Elder Mistreatment and the International Response

Elder abuse is recognized globally as a significant public health problem impacting older adults worldwide.¹ International bodies from the World Health Organization to the United Nations and the International Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse, among other agencies, have noted the individual and societal harms caused by elder mistreatment. Each year, the United States and countries around the world commemorate World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD) to promote understanding and awareness of the abuse and neglect of older persons.²
Research studies have been undertaken to describe, evaluate, and address elder mistreatment across the globe.
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Australia³
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Brazil⁴ ⁵
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Belgium⁶
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Canada⁷
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Chile⁸
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China⁹
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Greece¹⁰
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Hungary¹¹
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India¹² ¹³ ¹⁴
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Iran¹⁵ ¹⁶
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Israel¹⁷ ¹⁸
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Italy¹⁹
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Jamaica²⁰
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Japan²¹
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Kenya²²
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Mexico²³ ²⁴
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Nepal²⁵
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New Zealand²⁶
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Norway²⁷ ²⁸
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Poland²⁹
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Serbia³⁰
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Singapore³¹
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Spain³²
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South Korea³³ ³⁴
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Switzerland³⁵
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Turkey³⁶
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Uganda³⁷
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United Kingdom³⁸ ³⁹

¹ Pillemer, K., Burnes, D., Riffin, C., & Lachs, M. S. (2016). Elder abuse: global situation, risk factors, and prevention strategies. The Gerontologist, 56(Suppl_2), S194–S205.
² USC Center on Elder Mistreatment. (2020). World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. Retrieved from https://eldermistreatment.usc.edu/weaad-home/
³ Dow, B., Vrantsidis, F., O’Brien, M., Joosten, M., & Gahan, L. (2020). Elder abuse in Australia. In International Handbook of Elder Abuse and Mistreatment, 559–574.
⁴ Santos, F. D. S., de Lima Saintrain, M. V., de Souza Vieira, L. J. E., & Gomes Marques Sampaio, E. (2018). Characterization and prevalence of elder abuse in Brazil. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 0886260518781806.
⁵ Leocádio, V., & Bomfim, W. (2024). Social support and elder mistreatment in Brazil: exploring relationships and moderating effects. Journal of Elder Abuse & Neglect, 36(5), 458–486. https://doi.org/10.1080/08946566.2024.2384397
⁶ Meert, S., & De Donder, L. (2025). Elder abuse in Flanders, Belgium: perspectives from home care nurses. Journal of Elder Abuse & Neglect, 37(1), 24–49. https://doi.org/10.1080/08946566.2024.2428945
⁷ Baumann, A., Crea-Arsenio, M., Smith, V., Antonipillai, V., & Idriss-Wheeler, D. (2024). Abuse in Canadian long-term care homes: A mixed methods study. BMJ Open Quality, 13(2), e002639. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjoq-2023-002639
⁸ Araneda, N. G., & Lowick-Russell, J. (2020). Elder Abuse in Chile: Evidence, Legal Regulations and Immediate Challenges. In International Handbook of Elder Abuse and Mistreatment, 89–110.
⁹ Gao, X., Chen, Y., Guo, L., & Sun, F. (2024). Stressor, coping, resources and potentially harmful behaviors by family caregivers of cognitively impaired older adults in China: The mediation role of caregiver burden. Journal of Family Violence. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-024-00691-2
¹⁰ Giannouli, V., & Tsolaki, M. (2023). What goes wrong with the perceptions of elder financial abuse? Data from older adults, healthcare professionals and students from Greece. Journal of Elder Abuse & Neglect, 35(4–5), 228–235. https://doi.org/10.1080/08946566.2023.2291050
¹¹ Tóth, O. (2020). Violence and Maltreatment of the Elderly in Hungary. In International Handbook of Elder Abuse and Mistreatment, 243–263.
¹² Shankardass, M., & Irudaya Rajan, S. (2018). Abuse and Neglect of the Elderly in India (1st ed. 2018). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-6116-5
¹³ Bakshi, S., & Mishra, S. K. (2023). On measures of elder abuse: Investigating the intensity and extent in seven states of India. Journal of Social and Economic Development. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40847-023-00272-x
¹⁴ Abdi, A., Tarjoman, A., & Borji, M. (2019). Prevalence of elder abuse in Iran: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Asian Journal of Psychiatry, 39, 120–127.
¹⁵ Nemati-Vakilabad, R., Khalili, Z., Ghanbari-Afra, L., & Mirzaei, A. (2023). The prevalence of elder abuse and risk factors: a cross-sectional study of community older adults. BMC Geriatrics, 23(1), 616–616. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-023-04307-0
¹⁶ Lowenstein, A., & Naim, S. P. (2020). Coping with Elder Abuse in Israel: The Multi-systemic Model. In International Handbook of Elder Abuse and Mistreatment, 335–347.
¹⁷ Bensimon, M., Weissberger, G. H., & Shrira, A. (2024). A qualitative inquiry of holocaust survivors in the face of financial exploitation. Journal of Loss and Trauma, 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1080/15325024.2024.2362698
¹⁸ Badenes-Ribera, L., Fabris, M. A., & Longobardi, C. (2019). Elder mistreatment in an Italian population: prevalence and correlates. The International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 0091415019875454.
