Report

There is limited research on the extent to which elderly victims use various services or engage in protective behaviors, as well as their efficacy. In this study, we surveyed elderly residents who experienced at least one incident of domestic abuse (victims) and received a visit from a senior services officer (SSO) or domestic violence liaison officer (DVLO) from the Chicago Police Department (CPD), and those who did not. Using community and police samples, we (1) assessed the extent to which victim groups differed on various demographic characteristics, risk factors, and protective behaviors; (2) identified differences between victim groups based on the type and frequency of victimization; (3) analyzed subsequent victimization; (4) calculated the proportion of cases in which abuse increased, decreased, maintained, or desisted; and (5) examined  whether there were any demographic characteristics, risk factors, or protective behaviors that predicted the course of abuse over time.

The abbreviated report is available here: https://www.policinginstitute.org/publication/the-course-of-domestic-abuse-among-chicagos-elderly-risk-factors-protective-behaviors-and-police-intervention/