Intimate partner violence in older women.
OBJECTIVE
We describe the prevalence, types, duration, frequency, and severity of intimate partner violence ("partner violence") in older women.


METHODS
We randomly sampled a total of 370 English-speaking women (65 years of age and older) from a health care system to participate in a cross-sectional telephone interview. Using 5 questions from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) and 10 questions from the Women's Experience with Battering (WEB) Scale, we assessed a woman's exposure to partner violence. We estimated lifetime partner violence prevalence using the BRFSS questions (physical, forced intercourse, forced sexual contact, verbal threats, and controlling behavior), and we estimated past-5-year and past-year prevalence using the BRFSS and the WEB Scale. We estimated violence frequency, duration, and severity using the BRFSS questions.


RESULTS
According to the BRFSS, lifetime partner violence prevalence was 26.5%; 18.4% of women experienced physical or sexual violence and 21.9% experienced nonphysical violence (threats or controlling behavior). According to the BRFSS and WEB Scale, past-5-year violence prevalence was 3.5%, and past-year violence prevalence was 2.2%. Many abused women reported more than 20 episodes of violence in their lifetime (from 18.1% for physical violence to 61.2% for controlling behavior). The median duration ranged from 3 years (forced sexual contact) to 10 years (controlling behavior). The proportion of abused women rating their abuse as severe ranged from 39.1% (forced sex or sexual contact) to 70.7% (threats).


CONCLUSIONS
The high lifetime partner violence occurrence, frequency, duration, and severity, coupled with results from prior studies indicating long-term adverse health effects of partner violence, suggest a need for increased efforts to address partner violence in older women.
Bonomi
Amy E
AE
Department of Human Development and Family Science, The Ohio State University, 1787 Neil Avenue, 135 Campbell Hall, Columbus, OH 43214, USA. bonomi.1@osu.edu
Anderson
Melissa L
ML
Reid
Robert J
RJ
Carrell
David
D
Fishman
Paul A
PA
Rivara
Frederick P
FP
Thompson
Robert S
RS
D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D017579:Domestic Violence / Q000145:classification* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D014481:United States