Abuse and neglect of seniors in British Columbia: an empirical and theoretical analysis

This thesis provides a description of elder abuse in British Columbia by profiling the parties involved in elder abuse situations and empirically testing Gordon and Brill?s (2001) Integrated Theoretical Model of Elder Abuse as an explanation of the relevant risk factors. The data were collected from a purposive sample of cases reported to the British Columbia Coalition for the Elimination of Abuse to Seniors from January 1, 2000 to December 31, 2004. The sample (N=392) was comprised of cases which happened within the Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD) or the Capital Regional District (CRD) and that involved an abuse situation and a victim 65 years of age or older. Several aspects of elder abuse were examined including: the relationships between abusers, victims, and abuse reporters; the presence of seven different types of abuse; and the accuracy and utility of the integrated theory model for explaining those abuse types.