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Abuse and the Elderly

In recent years, the problem of child abuse--long hidden behind closed doors and ignored by the public--has come to the forefront of public attention. So, tool, have other problems of domestic violence and abuse, such as wife-beating. But there is another category of abuse within the household that has, as yet, attracted little attention. This is abuse of the elderly. Yet the elderly are the fastest-growing segment of the American popula-tion. This report will discuss the problem of abuse of the elderly. It will show that it is an issue of growing importance, both because of the increasing numbers of the elderly and because of other demographic and social factors. This growth in the number of older people, along with a number of other factors which will be detailed below, suggests that abuse of the elderly may become a growing problem in the years ahead.

Our perceptions of the elderly are in a continual state of change. In most traditional societies, and in America through the first part of the 19th century, the old were respected, even revered, as the repository of wisdom and experience. Then, from the mid-19th century into the present century, a new perception of the aged grew up. This is an image of them as feeble and frail, out of touch with their surroundings and generally waiting to die. A number of factors may have led to this change; one was simply that in the earlier period few people--only the strongest and healthiestù-ever made it to old age. As medical improvements permitted more people to live longer, a greater proportion of them lingered on into old age in poor health.

Today, with the growing numbers and impact of active, vigorous retirees, perceptions of older people may be changing again. But the image of mobile, self-reliant "snowbirds" and "empty-nesters" may be as incomplete and therefore as misleading as the earlier image of wheelchair-bound senility and dotage. These active retired people--ranging in age f...

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Abuse and the Elderly. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 16:36, March 28, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1686789.html