Cultural definitions of elder maltreatment in Portugal

A small convenience sample of 34 participants (17 males, 17 females) from the Portuguese islands of the Azores and Madeira were asked to provide examples of how extreme, moderate, and mild maltreatment towards an elder would be defined in their culture and society. Neglect, especially psychological neglect, physical maltreatment, and psychological maltreatment were the most frequently reported types of maltreatment. References to neglect and physical maltreatment appeared most often as examples of extreme maltreatment. In general, men were somewhat more likely than women to provide examples of physical aggression in their examples of maltreatment. As examples of extreme maltreatment, females provided significantly more examples of abandonment than males. Although interpretations of the findings must be cautious because of the small sample size and limited statistical power, the study illustrates a procedure for assessing constructs of elder mistreatment in a way that attends to respondents' own constructions of the phenomenon.     

Senator Breaux's Elder Justice Proposal of 2002 Executive Summary

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this exploratory study was to investigate an English sample's perceptions on elder abuse, inflicted by adult children against their aging parents. Fifty participants (14 males, 46 females) provided examples of extreme, moderate, and mild elder abuse. As examples of extreme abuse, most participants mentioned neglect and physical aggression. Various forms of neglect and psychological abuse were their most common examples of moderate and mild abuse. References to physical aggression appeared most often as examples of extreme abuse rather than of moderate or mild abuse. Within these main categories, the specific subtypes most frequently mentioned by the sample included physical neglect, psychological neglect, verbal abuse, and deprivation. More females than males provided examples of financial abuse and physical neglect. Females were also more likely than males to list psychological neglect as an extreme form of abuse and disrespect as a form of mild abuse. At the moderate level, males referred to abuse relating to power more often than females. A positive relationship was found between age and the number of examples of physical neglect given at the moderate level and the number of examples of emotional abuse given at the mild level.     

English perceptions of elder abuse

The purpose of this exploratory study was to investigate an English sample's perceptions on elder abuse, inflicted by adult children against their aging parents. Fifty participants (14 males, 46 females) provided examples of extreme, moderate, and mild elder abuse. As examples of extreme abuse, most participants mentioned neglect and physical aggression. Various forms of neglect and psychological abuse were their most common examples of moderate and mild abuse. References to physical aggression appeared most often as examples of extreme abuse rather than of moderate or mild abuse. Within these main categories, the specific subtypes most frequently mentioned by the sample included physical neglect, psychological neglect, verbal abuse, and deprivation. More females than males provided examples of financial abuse and physical neglect. Females were also more likely than males to list psychological neglect as an extreme form of abuse and disrespect as a form of mild abuse. At the moderate level, males referred to abuse relating to power more often than females. A positive relationship was found between age and the number of examples of physical neglect given at the moderate level and the number of examples of emotional abuse given at the mild level.     

Implicit Theories of Elder Abuse in a Sample of European-American Descent

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine implicit theories of elder abuse in a sample of men and women of European-American descent. Seventy-six participants, ranging in age from 17 to 79, filled out an open-ended qualitative survey asking them to give examples of behaviors considered in their culture to be extremely abusive, moderately abusive, and mildly abusive in the context of an adult child-older adult parent dyad. Results indicated that various types of physical aggression and neglect (with an emphasis on physical neglect) were the most common examples of extreme abuse. Psychological aggression was the most common example of moderate abuse, and forms of psychological abuse and neglect were the most frequent examples of mild abuse. Gender differences were found, with females more often mentioning examples of neglect than males. Sexual and economic abuse did not seem to be commonly identified forms of mistreatment in implicit theories of elder abuse.     

