Table 1 Operational definition of variables

Maternal age

Classified as: 15–19, 20–24, 25–34, 35–49

Parity

Number of births: 0 births, 1–2 births, 3 + births

Education

Never attended, primary, secondary/higher

Marital status

Not married, Married/in union, Single/divorced/widowed

Religion

Protestant, Orthodox, Muslim, catholic/others

Place of delivery

Facility, Home

Mode of delivery

Caesarean, Vaginal

Type of delivery attendant

Skill birth attendant (Yes/No)

Maternity home use

Mother use maternity waiting home before labor (Yes/No)

Child sex

Male, female

Household wealth index

Household Wealth quintiles (low, middle, high)

Residence

Place of residence: urban, rural

Region

Six administrative regions of Ethiopia where the PMA Ethiopia panel survey is conducted (Addis Ababa, Afar, Amhara, Oromia, SNNP, and Tigray)

PNC

Mothers are considered to have PNC, if they have immediate visit with in 1 h of birth (for the early initiation of breastfeeding) or PNC visit at six-week postpartum period (for EBF)

Pregnancy intention

Mothers who want to become pregnant then (intended) or want to wait until later or not want to have any / any more children at all (unintended) at the time she became pregnant

Postpartum nutrition counseling

If Mothers got a counseling about EBF during PNC visit from health care providers (Yes/No)

Obstetric Complication

Presence of any of the below self-reported maternal complications. This are “Bleeding, membrane rupture before labor, membrane rupture at < 9 months gestation, malpresentation/malposition, prolonged labor (> 12 h), convulsion, retained placenta (> 30 min),high fever with foul smelling discharge or lower abdominal pain”

Immediate neonatal birth status

Whether baby cried immediately after birth or baby needed Resuscitation after birth

Immediate skin-to-skin contact

Whether baby placed to mother’s chest immediately after birth or not

Child illness

Whether baby suffered from any illness since birth