Understanding Elder Abuse: The 2004 National Survey of Adult Protective Service Administrators

Mistreatment of older adults, including physical abuse, psychological, emotional, or mental abuse, material or financial exploitation, active neglect, passive neglect, and violation of civil rights is of growing national and international concern. Approximately 450,000 noninstitutionalized adults 60 years of age and older, or about 10 out of every 1,000 older persons living in the United States are victims of abuse. In the most recent and accurate study to date, the 2000 Survey of State Adult Protective Services indicated 472,813 reports of elder abuse (Teaster & Colleagues, 2003). Researchers and practitioners alike acknowledge that these estimates represent only the most overt cases, thus significantly underestimating the incidence of violence against elders living in long-term care facilities and in the community. The purpose of this project is to gather information on elder abuse during Fiscal Year 2003 from key Adult Protective Services (APS) supervisors throughout the 50 states, Washington, D.C. and Guam. The joint project, conducted with the National Association of Adult Protective Services Administrators and the National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse, will build on the survey conducted in 2000. The 2004 e-mail survey will focus on elder abuse specifically and will gather information on reports, investigations, substantiations, victims, perpetrators, and case outcomes concerning elder abuse in each state. To ensure reliability and validity of the data, a consultant, Marilyn Whalen, will review the data and make follow-up telephone or e-mail inquiries to clarify questionable data. Data analysis will include a variety of descriptive statistical methods, including means, frequency distributions, cross-tabulations, and plots. The resulting report will provide the most accurate picture of elder abuse in the nation as well as a reliahle data set for use bv researchers and practioners.