Elder mistreatment in South Asian communities: a review of the literature
| Date | 10 December 2018 |
| Pages | 193-206 |
| Published date | 10 December 2018 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/JAP-06-2018-0011 |
| Author | Ashfaque Ahmed Talpur,Tony Ryan,Parveen Ali,Sharron Hinchliff |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care,Vulnerable groups,Adult protection,Safeguarding,Sociology,Sociology of the family,Abuse |
Elder mistreatment in South Asian
communities: a review of the literature
Ashfaque Ahmed Talpur, Tony Ryan, Parveen Ali and Sharron Hinchliff
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to perform a review of the literature of empirical studies on elder
mistreatment (EM) in South Asians, and to discuss key implications for policy, practice and research.
Design/methodology/approach –For this review, multiple electronic databases in the international health
and social science were searched and supplemented by grey literature and cross-references. Quality of
papers was assessed by two authors against the standard checklists.
Findings –In total, 16 studies met the inclusion criteria of this review, of which 11 were cross-sectional
design, and only six of them used standard instruments to measure EM. The prevalence estimates of overall
EM retrieved from general population-based studies ranged from 9.3 per cent in India to 49.1 per cent in
Nepal. Age, gender, residential settings, socioeconomic status, health, education, and social structures and
processes were key risk factors for EM in South Asian communities. Reporting and action taking were
culturally rooted.
Originality/value –While the review is not systematic, there are limitations associated with the paper in
covering the diverse range of databases and studies. However, this review provides a valuable synthesis of
the empirical papers on the incidence, culturally specific risk factors and reporting trends of EM in South
Asians. Additionally, the review presents the papers evaluated for a quality to ensure the validity of empirical
data. Finally, the review includes several implications for policy, practice and future research on EM which
may ultimately contribute in improving the health and wellbeing of elder South Asians.
Keywords Mental health, Prevalence, Safeguarding, Reporting, Older people, Risk factors, South Asian,
Elder mistreatment
Paper type Research paper
Background
The risk of elder mistreatment (EM) in the growing ageing population is predicted to increase in
the future (Phelan, 2013). It is projected that by 2050, the global population of older people will
reach to nearly 2.1 billion, and 80 per cent of this population will live in less developed countries of
the world (United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division, 2015).
The ageing population in South Asia has increased significantly –there are over 100 million older
people age 60 and over in India (Chokkanathan, 2014), 8 million in Pakistan (Dildar and Saeed, 2012)
and 9.9 million in Bangladesh (Tareque et al., 2015). There are also significant numbers of the South
Asians that live overseas, mostly in America, Europe, and the Middle East (Castles et al., 2013).
EM has been considered as a foreign problem among Asian communities living in the South Asia
or overseas (Soneja, 2001). It is more likely because older people have been venerated and
respected in the culture and religion of South Asians (Chokkanathan and Lee, 2005). The
changes in family structure, familial roles and expectations caused by recent occupational
mobility and a stressful demanding lifestyle, however, has made such cultural and religious
assumptions questionable (Bowes et al., 2008; Nagpaul, 1997). In India, for example,
10 per cent (about 10 million) of the population of older people reported EM (Alam et al., 2012).
There is no universally agreed upon definition of EM, however, the definition that is frequently
and widely used both in research and practice (Lachs and Pillemer, 2004; Mysyuk et al., 2013)
states that it is a sing le or repeated act or la ck of appropriate ac tion, occurring wit hin any
Received 22 June 2018
Revised 11 September 2018
Accepted 20 September 2018
Ashfaque Ahmed Talpur,
Tony Ryan, Parveen Ali and
Sharron Hinchliff are all based
at the School of Nursing and
Midwifery, The University of
Sheffield, Sheffield, UK.
DOI 10.1108/JAP-06-2018-0011 VOL. 20 NO. 5/6 2018, pp. 193-206, © Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 1466-8203
j
THE JOURNAL OF ADULT PROTECTION
j
PAG E 19 3
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