S 333 IS–108th Congress, 1st Session: To Promote Elder Justice,and for Other Purposes

ABSTRACT

The sample for this exploratory qualitative study of Greek perceptions of elder abuse consisted of 43 Greek participants from urban centers and 28 Greeks from a small island village. Participants were asked to provide examples of extreme, moderate, and mild abuse from an adult child toward his/her aging parent. Half of the examples of extreme abuse were various forms of physical aggression. Predominant examples of moderate abuse were psychological abuse and neglect, and at the mild level neglect was the most highly cited category. The most frequently mentioned specific types of elder mistreatment were verbal abuse, psychological neglect, physical neglect, and hitting. There were no gender differences in the kinds of examples that participants gave or the severity they attributed to their examples. Females were more often presented as victims of abuse than males. A negative correlation was found between age and the number of physical abuse examples given overall, and as types of severe abuse.     

Russian Perspectives on Elder Abuse: An Exploratory Study

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this exploratory study was to analyze Russian perceptions of elder abuse as reflected in their examples of abusive behavior from an adult child to an aging parent. Also of interest was the possibility of gender differences in the Russian perspectives on elder abuse. The convenience sample consisted of 21 Russian participants (10 males, 10 females, and one without gender identified), who provided examples of extreme, moderate, and mild abuse from an adult child towards an aging parent. Most examples of extreme abuse were forms of physical violence. Typical examples of moderate abuse were instances of psychological aggression–particularly verbal aggression–and neglect. The most common examples of mild abuse were verbal aggression and neglect. One-way analyses of variance revealed statistically significant gender differences in the number of references to psychological aggression in general and to verbal aggression in particular in the examples of moderate abuse, with females giving more examples than males.     

Definitions of Elder Abuse in an Italian Sample

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this exploratory qualitative study was to analyze definitions of elder abuse in an Italian convenience sample. Fifty-three Italian participants (15 males, 38 females) provided examples of mild, moderate, and extreme mistreatment of older individuals by their adult children. Analyses were conducted to identify frequently mentioned types of abuse and to determine how severe they were judged to be. Also examined was the extent to which gender and age contributed to response patterns. Most examples of extreme elder abuse made reference to physical abuse and neglect, while references to psychological aggression and neglect predominated as examples of moderate and mild abuse. Examples of neglect appeared with equal frequency at all levels of severity, but physical aggression was mentioned primarily as a form of extreme abuse, and psychological aggression was mentioned more frequently in examples of moderate and mild abuse. The most frequently identified types of specific abuse were abandonment, verbal abuse, emotional abuse, and psychological neglect. When giving examples of extreme abuse, females mentioned more instances of financial exploitation than males. They also gave more examples of verbal aggression and lack of respect as instances of moderate abuse and behaviors reflecting power or control as examples of mild abuse. A statistically significant negative relationship was found between age and the number of examples given of particular types of mistreatment at each of the levels of severity of abuse.     

Implicit theories of elder abuse in a sample of European-American descent

The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine implicit theories of elder abuse in a sample of men and women of European-American descent. Seventy-six participants, ranging in age from 17 to 79, filled out an open-ended qualitative survey asking them to give examples of behaviors considered in their culture to be extremely abusive, moderately abusive, and mildly abusive in the context of an adult child-older adult parent dyad. Results indicated that various types of physical aggression and neglect (with an emphasis on physical neglect) were the most common examples of extreme abuse. Psychological aggression was the most common example of moderate abuse, and forms of psychological abuse and neglect were the most frequent examples of mild abuse. Gender differences were found, with females more often mentioning examples of neglect than males. Sexual and economic abuse did not seem to be commonly identified forms of mistreatment in implicit theories of elder abuse.     

Perspectives on elder abuse in Greece

The sample for this exploratory qualitative study of Greek perceptions of elder abuse consisted of 43 Greek participants from urban centers and 28 Greeks from a small island village. Participants were asked to provide examples of extreme, moderate, and mild abuse from an adult child toward his/her aging parent. Half of the examples of extreme abuse were various forms of physical aggression. Predominant examples of moderate abuse were psychological abuse and neglect, and at the mild level neglect was the most highly cited category. The most frequently mentioned specific types of elder mistreatment were verbal abuse, psychological neglect, physical neglect, and hitting. There were no gender differences in the kinds of examples that participants gave or the severity they attributed to their examples. Females were more often presented as victims of abuse than males. A negative correlation was found between age and the number of physical abuse examples given overall, and as types of severe abuse.     

