Risk Factors of Elder Abuse based on Demographic, Socio-economic and Cultural Challenges

Introduction: Elder abuse is a type of domestic violence and one of the main social health issues in modern societies. Due to the importance of elder abuse and its effects on the elderly, this phenomenon requires the full attention of social protection organizations, the health care system and policymakers. Therefore, the present study aimed to identify the risk factors for elder abuse in Iranian society based on Demographic, Socio-economic and cultural challenges. It is expected that the results of study can be used for reducing and preventing of elder abuse in Iranian society.Material and Method: The present cross-sectional study was carried out on the elderly population in ۲۲ districts of Tehran in ۲۰۱۸-۲۰۱۹. Simple random sampling was used to collect the samples. Demographic Information Questionnaire and the Elder Abuse Questionnaire were used for this purpose. Data were then analyzed by SPSS software version ۱۸, using univariate and multivariate linear regression models at of ۰.۹۵% confidence intervals.Results: The results revealed that the highest and lowest frequencies of elder abuse were related to the dimensions of emotional abuse and physical abuse. Among the studies variables, life status with the family (p> ۰.۰۰۱), education level (p> ۰.۰۰۱), financial adequacy (p> ۰.۰۰۱), and Perceived health status (p> ۰.۰۰۱) are predictors of elder abuse in the participants of this study.Conclusion: Because the demographic variables are predictive risk factors for elder abuse, it is important for social protection organizations, health care systems, and policy makers to strengthen their measures, design plans, processes and programs to reduce the risk of elder abuse, community-level prevention, and remove barriers related to the promotion of demographic variables."

Keywords:

Elderly , Elder Abuse , Mistreatment of the Elderly , Risk Factors , Predictive Model.