The answer to elder abuse is connectedness

It's Elder Abuse Awareness Day today and I'm reminded of this piece of work I did four years ago for Public Trust. It paints a worrying picture of our most experienced Kiwis under attack, and I'm sure the statistics are no better in 2021.

Yet that's not the side of the story I would choose to focus on today.

The image of the older person as naive to the threats of the digital age is dehumanising, reductive and ultimately inaccurate. Younger people are, in fact, more likely to be targeted by and fall victim to online scams than older people (source below).

That's not to say that elder abuse isn't an issue. It is, and we do indeed need to raise awareness of it. But it is made possible, in many cases, because of social isolation. It's time to reorient ourselves and build inter-generational connectedness.

Sources:

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/03/07/millennials-fall-for-financial-scams-more-than-other-age-groups.html

https://www.stuff.co.nz/life-style/104604550/elder-abuse-often-linked-to-loneliness-and-isolation-age-concern-nelson-tasman