This National Institute of Justice-funded research analyzed data from the National Elder Mistreatment Study to gain a better understanding of the negative effects of elder abuse.
Victims of elder abuse can suffer from serious physical and mental health problems for years after mistreatment has occurred. National Institute of Justice-funded researchers analyzed data from the second wave of interviews of the National Elder Mistreatment Study to gain a better understanding of the negative effects of elder abuse. In Wave I of the study, researchers interviewed 5,777 adults age 60 or older in 2008. For Wave II, conducted 8 years after Wave I, researchers collected data from 774 Wave I participants. This article summarizes the study's findings, including the finding that victims of elder abuse who receive strong social support experience less depression and report less generalized anxiety and poor health.