Predictive capacity of the theory of planned behavior regarding the intention of having natural childbirth in pregnant women in Birjand

Given the increasing rate of cesarean sections in Iran, as a major health problem and its effects on maternal mortality, the present study aimed at determining the predictive capacity of the “theory of planned behavior” (TPB) regarding the intention for having “natural childbirth” in pregnant women of Birjand city in 2015.
In this cross-sectional study, 195 pregnant women in their 20th to 24th gestation weeks were incorporated via convenience sampling method. The data collection tool was the standardized questionnaire developed based on the TPB constructs. The reliability of the questionnaire, was approved using Cronbach's alpha in the domains of knowledge, attitude, perceived behavioral control, and the subjective norms were 0.71, 0.71, 0.87, and 0.87, respectively. The obtained data was analyzed by means of SPSS [V. 16], using Pearson’s correlation coefficient to determine the role of each constructand regression analysis tests. The significant level was P Mean age of the pregnant women participating in the study was 26.07±5.4 years. A significant positive correlation was found between all TPB variables and intention (P The current study showed that TPB can predict pregnant mothers’ intention of having natural childbirth