Theories Of Elder Abuse

There are numerous theories that are used to explain the reasons why elder abuse occurs: the exchange theory, social learning theory, and political economic theory, all of which are briefly described below. First, the exchange theory describes relationships between people based on dependencies that exist—in the case of abuse, this would be between a victim and a perpetrator (Brownell, 1998). The exchange theory is a process of negotiation between both parties where the relationships are formed by the use of cost-benefit analysis. In addition, the exchange theory was created on the idea that social interaction are involved between at least two people that are exchange of rewards and punishments (Brownell, 1998). This may take the form of the reward becoming a value, such as money, that is exchanged for goods and services between the caregiver and elder. Financial abuse is a sample of exchange theory because; the perpetrator wants to use the financial resources from the victim. By that time, the victim feels that she/he has no choice but to continue in a powerless relationship and has to be dependent on the caregiver. This is applied to abuse because the needs that happen between a victim and a perpetrator are based on a value goods such money. In the case of Elder Abuse, the perpetrator benefits from the victim financial assets.

In social learning theory, the abuse is seen as either learned from being punished and/or by observations of violence (Woolf, 2003). Social learning theory is based on the belief that violence (or any other social behavior) is a learned behavior pattern (Brownell, 1998). That is, people learn from observing the actions of others. Children who are raised in an abusive home or high crime communiti...

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...udies have shown that elder abuse often takes place in the senior residence (Dosomething.org, 2014).

Female elders are more than likely to be victims of abuse and neglect than their male counterpart (Gorbien & Einstein, 2005). Some reasons for the higher risk are that female elders are stereotyped to be weaker and more fragile than their male counterpart. Female elders have a higher chance of suffering from physical abuse and the majority of the victims in sexual abuse cases are women (Gorbien & Eisenstein, 2005). Not surprisingly, in 2003, studies show that two out of every three (65.7%) elder abuse victims were female (National Council on Aging, 2014). In addition, studies have shown that elder females are more likely to live alone, increasing their risk for self-neglect whereas, elder males are more likely to live with others (Gorbien & Eisenstein, 2005).