NCJ Number
203209
Journal
Violence Against Women Volume: 9 Issue: 12 Dated: December 2003 Pages: 1442-1452
Date Published
December 2003
Length
11 pages
Annotation
This study focused on the type of abuse, the relationship to the abuser, the referral source, and service needs of 2,702 White, African-American, and Hispanic female victims of domestic violence aged 55 and older who sought services from domestic violence programs.
Abstract
Study data were collected by the Illinois Coalition Against Domestic Violence, a not-for-profit organization whose primary purpose is to advocate for and assist service providers with domestic violence policy issues and education and training at local, program, and State levels. All domestic service agencies funded by the Coalition provided data on client demographics, the circumstances of abuse, and service needs by using a standardized client intake form. The analysis focused on differences among the three largest racial/ethnic groups for female clients 55 and older in terms of their demographic characteristics, circumstances of abuse, and service needs. African-American clients were less likely to be currently married compared with the other two ethnic groups; Hispanics were most likely to be currently married; Hispanics were also least likely to be divorced or legally separated or widowed compared with White and African-American clients. Information on the relationship between clients and abusers indicates that Hispanics, perhaps because of their marital status, had the largest proportion of clients who reported that their abusers were husbands or former husbands. Sixty-one percent of White clients were also abused by persons in this category. In contrast, less than half of all female African-American clients were abused by a current or former spouse, but approximately 40 percent of all African-American clients reported that their abuser was a male or female relative. Hispanic clients were slightly more likely to report physical abuse compared to White and African-American clients. Police were the referral source for the largest proportion of White and African-American clients. Hispanic clients were as likely to be referred by police as by a social service agency. White and African-American women were less likely than Hispanic women to be referred by social service agencies or by friends, but they were somewhat more likely to be referred by legal sources. Older women in the domestic violence service system, regardless of ethnicity, had different experiences than persons in the adult protective service system. They were more often victims of intimate partner violence and had corresponding service needs that varied by race and ethnicity. Implications of these findings for older victims of domestic violence are discussed. 1 table, 4 notes, and 19 references