¹⁹ Eldemire-Shearer, D., Willie-Tyndale, D., Robinson, C., & Davis, J. M. (2020). Elder Abuse—An Examination of the Situation in Jamaica. In International Handbook of Elder Abuse and Mistreatment, 175–197.
²¹ Tsukada, N. (2020). Japan’s 10-Year Legislative Experience, Current Status and Future Challenges in Preventing Elder Abuse. In International Handbook of Elder Abuse and Mistreatment, 461–483.
²² Atetwe, L. K. (2020). Prevalence of Elder Abuse in Emuhaya Sub-county, Vihiga County, Kenya. In International Handbook of Elder Abuse and Mistreatment, 577–602.
²³ Rodriguez, L. G., & Botero, M. A. (2020). Elder Abuse in Mexico. In International Handbook of Elder Abuse and Mistreatment, 73–88.
²⁴ Giraldo-Rodriguez, L., & Agudelo-Botero, M. (2023). Elder abuse experienced by older Mexican women with disabilities: A current and retrospective view on domestic violence. Journal of Elder Abuse & Neglect, 36(2), 93–116. https://doi.org/10.1080/08946566.2023.2297224
²⁵ Chalise, H. N., & Paudel, B. R. (2020). Elderly Abuse among Community-Living Older Adults of Least Developed Country-Nepal. Arch Phys Rehabil Med, 1(1), 1–8.
²⁶ Thaggard, S., Boon-Nanai, J., Tautolo, E. S., & Montayre, J. (2020). Experiences of Elder Abuse in Pacific Island Communities of Aotearoa New Zealand: a Cultural Lens. Journal of Population Ageing, 1–22.
²⁷ Botngård, A., Eide, A. H., Mosqueda, L., & Malmedal, W. (2020). Elder abuse in Norwegian nursing homes: a cross-sectional exploratory study. BMC Health Services Research, 20(1), 1–12.
²⁸ Lund, S. B., Malmedal, W. K., Mosqueda, L., & Skolbekken, J. A. (2024). “Just pee in the diaper” – a constructivist grounded theory study of moral distress enabling neglect in nursing homes. BMC Geriatrics, 24(1), 366–366. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-024-04920-7
²⁹ Filipska, K., Biercewicz, M., Wiśniewski, A., Kędziora-Kornatowska, K., & Ślusarz, R. (2019). Prevalence of elder abuse and neglect: screening in Poland families. European Geriatric Medicine, 10(5), 817–825.
³⁰ Todorovic, N., & Vracevic, M. (2020). Human Rights and Elder Abuse: The Case Example of Serbia. In Advances in Elder Abuse Research, 239–251.
³¹ Wilson, I. M., Tan, K. C., Tan, J. Y. S., Jones, L., Dawood, K., & Mack, W. (2025). “I (am) scared I will hurt him, then I will regret it forever”: Singaporean caregiver perspectives and elder abuse risk. Journal of Elder Abuse & Neglect, 37(2), 150–180. https://doi.org/10.1080/08946566.2025.2469054
³² Iborra-Marmolejo, I., Aded-Aniceto, C., Moret-Tatay, C., Bernabé-Valero, G., Jorques-Infante, M. J., & Beneyto-Arrojo, M. J. (2024). Unmasking elder abuse: Depression and dependency in the post-pandemic era. Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland), 12(15), 1476. https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare12151476
³³ Paek, M.-S., Lee, M. J., & Chon, Y. (2024). Comparison Between Initial Elder Abuse and Re-abuse Cases of Korean Elder Protective Service Agencies. Journal of Family Violence, 39(3), 497–508. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-022-00484-5
³⁴ Park, J.-I. (2024). Elder abuse in association with depression and suicidal ideation among community-dwelling elderly in Korea. Yonsei Medical Journal, 65, e54. https://doi.org/10.3349/ymj.2023.0613
³⁵ Riedel, H. B., Espejo, T., Dreher-Hummel, T., Bingisser, R., & Nickel, C. H. (2024). Screening for elder mistreatment in a Swiss emergency department: a prospective cohort study. Swiss Medical Weekly, 154, 3775. https://doi.org/10.57187/s.3775
³⁶ Kalaycı, L., & Ozkul, M. (2020). The elderly as social victims of modernization: Abuse and neglect of the elderly in Turkey. In International Handbook of Elder Abuse and Mistreatment, 349–370.
³⁷ Wamara, C. K., Mbabazi, R., & Hategekimana, D. (2024). Emancipatory Social Work: A Promising Practice to End Elder Abuse in Uganda. Journal of Human Rights and Social Work, 9(4), 586–594. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41134-024-00355-7
³⁸ Penhale, B. (2020). Elder Abuse and Adult Safeguarding in UK. In International Handbook of Elder Abuse and Mistreatment, 311–331.
³⁹ Talpur, A. A., Ryan, T., Hinchliff, S., Ejegi-Memeh, S., & Ali, P. (2024). Voices unheard: exploring the perception and attitude toward reporting elder mistreatment within Pakistani communities in the UK. The Journal of Adult Protection, 26(3), 126–139. https://doi.org/10.1108/JAP-11-2023-0035