Economic Well-Being and Elder Abuse in Rajshahi District of Bangladesh

• Published in: Research on aging Vol. 37; no. 2; pp. 200 - 224
• Main Authors: Tareque, Md. Ismail, Islam, Towfiqua Mahfuza, Koshio, Atsushi, Kawahara, Kazuo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01.02.2015; SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
• Subjects: Abuse of the aged; Adult abuse & neglect; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Bangladesh; Care of the aged; Caregivers - economics; Caregivers - statistics & numerical data; Elder Abuse; Elder Abuse - economics; Elder Abuse - statistics & numerical data; Female; Households; Humans; India - epidemiology; Inequality; Intergenerational Relations; Logistic Models; Male; Mental health; Middle Aged; Older people; Policy Making; Poverty Areas; Principal components analysis; Residence Characteristics; Risk Factors; Social Class; Wealth; Wealth distribution; Well Being; India; Bangladesh; elder abuse and neglect; inequality; Bangladesh
• ISSN: 0164-0275; 1552-7573
• DOI: 10.1177/0164027514527833

This article examines the distribution of wealth and then tests associations between elder abuse and wealth in Rajshahi district of Bangladesh. Data from 896 respondents (60 years old and over) were collected in April 2009. Principal component analysis was used to construct a wealth index, and logistic regressions were performed to test the associations between wealth and elder abuse. Results reveal that about 62% of individuals from poor households face abuse of some kind, whereas only 6% of individuals from rich households do. The test of the relationship between elder abuse and wealth also suggests that individuals from rich households were more likely not to be abused than individuals from poor households. Results of this study may be useful to policy makers developing policies and programs aimed at preventing elder abuse and reducing inequalities in elder abuse in Rajshahi district as well as in the whole of Bangladesh.