ABSTRACT
Elder abuse has been identified as an urgent problem for individuals, their families, communities, and societies, leading to increased rates of hospitalization, nursing home placement, financial ruin, severe emotional distress, and even increased rates of mortality. To provide a clearinghouse for all types of information pertaining to elder abuse, the National Center on Elder Abuse was formed by federal Administration for Community Living. Sociocultural factors that may affect risk of elder abuse include: ageist stereotypes that depict older adults as frail, weak, and dependent, erosion of the bonds between generations of family, systems of inheritance and land rights, affecting the distribution of power and material goods within families often common in rural communities and Lack of funds to pay for care. In rural areas, even locating care assistance and residential care facilities can be very limited and too costly. In contrast, the absence of or limited public transportation fosters reliance on others and increased dependency, factors associated with elder abuse.
