Elder abuse, depression, anxiety, and stress in community-dwelling older adults

Elder abuse as an important public health issue is associated in the literature with various physical and psychological symptoms. The aim of the study is to determine the relationship between elder abuse and depression, anxiety, and stress in the elderly living in the community.

The cross-sectional study was completed with 729 older people. Data were collected through a face-to-face interview and a survey form. The Geriatric Mistreatment Scale (GMS) was used to evaluate elder abuse and the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21) was used to evaluate depression, anxiety, and stress. Multivariate regression analysis was performed to determine the relationship between elder abuse and depression, anxiety, and stress.

Of the participants, 20.9% were exposed to at least one type of abuse, 9.2% experienced physical abuse, 18.2% experienced psychological abuse, 4.4% experienced neglect, and 7.0% had financial abuse. The general prevalence of moderate to very severe depression, anxiety, and stress among the elderly was respectively 17.1%, 16%, and 10%. As a result of multivariate analysis it was determined that neglect (t = 6245; ß = 4952) and economic abuse (t = 3865; ß = 3350) had statistically significant effects on depression; psychological abuse (t = 2924; ß = 0,992), economic abuse (t = 3127; ß = 3517) and neglect (t = 5913; ß = 4810) had statistically significant effects on anxiety, while psychological (t = 5023; ß = 1756) and economic abuse (t = 5719; ß = 5238) had statistically significant effects on stress (P < 0.05).

As a result of the study, it was seen that the prevalence of abuse and depression, anxiety, and stress was high in the elderly. There was also a strong relationship between types of elder abuse and depression, anxiety, and stress. It is recommended that health professionals working with older people to screen them for types of abuse and mental symptoms with the help of appropriate screening tools.