Socio-Economic Dynamics of Intra-Familial Elder Abuse in Baringo County, Kenya

Until the emergence of policies and legal frameworks to address domestic violence -including intimate partner and child abuse- in the last decades of the 20th century, abuse of the older people had persisted as a private matter that was accorded little public attention. Even so, intra-familial elder abuse (IFEA) has been acknowledged globally as a pervasive problem, associated with overwhelming distinct consequences, outcomes, and societal expenses. With an overall increase in the older persons’ populace, IFEA is expected to become a more pressing issue, affecting masses of older individuals globally. Kenya is experiencing population aging at a high rate, which implies that, with it, elder abuse, and particularly IFEA is anticipated to become a more pressing problem, distressing millions of older individuals countrywide. IFEA refers to as a type of family violence has been defined as a sole or repeated mistreatment and/or abusive action, which can be an act of commission or omission, intentional and unintentional, towards older persons within the family context. The definition, conceptualization, and perceptions of intra-familial elder abuse vary across societies and culture, because, what may be deemed abusive in one society might not be the case in another, thus making the whole issue of elder abuse and particularly IFEA dynamic, with variations across boundaries, religions, economic, and social settings. This study sought to explore the socio-economic dynamics of IFEA in Baringo County. The study objectives were to profile the dominant types of IFEA, to examine the dynamics of IFEA in relation to the associated socio-economic risk factors, and to assess the dynamics associated with reporting and disclosure of IFEA, guided by Homan’s Social Exchange theory. The study embraced a cross-sectional analytical survey design to collect both qualitative and quantitative data. The study was conducted in Baringo County. The respondents of the study were older persons in the area who were aged 70 years and older; 226 older persons from two purposively sampled sub counties were sampled for the study. The study also targeted key informants including local authorities, health care authorities, adult protection agency representatives and law enforcement. Semi-structured interviews, key informant interviews, and focus group discussion guides were used in data collection. Quantitative data was analyzed using the SPSS 21.0 to generate both descriptive and inferential statistics such as chi-square tests. Qualitative data was analyzed thematically. The study established that most prevalent form of intra-familial abuse reported in the study was psychological abuse (79.2%) while sexual abuse was the least (19.9%) prevalent type of IFEA. The study found out that gender of the victim, victim dependence and vulnerability, living arrangements, trust relationships, social isolation and financial dependency on the older person influenced the older persons’ experiences with the different types of abuse reported in the study. Based on the reported dynamics of IFEA in relation to reporting, the study concluded that given the right platforms, older persons are more likely to report incidences of abuse. The study concludes that IFEA is a dynamic social problem, which varies across cultural contexts, perceptions, socio-economic risk factors, as well as in its reporting and disclosure. The study recommends education, sensitization, and public awareness campaigns at the community level as preventive strategies aimed at informing members of the society about IFEA, what it constitutes, and how it can be addressed.