Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-g8jcs Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-26T17:48:34.823Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Elder mistreatment, ageism, and human rights

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 February 2013

Simon Biggs  and
Irja Haapala
Simon Biggs*
Affiliation:
School of Social & Political Sciences, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Irja Haapala
Affiliation:
School of Applied Educational Sciences and Teacher Education, University of Eastern Finland, Savonlinna, Finland Currently a Visiting Research Fellow, National Ageing Research Institute, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: Professor Simon Biggs, School of Social & Political Sciences, University of Melbourne, Victoria, 3010, Australia. Phone: +61-3-94831368; Fax: +61-3-9417 2691. Email: [email protected].
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Background: Elder mistreatment, social ageism, and human rights are increasingly powerful discourses in positioning older people in society, yet the relationship between them has rarely been subjected to critical investigation. This perceived relationship will have implications for how mistreatment is understood and responded to.

Method: Critical gerontological approach based on narrative and textual analysis.

Results: Reports of public attitudes toward mistreatment suggest that it is thought to be more common than scientific evidence would suggest; however, reporting is much lower than prevalence. While the discourse over mistreatment has tended to focus on interpersonal relationships, ageism has emphasized social attitudes, and human rights have concentrated on relations between the state and the individual.

Conclusions: In this paper, a series of models have been examined which mark a tendency to restrict and then attempt to reintegrate individual, interpersonal, and social levels of analysis. It is concluded that a focus on the processes of transaction across boundaries rather than contents would facilitate both integrative modeling and deeper understanding of the qualities of abusive situations.