Definitions of elder abuse in an Italian sample

The purpose of this exploratory qualitative study was to analyze definitions of elder abuse in an Italian convenience sample. Fifty-three Italian participants (15 males, 38 females) provided examples of mild, moderate, and extreme mistreatment of older individuals by their adult children. Analyses were conducted to identify frequently mentioned types of abuse and to determine how severe they were judged to be. Also examined was the extent to which gender and age contributed to response patterns. Most examples of extreme elder abuse made reference to physical abuse and neglect, while references to psychological aggression and neglect predominated as examples of moderate and mild abuse. Examples of neglect appeared with equal frequency at all levels of severity, but physical aggression was mentioned primarily as a form of extreme abuse, and psychological aggression was mentioned more frequently in examples of moderate and mild abuse. The most frequently identified types of specific abuse were abandonment, verbal abuse, emotional abuse, and psychological neglect. When giving examples of extreme abuse, females mentioned more instances of financial exploitation than males. They also gave more examples of verbal aggression and lack of respect as instances of moderate abuse and behaviors reflecting power or control as examples of mild abuse. A statistically significant negative relationship was found between age and the number of examples given of particular types of mistreatment at each of the levels of severity of abuse.     

Russian perspectives on elder abuse: an exploratory study

The purpose of this exploratory study was to analyze Russian perceptions of elder abuse as reflected in their examples of abusive behavior from an adult child to an aging parent. Also of interest was the possibility of gender differences in the Russian perspectives on elder abuse. The convenience sample consisted of 21 Russian participants (10 males, 10 females, and one without gender identified), who provided examples of extreme, moderate, and mild abuse from an adult child towards an aging parent. Most examples of extreme abuse were forms of physical violence. Typical examples of moderate abuse were instances of psychological aggression-particularly verbal aggression-and neglect. The most common examples of mild abuse were verbal aggression and neglect. One-way analyses of variance revealed statistically significant gender differences in the number of references to psychological aggression in general and to verbal aggression in particular in the examples of moderate abuse, with females giving more examples than males.     

Turkey: A Pilot Study of Elder Mistreatment in a Convenience Sample

ABSTRACT

Attitudes towards elder abuse were explored through a survey on International Perspectives on Family Violence and Abuse in a Turkish convenience sample of 25 females and 14 males, ranging in age from 22 to 58. Participants gave examples of behaviors considered in their culture to be extremely abusive, moderately abusive, and mildly abusive from an adult child toward his or her older parent. Responses were coded into four major categories of abuse, each of which had several subcategories: psychological aggression (including the subcategories of verbal aggression, emotional abuse, disrespect, disobedience, power assertion, blame, and imprisonment), neglect (including physical neglect, psychological neglect, abandonment, and putting the older individual into a nursing home), physical aggression (including beating and hitting), and mistreatment related to goods and services (including economic demands, economic withholding, and labor). The most common examples of extreme abuse were neglect, particulary physical neglect, followed by physical abuse. At the moderate and mild levels, various forms of psychological aggression were most commonly mentioned. The only significant gender difference was that men listed more instances of verbal aggression as examples of extreme abuse than women. A positive correlation was found between age and the number of abandonment examples at the extreme level. Results were interpreted from a cultural perspective.     

