Elder mistreatment experiences, perceptions, and help-seeking behaviors of Asian American older adults

ABSTRACT

This study examined the experiences and the perceptions of elder mistreatment (EM), as well as help-seeking knowledge and behaviors, particularly about Adult Protective Services (APS), among community samples of Asian American older adults, including Koreans, Chinese, and others (N = 288). Approximately 27% of the study participants experienced at least one EM incident in the past year. Between 27% and 38% of the participants reported that they were likely to seek help from APS for different types of EM. Significant differences were found across the three Asian groups in their perceptions toward EM and intention to seek help from APS in the event of EM. However, many Asian American older adults in the study did not know about APS prior to participating in the study (75.5%) and other formal sources of help (66.3%). Implications for helping professionals, particularly APS and community-based organizations serving Asian Americans, are discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• Adult protective services
• Asian Americans
• elder abuse
• elder mistreatment
• help-seeking behaviors

Acknowledgments

The partial preliminary findings from the original project of the study were reported to the National Asian Pacific Center on Aging (2014). The report is available at: https://www.napca.org/resource/experiences-perceptions-and-help-seeking-behaviors-of-elder-mistreatment-among-asian-american-and-pacific-islander-older-adults/

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The participants of this study did not give consent for their data to be shared publicly. In addition, due to the sensitive nature of the research topic, supporting data is not available.

Notes

1. The percentage of participants for each city/region is based on the current study sample (N=288).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Research, Scholarship and Creative Activity, Assigned Time Award 2019-2020 at California State University, Los Angeles; and the following funding sources from the University Northern Iowa when the first author was affiliated with the university: 2012-2013 Capacity Building Large Scale Project Grant; 2013 Summer Fellowship; and College of Social and Behavioral Sciences Project Grant, Spring 2013.