Keywords

elder mistreatmenthuman rightssocial ageismdignityambivalence
Type
Special Issue Research Articles
Information
International Psychogeriatrics , Volume 25 , Issue 8: Elder abuse an international perspective , August 2013 , pp. 1299 - 1306
Copyright
Copyright © International Psychogeriatric Association 2013 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Ansello, E., King, N. and Taler, G. (1986). The environmental press model: a theoretical framework for intervention in elder abuse. In Pillemer, K. and Wolf, R. (Eds.), Elder Abuse: Conflict in the Family (pp. 314–330). Massachusetts: Auburn House.Google Scholar
Ardendt, H. (1973). The Origins of Totalitarianism. Cleveland: World Publishing Co.Google Scholar
Biggs, S. (2004). New Ageism: age imperialism, personal experience and ageing policy. In Daatland, S.-O. and Biggs, S. (Eds.), Ageing and Diversity (pp. 95–106). Bristol: Policy Press.Google Scholar
Biggs, S. and Haapala, I. (2010). Theoretical development and elder mistreatment: the management of socio-emotional boundaries. Ageing International, 35, 171–184.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Biggs, S. and Lowenstein, A. (2011). Generational Intelligence: A Critical Approach to Age Relations. London: Routledge.Google Scholar
Biggs, S., Manthorpe, J., Tinker, A., Doyle, M. and Erens, B. (2009a). Mistreatment of older people in the United Kingdom: finding from the first national prevalence study. Journal of Elder Abuse and Neglect, 21, 1–14.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Biggs, S., Stevens, M., Tinker, A., Dixon, J. and Lee, L. (2009b). Institutional mistreatment and dignity: toward a conceptual understanding. Working Paper 1. The Department of Health and Comic Relief. London: King's College London and National Centre for Social Research.Google Scholar
Butler, R. N. (1975). Why Survive?: Being Old in America. New York: Harper and Row.Google Scholar
Connidis, I. A. and McMullin, J. A. (2002). Sociological ambivalence and family ties; a critical perspective. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 64, 558–567.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Doron, I. and Apter, I. (2010). The debate around the need for an international convention on the rights of older persons. The Gerontologist, 50, 586–593.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Eurobarometer. (2008). Health and long term care in the European Union. Retrieved Sept 3, 2012. Available at: http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_283_en.pdfGoogle Scholar
Fredvang, M. and Biggs, S. (2012). The Rights of Older Persons: Protection and Gaps Under Human Rights law. Melbourne: Brotherhood of St Laurence.Google Scholar
Goergen, T. (2002). Abuse and neglect of elderly people in residential care. Research in Legal Medicine, 27, 367–392.Google Scholar
Gold, S. and Klein, L. (2004). Harold Bridger: Conversations and Recollections. Organisational and Social Dynamics, 4, 1–21, 173–190.Google Scholar
Hawes, C. (2003). Elder abuse in residential long term care settings. In Bonnie, R. J. and Wallace, R. B. (Eds.), Elder Mistreatment: Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation in an Aging America (pp. 446–500). Washington, DC: National Research Council.Google Scholar
Help-Age International and Human Rights Watch. (2012). Protecting the Rights of Older People: 10 Reasons why we Need to act. London.Google Scholar
Hirsch, R. and Vollhardt, B. (2008). Elder Mistreatment. In Jacoby, R.et al. (eds.), The Oxford Textbook of Old Age Psychiatry (pp. 731–745) Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Hussein, S., Manthorpe, J. and Penhale, B. (2007). Public perceptions of the neglect and mistreatment of older people: findings of a UK survey. Ageing and Society, 27, 919–940.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ivison, D. (2010). Human Rights. In Bell, D. (ed.), Ethics and World Politics (pp. 239–255) Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Lachs, M. and Berman, J. (2011). Under the Radar: New York State Elder Abuse Prevalence Study. Final report. New York: Weill Cornell Medical Center.Google Scholar
Mégret, F. (2011). The human rights of older persons: a growing challenge. Human Rights Law Review, 11, 37–66.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Morgan, R. E. and David, S. (2002). Human rights: a new language for aging advocacy. Gerontologist, 42, 436–442.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
National Research Council (2003). Elder Mistreatment: abuse, neglect and exploitation in an aging America. In Bonnie, R. J. and Wallace, R. B. (eds.), Panel to Review Risk and Prevalence of Elder Abuse and Neglect. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.Google Scholar
Nussbaum, M. (2003). Capabilities as fundamental entitlements: sen and social justice. Feminist Economics, 9, 33–59.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
O'Keeffe et al. (2007). UK Study of Abuse and Neglect of Older People: Prevalence Survey Report, London: National Centre for Social Research.Google Scholar
Parra-Cardona, J. R., Meyer, E., Schiamberg, L. and Post, L. (2007). Elder abuse and neglect in latino families: an ecological and culturally relevant theoretical framework for clinical practice. Family Process, 46, 451–470.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Phillips, J. (2010). In Ajrouch, K. and Hillcoat-Nallétamby, S. (eds.), Key Concepts in Social Gerontology. Los Angeles: SAGE.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Phillipson, C. (1993). Sociological approaches to elder abuse. In Glendenning, F. (ed.), The Mistreatment of Elderly People (pp. 102–116). London: Sage.Google Scholar
Pillemer, K. and Suitor, J. J. (2008). Collective ambivalence: considering new approaches to the complexity of intergenerational relations. Journal of Gerontology; Social Sciences, 63B, 394–396.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Public Health Agency of Canada (1994). Breaking the Pattern: How Communities Can Help. Ottawa: Government of Canada.Google Scholar
Schiamberg, L. B. and Gans, D. (2000). Elder abuse by adult children; an applied ecological framework for understanding contextual risk factors and the intergenerational character of quality of life. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 50, 329–359.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sepulveda, M. and Nyst, C. (2012). The Human Rights Approach to Social Protection. Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland. Finland: Eweko Oy.Google Scholar
Shankardass, M. K. (2012). Recognising rights of old: a step to prevent abuse. The Asian Age, June 15. Retrieved Sept 3, 2012, Available at: http://www.asianage.com/ideas/recognising-rights-old-step-prevent-abuse-165Google Scholar
Stevens, M., Biggs, S., Manthorpe, G., Dixon, J. and Tinker, A. (2013). Interactional perspectives on the mistreatment of older and vulnerable people in long-term care settings. British Journal of Sociology, (in press).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tang, K-L. (2008). Taking older people's rights seriously: the role of international law. Journal of Aging & Social Policy, 20, 99–117.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
The Dignity and Older Europeans Study (2001). Operational Model of Human Dignity (Deliverable 23). Cardiff: Cardiff University.Google Scholar
The National Elder Abuse Incidence Study (NEAIS) (1998). Final Report. The Administration for Children and Families and the Administration on Aging, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Retrieved Sept 3, 2012, Available at: http://www.aoa.gov/AoARoot/AoA_Programs/Elder_Rights/Elder_Abuse/docs/ABuseReport_Full.pdf.Google Scholar
Tinker, A., Biggs, S. and Manthorpe, J. (2010). Mistreatment and neglect of older people. In Talliss, R.et al. (eds.), Brocklehurst's Textbook of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology (pp. 8). Chennai, India: Elsevier.Google Scholar
United Nations (1948). The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. General Assembly Resolution 217 (III) of 10 December 1948 containing the text of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Retrieved Sept 3, 2012, Available at: http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/217%28III%29.Google Scholar