Turkey: a pilot study of elder mistreatment in a convenience sample

Attitudes towards elder abuse were explored through a survey on International Perspectives on Family Violence and Abuse in a Turkish convenience sample of 25 females and 14 males, ranging in age from 22 to 58. Participants gave examples of behaviors considered in their culture to be extremely abusive, moderately abusive, and mildly abusive from an adult child toward his or her older parent. Responses were coded into four major categories of abuse, each of which had several subcategories: psychological aggression (including the subcategories of verbal aggression, emotional abuse, disrespect, disobedience, power assertion, blame, and imprisonment), neglect (including physical neglect, psychological neglect, abandonment, and putting the older individual into a nursing home), physical aggression (including beating and hitting), and mistreatment related to goods and services (including economic demands, economic withholding, and labor). The most common examples of extreme abuse were neglect, particulary physical neglect, followed by physical abuse. At the moderate and mild levels, various forms of psychological aggression were most commonly mentioned. The only significant gender difference was that men listed more instances of verbal aggression as examples of extreme abuse than women. A positive correlation was found between age and the number of abandonment examples at the extreme level. Results were interpreted from a cultural perspective.     

The Role of Early Maladaptive Schemas in the Appearance of Psychological Symptomatology in Adult Women Victims of Child Abuse

ABSTRACT

Child abuse affects people’s ways of thinking, feeling, and observing the world, resulting in dysfunctional beliefs and maladaptive schemas. Thus, consequences of child abuse may persist during adulthood. Therefore, the aim of this study was to analyze the psychological consequences (anxiety, phobic anxiety, depression, and hopelessness) of different types of maltreatment (physical, sexual, and emotional abuse and physical and emotional neglect) and to study the role of early maladaptive schemas in the onset of symptomatology in adult female victims of child abuse. The sample consisted of 75 women referred by associations for treatment of abuse and maltreatment in childhood. Sexual abuse was the type of maltreatment that was most strongly related to most dysfunctional symptomatology, followed by emotional abuse and physical abuse, whereas physical neglect was the least related. Also, early maladaptive schemas were found to correlate with child abuse and dysfunctional symptomatology. Finally, early maladaptive schemas mediated the relationship between sexual abuse and dysfunctional symptomatology when the effect of other types of abuse was controlled. These results may provide important guidance for clinical intervention.     

Risk factors associated with elder abuse: the importance of differentiating by type of elder maltreatment

Elder abuse research rarely differentiates by the type of elder maltreatment involved when identifying risk factors. The purpose of this study was to compare risk factors across four predominant types of elder maltreatment (financial exploitation, physical abuse, neglect by others, and hybrid financial exploitation [HFE]). Data were collected from two sources: interviews with victims of substantiated elder abuse, responding adult protective services (APS) caseworkers (N = 71), and third-party informants; and a statewide database that contained all substantiated cases over a corresponding 2-year period (N = 2,142). Using chi-square (interview data) and logistic regressions (Adult Services/Adult Protective Services [ASAPS] data), significant differences across the four types of elder maltreatment were found. These two datasets provide converging evidence for the importance of differentiating by type of maltreatment when identifying risk factors for elder maltreatment and for the importance of considering both the elderly victim and the abusive individual when predicting type of elder maltreatment.     

Elder Abuse and Neglect in an Urban Chinese Population

ABSTRACT

This study aims to investigate the prevalence of elder abuse and neglect in an urban Chinese population. A cross-sectional study was performed in a major urban medical center in NanJing, China. A total of 412 participants completed the survey and 145 (35%) participants screened positive for elder abuse and neglect. The mean age of the victims was 69 years and 59% were male. Caregiver neglect was the most common form of abuse, followed by financial exploitation, psychological abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse, and abandonment. Thirty-six percent of the victims suffered multiple forms of abuse and neglect. In the logistical regression analyses of the data, female gender, lower education and lower income were demographic risk factors associated with elder abuse and neglect. A better understanding of these and additional risk factors associated with elder abuse and neglect in older Chinese people is needed.     

