Perceptions of elder abuse among Australian older adults and general practitioners

Objectives: To examine the perceptions of elder abuse among older Australian adults and general practitioners, a topic that has not been explored to the same extent as elsewhere. Methods: Forty-eight general practitioners, 40 independent older adults, 38 older adult caregivers and 36 older care-receivers completed a modified version of Moon and Williams' (1993) questionnaire, which describes 10 potential elder abuse scenarios. Results: Split-plot analysis of variance showed significant differences in the perceptions of severity of elder abuse scenarios across groups and gender. General practitioners tended to view the scenarios as less severe than the older-aged groups. Within the older adult groups, caregivers generally perceived the scenarios as less abusive. Females generally perceived sexual abuse scenarios as more severe compared to males. Conclusions: With such differences in views evident, the development of effective assessment strategies will require more targeted efforts to increase the awareness of elder abuse in the community.