ABSTRACT
Despite evidence that elder abuse has occurred throughout history and across social groups and cultures, it has only recently been studied and named (Wilber and McNeilly 2001). This is in the context of increasing attention being given to all forms of family violence. In 2002, the work of the World Health Organization brought international attention to the issue of elder abuse and, increasingly, government agencies and professional groups have identified it as a social problem. There are several reasons for the lack of information and initiatives related to avoiding and addressing elder abuse: the relative newness of the field, conflicting causal theories and, as with other forms of abuse, the difficulty in obtaining data on its extent and characteristics.
