Highlights
- •What is the primary question addressed by this study? In what ways do women continue to be affected by past intimate partner violence victimisation in late life?
- •What is the main finding of this study? Older women who have survived intimate partner violence experience poorer psychological health, high risk for incident depression, and greater vulnerability to elder abuse even many years after the violence has ended.
- •What is the meaning of the finding? Older survivors of intimate partner violence are at high risk for psychological ill-being and renewed victimisation, indicating the importance of close clinical monitoring and ongoing support service provision as they age.
Abstract
Objective
To assess the psychological impacts and risk for elder abuse associated with historical
intimate partner violence (IPV) in older women.
Design
Prospective cohort study
Setting
All Australian states and territories.
Participants
A total of 12,259 women aged 70–75 years at baseline participating in the Australian
Longitudinal Study of Women's Health.
Measurements
Women were asked at baseline whether they had ever been in a violent relationship
with a partner, and completed a comprehensive survey about their physical and psychological
health every 3 years (15 years follow-up) including the Short Form-36 Mental Health
subscale (SF-MH) and Vulnerability to Abuse Screening Scale (VASS). Linear mixed effects
modelling with maximum likelihood estimation assessed the impact of IPV over time
on the SF-MH and VASS. Risk for incident depression and experiencing physical or sexual
violence over follow-up was examined using logistic regression models.
Results
The 782 (6.4%) women who reported historical IPV recorded significantly poorer psychological
wellbeing at all timepoints compared to those who did not report historical IPV, and
were at higher risk for incident depression over follow up (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.36,
95% confidence interval [CI]:1.11–1.67). There was no significant relationship between
historical IPV and self-reported exposure to physical or sexual violence in late life
(aOR = 0.87, 95%CI: 0.53–1.43), but women who reported historical IPV recorded higher
rates of vulnerability to abuse on the VASS.
Discussion
Women who have experienced a violent relationship continue to experience negative
effects into older age, highlighting the importance of clinical monitoring and ongoing
support for survivors as they age.
Key Words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: December 28, 2020
Accepted:
December 17,
2020
Received in revised form:
December 16,
2020
Received:
October 28,
2020
Identification
Copyright
© 2021 American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
