Older women's experiences of domestic violence and abuse

Domestic violence and abuse (DVA) is a global problem and developing appropriate responses is a challenge for health and social care services (Lombard and McMillan, 2013). Not only is DVA entrenched and wide-reaching, it assumes many forms and has lasting impacts. There is no singular type of 'perpetrator', nor a homogenous group of 'victims' or 'survivors'. DVA affects people of all ethnicities, cultures, religious communities, sexual orientations, genders, socio-economic classes, geographies, mental capacities and physical abilities at any point during the life-course. However, it has been highlighted that the neglect of older women in DVA research and practice 'has been a silent and unconscious one [as d]omestic violence institutions as well research on domestic violence often maintain a focus upon young and middle aged women' (Goregen, 2011: 1). Inasmuch, older women constitute a 'hidden group' of victims/survivors (Turner et al., 2010). This chapter is concerned with the experiences of older women, who, like younger women, experience DVA in considerable numbers and who experience physical, sexual, emotional and psychological harm as a result