An increase in the proportion of the population that is considered older has led to growth in the number of older crime victims. Historically, older victims of crime have not received special attention; however, it is now recognized that the needs of older victims may be quite different from those of younger victims. Older victims may require assistance with transportation, special housing, financial counseling, personal physical care, or psychological counseling, for example. Having a sense of security and being able to live without fear for personal safety are also major concerns. This article first discusses the older adults in general and then focuses on the needs of and services for older victims of crime.
The Older
The concept age can be easily measured since it is a continuous variable. To develop a better understanding of how age is related to an individual’s development, emotions, and behavior during various periods of life, age has been conceptualized to include such categories as infant, young child, adolescence, middle age, and old age. These groupings are arbitrarily defined, and there is no agreement among researchers on the specific year that separates one category from another or on the specific year or age that should be used to define the older adults. Some researchers studying offenders and victims of crime categorize the older adults as age 60 years and older, whereas others choose age 65 years and older. The Federal Bureau of Investigation, in recording arrests made in the United States, categorizes older offenders arrested into groupings of 61–64, 65–70, and 71 and above. Research on victimization tends to follow the same categories as those used by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Trends in Size of the Older Population
An analysis of the trends in the population distribution of most economically developed countries of the world reveals that the proportion of the population that is considered older has increased during recent years, and this trend is expected to continue. The percentage of the U.S. population defined as 65 years of age or older was about 13% in 2009. It is estimated that, by 2030, 71.1 million persons in the United States, or about 19% of the population, will be in this age group. It is predicted that by 2025, more than 62 million Americans will be aged 65 or older and 7.4 million will be aged 85 or older.
In addition, as a result of improvements in health care, communications, and education, changes in life styles (including types of employment), and changes in social relationships, the life span of the populations of most countries of the world has increased. People are living longer, working longer, and have more formal and informal contact with people outside their primary social relationships. In the past, a large proportion of the victimization of the older adults was by family members, relatives, and close acquaintances. However, the victimization of the older adults by non-primary group contacts has increased as a result of the aforementioned factors.
Older persons have become more vulnerable to criminal victimization for a number of reasons. A larger proportion of the older adults than in the past lives in nursing homes or managed care facilities, under the care of persons other than family members or relatives. If they remain in their homes, they may not have interaction with or emotional support from close family members. For those who are physically or mentally disabled, the need to rely on outsiders is more apparent. When family members are involved in older adult care, they sometimes abuse or steal from the older adults.
Researchers have identified such abuse as including neglect, emotional/psychological abuse, financial/material exploitation, and physical abuse. Researchers report that many older violent crime victims reported being victimized at or near their homes. Only about half of the older victims reported the victimization. Higher rates of victimization have been found for individuals who are living in low-income households, are unemployed or retired, are in poor health, have experienced prior traumatic experiences, and have low levels of social support.
The older adults often are the targets of fraud or scams. Such fraud and scams perpetrated against older persons include health care, Medicare, and health insurance fraud; counterfeiting prescription drugs; and fraudulent antiaging products. Other victimizations involve telemarketing scams such as the The Pigeon Drop, The Fake Accident Play, and Charity Scams as well as Internet fraud and e-mail phishing scams. Investment schemes, homeowner/reverse mortgage scams, and sweepstakes and lottery scams may also target older persons.
Response to Older Victimization
Much of the crime against the older adults is either not discovered by the victims or, whether detected by them, never reported to a person or agency that can provide assistance. The older adults in hospitals or nursing homes or under the care of their children often are not mentally capable of realizing that they are being victimized, as they may be too trusting of their caregivers. Moreover, they may be afraid of accusing their children, relatives, or other persons caring for them of wrongdoing. Those who are aware that they have been victims of fraud or scams may not report the victimization for various reasons, including the embarrassment of admitting that they have been tricked.
Crime Prevention Strategies for the Older Adults
The following are strategies known to be employed to prevent victimization of the older adults and to assist those who have been victimized:
- a communications network to keep the older adults alert to potential crime;
- information and training on how to report crime;
- services to support older victims in dealing with the physical, emotional, and financial impacts of crime; and
- access to products, training, and other services to help prevent victimization.
When employing such strategies, it is important that the information provided be factual and truthful but not create such a fear of crime that the older adults are afraid to leave their homes to shop, go to church, or engage in social activities. To the extent possible, the older adults should be encouraged to engage in social interaction with family, friends, and others in the community.
Action strategies for preventing victimization of the older adults consist of legislation, providing services, and law enforcement programs. The Victims of Crime Act passed by the U.S. Congress in 1984 established the Crime Victims Fund. The funds are used to support victim assistance and compensation programs. All victims, regardless of their age, who have experienced physical or material harm from a criminal act can apply for assistance and compensation.
Crime Victim Assistance Agencies
Older victims of crime tend to rely on their family and friends for emotional and physical support. A secondary source of support is a victim service agency. These agencies provide such services as assisting the victim through the court system, providing assistance in crisis intervention situations, assisting the victim with the completion of forms such as requests for compensation, assisting with the completion of impact statements, and visiting victims at their homes. These agencies may also provide educational materials for crime prevention programs and training in personal safety. In addition, they may assist victims in locating housing and funds should they have immediate needs relating to food and shelter as well as make referrals to other agencies, including counseling agencies.
In many police jurisdictions, the security needs of the older adults have been recognized, and programs to ensure the safety of older citizens have been developed. These programs include the assignment of police officers to housing complexes for older residents, providing crime prevention education for the older adults, and establishing community policing programs in neighborhoods where the large majority of the residents are senior citizens.
References:
- Fryling, T. (2009). Elder abuse. In J. K. Wilson (Ed.), The Praeger handbook of victimology (pp. 83–85). Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger.
- National Council on Aging. (2015). Top 10 scams targeting seniors: 1-3. Retrieved from http://www .Enhance-economic security/economic-security-initiative/savvy-saving-seniors/top-10 scams-targeting.htm:
- National Crime https://www.ncoa.org/ economic-security/money-management/scams-security/ top-10-scams-targeting-seniors/
- National Institute of Justice. (2015). Elder abuse. Retrieved from https://www.nij.gov/topics/crime/elderabuse/pages/welcome.aspx
- Prevention Council. (2015). Strategy: Crime prevention services for the elderly. Retrieved from http://Crime Prevention Strategies crime-prevention-services- for-the-elderly http://archive.ncpc.org/topics/violentcrime-and-personal-safety/strategies/strategy-crimeprevention-services-for-the-elderly.html