Effects of Dependency on Compliance Rates Among Elder Abuse Victims at the New York City Department for the Aging, Elderly Crime Victim's Unit

• Published in: Journal of gerontological social work Vol. 46; no. 3-4; pp. 229 - 247
• Main Authors: Powell, Mebane E., Berman, Jacquelin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Taylor & Francis Group 01.01.2006; Taylor & Francis LLC
• Subjects: Adult abuse & neglect; Age Factors; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Case Management; Compliance; Crime Victims - psychology; Cross-Sectional Studies; Dependency; Dependency (Psychology); Drug abuse; Elder Abuse; Elder Abuse - psychology; Elder Abuse - statistics & numerical data; Female; Humans; Male; Mental disorders; Mental Disorders - classification; Mental Illness; New York City; Patient Compliance - statistics & numerical data; Public Health Administration; Referral and Consultation - utilization; Risk Assessment; Risk Factors; Social Work; Substance Abuse; Victims; New York City; United States > US; New York City New York
• ISSN: 0163-4372; 1540-4048
• DOI: 10.1300/J083v46n03_13

A study was conducted at the New York City Department for the Aging Elderly Crime Victim's Unit (ECVU) to examine the relationship between dependency and compliance rates. Dependency was defined by the total score for each case on the Victim Dependency Scale and Abuser Dependency Scale. Compliance was defined as the act of accepting a referral and compliance rates were determined by counting the total number of referrals the victim accepted. Findings indicated that the only factor associated with compliance rates was if the abuser had a mental illness/substance abuse problem. If the abuser did have this problem, the victim was significantly more likely to accept a referral for services as compared to victims whose abusers did not have a mental illness/substance abuse problem (t = -2.774, df = 36.899, p < .01). The authors offer explanations as to why this research was important and the implications it has on future research.