Elderly victims of abuse: a five year document analysis

Objective To verify the occurrence of maltreatment of the elderly and its characteristics (location, type, reason, involvement of alcohol/drugs, profile and family relationship of victims and perpetrators) from the police records of a specialized police station over a five year period. Method A cross-sectional, descriptive and documentary analytical study was performed. The police reports of a medium-sized municipality in the northwest of São Paulo were analyzed from 2008 to 2012. The sociodemographic characteristics of the perpetrators and victims and the data relating to the aggression investigated were: violence; location; reason; the presence of alcohol and drugs during the assault and victim-offender relationship. Data was tabulated using descriptive statistical analysis. Results Of a total of 572 cases, most of the perpetrators were men (69.2%), Caucasian (56.5%), aged 31-40 years (14.20%) with no information regarding occupation provided (50.70%); most of the victims were women (93.0%), Caucasian (71.5%), aged 60-65 years (46.30%), married (34.10%) and unemployed/retired (59.98 %). Emotional abuse was prevalent (57.0%), occurred in the home of the elderly person (81.3%) and the children of the elderly were the main perpetrators (25.3%). The motives were related to arguments in most cases (53.1%). Conclusion Women who were Caucasian, married, aged 60-65, unemployed/retired were the main victims, with the perpetrators most frequently their own children, also Caucasian, single and aged 31-40 years. Psychological violence was the most prevalent, primarily triggered by disagreements among those involved, and it occurred most frequently in the residence of the victim. Most of the attackers were not under the influence of alcohol/drugs.