Multi‐type maltreatment and the long‐term adjustment of adults

Multi‐type maltreatment refers to the experience of more than one form of child maltreatment (sexual abuse, physical abuse, psychological maltreatment, neglect and witnessing family violence). Researchers have largely ignored the presence of other types of child abuse and neglect when examining the adjustment problems associated with a particular form of maltreatment. The association between ‘multi‐type maltreatment’ and adjustment was explored in the current study. Retrospective data were obtained on (a) the degree to which maltreatment types co‐occurred, (b) childhood family characteristics and (c) adjustment problems in adulthood in an Australian self‐selected community sample (N=175). As hypothesized, a large degree of overlap was reported in the experience of the five types of maltreatment. Family characteristics—particularly family cohesion and adaptability—discriminated between respondents reporting single‐type and multi‐type maltreatment. Greater adjustment problems were associated with reports of a larger number of different maltreatment types. Multi‐type maltreatment should be recognized as a crucial aspect of the nature and impact of child maltreatment and considered in the development of programmes for the prevention and treatment of child abuse and neglect. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Awareness of Elder Abuse Among Community Health and Social Care Staff in Northern Ireland: An Exploratory Study

ABSTRACT

This article reports on one of the first surveys of multi-disciplinary staff awareness of elder abuse in this region of the United Kingdom (UK). Forty staff from eight professional groups in the Southern Health and Services Board area were surveyed about their knowledge of elder abuse, the types of help they thought they could offer the abused and the abuser, and the level of abuse in their current caseload. Thirty-five per cent of respondents had cases of physical, psychological, financial, and sexual abuse as well as care-giver neglect of people aged 65 and over in their caseloads. The findings suggest that while staff had differing levels of awareness of elder abuse, further training is necessary.     

Physical,sexual and psychological abuse in high school dating relationships: Prevalence rates and self-esteem issues

The present study examined the rates of victimization by physical, sexual and psychological abuse in adolescent dating relationships, with self-esteem being explored as a mediating variable. Subjects included 257 students from a coed, ethnically diverse, religiously affiliated high school. Information was obtained using a self-report questionnaire on teenage dating behaviors. Of the 114 male and 118 female subjects who had dating experience, 59% had been victimized at least once in some past or current dating relationship by physical violence, 96% had experienced some form of psychological maltreatment and 15% had been forced to engage in sexual activity. Significantly more males than females reported experiencing physical abuse overall. Significantly more males than females experienced acts of moderate physical abuse, while there was no significant gender difference in the experience of acts of severe physical abuse. Thirteen percent of the subjects stated they had remained in a physically abusive relationship at one time, with females being more likely to remain than males. Self-esteem was not a factor in the level of physical abuse sustained in dating relationships, nor was there a significant difference in the levels of self-esteem between subjects who remained in, terminated, or never were involved in, physically abusive dating relationships. For all subjects, self-esteem negatively correlated with the level of psychological maltreatment sustained in dating relationships, but separate analysis by gender found the correlation was significant only for female subjects.     

Prevention of child abuse and neglect and improvements in child development

The aim of the study was to evaluate the implementation of a section in the Danish Social Assistance Act which encourages local authorities to offer families services in order to support children at risk of child maltreatment. The specific purpose of the present paper is to answer the question: Will the socio‐psychological development of children known to social services be improved when abuse and neglect are reduced? A sample of 1,138 children was drawn at random from new social services cases starting in 1998. Subsequently, about 80 per cent were evaluated by local caseworkers on the basis of a standardised questionnaire covering a period of four years. The most damaging family conditions seemed to be psychological maltreatment, physical/sexual abuse and neglect. Maltreated children were more often in a depressed state, unhappy, socially isolated, or they had an eating disorder, inadequate or under‐nutrition, suicidal tendencies, lack of concentration, or disturbed behaviour, compared to those children who were not exposed to abuse and neglect. If parental behaviour improved, effects on children's well‐being were also observed and positive changes in children's socio‐psychological development were identified. The questionnaire explored the impact of various interventions, including services geared to strengthen the child's network, but results indicated that the child displayed reduced risk of reactive symptoms only when parental behaviour improved and abuse and neglect were reduced. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.