Adult Children and Grandchildren as Perpetrators of Violence against the Elderly in the Family

Cilj ovog rada je prikazati pojavne oblike, rasprostranjenost i rizične faktore za počinjenje nasilja od strane odrasle djece i unuka nad osobama starije životne dobi u obitelji. Nasilje nad starijim osobama podrazumijeva svaki oblik neprihvatljivog, pojedinačnog ili ponavljajućeg ponašanja koje djeluje razarajuće na osobe starije životne dobi unutar odnosa povjerenja. Ono ima za posljedicu štetu, nevolju i bol starijoj osobi. Istraživanja su pokazala da su odrasla djeca najčešći počinitelji nasilja nad svojim ostarjelim roditeljima. U radu će se prikazati i znakovi koji upućuju na nasilje te analizirati mjere prevencije nasilja nad starijim osobama. Posebno poglavlje posvećeno je temi nasilja unuka nad vlastitim djedovima i bakama, kao relativno novom fenomenu koji još nije zaokupio dovoljno pozornosti od stručne i šire javnosti. Naposljetku, s obzirom na sve veći udio starijeg stanovništva u ukupnoj populaciji, razumno je očekivati da će i broj žrtava nasilja u obitelji rasti, pa je upravo zato potrebno problematiku nasilja nad starijim osobama u obitelji detaljno pratiti i pokušati prevenirati.The aim of this review is to show the forms, prevalence and risk factors regarding committing violence by adult children and grandchildren against elderly people in the family. Violence against the elderly means any form of unacceptable individual or repetitive behavior that has a devastating effect on elderly people within a relationship of trust. It results in damage, distress and pain to the elderly person. Research has shown that adult children are the most frequent perpetrators of violence against their elderly parents. The paper will also show the signs pointing to violence and will analyze the measures to prevent violence against the elderly. A special chapter is devoted to the topic of violence by grandchildren against their own grandparents, as a relatively new phenomenon that has not yet attracted enough attention from professionals and the general public. Finally, considering the increasing share of the elderly population in the total population, it is reasonable to expect that the number of victims of domestic violence will also increase, which is precisely why it is necessary to monitor the issue of violence against elderly persons in the family in detail and try to prevent it