Prevalence of Elder Abuse Among Shiraz Education Retirees: A Cross-sectional Study

Abstract

Objectives: To investigate the prevalence of elder abuse and its related factors among retirees of the Department of Education. Design: A cross-sectional study. Setting(s): The current study was conducted in Shiraz, the capital of Fars province, Iran. Participants: A sample of 280 (157 females and 123 males) community-dwelling older adults aged≥60 were selected using a systematic random sampling method. Outcome measures: The data were collected through a demographic questionnaire and the Domestic Elder Abuse Questionnaire (DEAQ). Demographic characteristics, including age, gender, marital status, living arrangement, household size, number of children, disease and its type, health status, education level, income, and house ownership, were examined to evaluate their impact on elder abuse. In addition, the prevalence of elder abuse and its subscales (i.e., emotional neglect, care neglect, financial neglect, curtailment of personal autonomy, psychological abuse, physical abuse, financial abuse, and abandonment) was also measured. Results: Approximately 40% of participants underwent at least one type of abuse. Financial abuse (32%) and physical abuse (3.9%) were reported as the most and least frequent types of abuse, respectively. Moreover, there was a statistically significant relationship between some demographic variables (e.g., age, presence of disease, duration of disease, health status, and income level) and the total abuse index. Additionally, some variables had statistically significant relationships with various subscales of abuse. Conclusions: Findings highlight the need to develop efficient policies to prevent elder abuse. Further research is thus recommended to determine influencing factors and appropriate interventions.