U.S. Population Estimates and Correlates of Sexual Abuse of Community-Dwelling Older Adults

Michael B. Cannell, Todd Manini, Emily Spence-Almaguer, Mildred Maldonado-Molina, Elena M. Andresen

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

26 Scopus citations

Abstract

We describe the annual prevalence of sexual abuse among community-dwelling older adults in the United States. We also describe factors associated with experiencing sexual abuse. We used data from 24,343 older adults from the 2005 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System pooled across 18 states. We estimated prevalence of sexual abuse, bivariate distributions, and odds ratio associations across demographic, health, and contextual factors. Our results show that 0.9% of older adults reported experiencing sexual abuse in the previous year. This represents approximately 90,289 community-dwelling older adults. We also report on factors associated with experiencing recent sexual abuse. There was a significant gender by binge drinking interaction, with a stronger association among women. There is a need for health promotion efforts targeted specifically toward older adults, encouraging them to seek services, if possible, after exposure to sexual abuse.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)398-413
Number of pages16
JournalJournal of Elder Abuse and Neglect
Volume26
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 2014

Keywords

  • BRFSS
  • abuse
  • population
  • sexual
  • surveillance

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Social Sciences (miscellaneous)
  • Geriatrics and Gerontology

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