The Determination of Female Students' Perspectives on Breastfeeding in Public Places and Attitudes Towards Fertility and Childbearing

Introduction and aim: Fertility, childbearing, and breastfeeding are among the most significant milestones in life. This research aims to assess the perspectives of female students enrolled in the Faculty of Health Sciences regarding breastfeeding in public places and their attitudes towards fertility, and childbearing. Material and methods: This is a descriptive and cross-sectional study conducted with female students (n=202) enrolled in the Faculty of Health Sciences at a Foundation University. Data were collected using a "Data Collection Form" and the "Attitudes towards Fertility and Childbearing Scale (AFCS)". Descriptive data were expressed as numbers, percentages, and frequencies. Mann-Whitney U test and Kruskal-Wallis H test were used for data analysis. Results: It has been determined that female students generally have a positive attitude towards breastfeeding in public places. 88.0% of the students reported that they were not uncomfortable being in the same environment with a breastfeeding woman, and 85.15% stated that talking to or interacting with a breastfeeding woman was a normal occurrence. The number of students who believe that breastfeeding in public places is not normal is 17.3%. The mean scores of female students for AFCS's 1st Factor are 35.8±10.4, for the 2nd Factor are 40.9±7.6, and for the 3rd Factor are 22.7±3.3. Conclusion: While female students generally have positive attitudes towards breastfeeding in public spaces and towards fertility, and childbearing.