NCJ Number
145106
Journal
Journal of Elder Abuse and Neglect Volume: 4 Issue: 3 Dated: (1992) Pages: 1-18
Date Published
1992
Length
18 pages
Annotation
The phenomenon of abuse in old age was examined in a semi-rural community in Finland from the beginning of 1989 to May 1990.
Abstract
Data were collected through mailed questionnaires, interviews, and clinical examinations among people born in 1923 or earlier. Statistical analyses were performed on 394 men and 628 women. Overall, 6.7 percent--3 percent of the men and 9 percent of the women--reported that they had suffered abuse since reaching the age of retirement. At and beyond age 75, abuse was equally prevalent among both sexes. Among the abused, the women were more likely to indicate a family member or other relative as the perpetrator (75 percent, vs. 46 percent for the men), while the men were more likely to be victimized by a friend or stranger (54 percent, vs. 22 percent for the women). A common setting for the abuse was the victim's home, especially for the women (82 percent, vs. 46 percent for the men); another 46 percent of the men reported having been abused in the streets, at a shop, or in an office building. The abused persons were characterized by poor health, loneliness, and low satisfaction with life. Demographically, the only significant indicator was prior self-employment among the women--in most cases, as a farmer's wife. This finding points toward the poor economic situation--and perhaps the personality traits--of farmers and ex-farmers as possible correlates of abuse. The abuse rate was higher among smoking than among non- or ex-smoking men, which may indicate a correlation between abuse and the personality traits of men who continue to smoke. 7 tables and 17 references