Das RR, Sankar MJ, Agarwal R, Paul VK. Is “bed sharing” beneficial and safe during infancy? A systematic review. Int J Pediatr. 2014:468538. https://doi.org/10.1155/2014/468538.

  73. Lee KA, Baker FC, Newton KM, Ancoli-Israel S. The influence of reproductive status and age on women’s sleep. J Women’s Health. 2008;17(7):1209–14. https://doi.org/10.1089/jwh.2007.0562.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  74. Smith LA, Geller NL, Kellams AL, Coslon ER, Rybin DV, Heeren T, et al. Infant sleep location and breastfeeding practices in the United States: 2011–2014. Acad Pediatr. 2016;16(6):540–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acap.2016.01.021.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  75. Mitchell EA, Thach BT, Thompson JMD, Williams S. Changing infants’ sleep position increases risk of sudden infant death syndrome: New Zealand Cot Death Study. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 1999;153(11):1136–41. https://doi.org/10.1001/archpedi.153.11.1136.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  76. Cornwell BT, Yan X, Carlin RF, Fu L, Wang J, Moon RY. Social network influences on new mothers’ infant sleep adjustments. Sci Med. in press.

    Google Scholar 

  77. Carlin RF, Mathews A, Oden R, Moon RY. The influence of social networks and norms on breastfeeding in African American and Caucasian mothers: a qualitative study. Breastfeed Med. 2019;14(9):640–7. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-018-0514-0.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  78. Schultz PW, Nolan JM, Cialdini RB, Goldstein NJ, Griskevicus V. The constructive, destructive, and reconstructive power of social norms. Psychol Sci. 2007;18(5):429–34. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2007.01917.x.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  79. Douglas R. Roehler, Erich K. Batra, Kyran P. Quinlan, (2019) Comparing the Risk of Sudden Unexpected Infant Death to Common Causes of Childhood Injury Death. The Journal of Pediatrics 212:224–227.e5.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Social Work, Helen Bader School of Social Welfare, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI, USA

    Trina C. Salm Ward

  2. Department of Pediatrics, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    Rachel Y. Moon

Authors
  1. Trina C. Salm Ward
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Rachel Y. Moon
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Rachel Y. Moon .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    Rachel Y. Moon

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2020 Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Salm Ward, T.C., Moon, R.Y. (2020). Parent Decision-Making and How to Influence Decisions. In: Moon, R. (eds) Infant Safe Sleep. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-47542-0_4

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-47542-0_4

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-47541-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-47542-0

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation