Prevalence and correlates of elder mistreatment in a community-dwelling population of U.S. Chinese older adults

Xinqi Dong, Ruijia Chen, Terry Fulmer, Melissa A. Simon

Publication Date: 10/01/2014

Objective: This study aimed to examine the prevalence and correlates of elder mistreatment among U.S. Chinese older adults. Method: Data were drawn from the Population-Based Study of ChINese Elderly (PINE) study, a population-based epidemiological survey of 3,159 U.S. Chinese older adults in the Greater Chicago area. The study design was guided by a community-based participatory research approach. Results: This study found a prevalence of 15.0% for elder mistreatment among community-dwelling Chinese older adults. In addition, higher levels of education (r = .16, p<.001), fewer children (r = .1, p< .001), lower health status (r = .11, p< .001), poorer quality of life (r = .05, p< .01), and worsening health over the past year (r = .08, p< .001) were positively correlated with any elder mistreatment. Discussion: Elder mistreatment is prevalent among U.S. Chinese older adults. The findings point to a pressing need for researchers, community service workers, health care providers, and policy makers to increase efforts on reducing elder mistreatment in U.S. Chinese communities. Publisher:
https://doi.org/10.1177/0898264314531617