Domestic violence against older women in intimate relationships : Case managers' attitudes towards older women’s exposure to violence

Purpose: The purpose is to investigate perceptions of the older woman as a victim of violence and how the exposure to violence can be understood based on ageist perceptions of social workers in elderly care and how these affect the social workers' work with older women who experience domestic violence. Method: The study has a qualitative study design with semi-structured interviews where data is analyzed based on an abductive approach. Results: Results show that older people are not associated with violence. Domestic violence in older women is seen as something that has been going on for a long time and thus normalized, while neglect and psychological violence are considered common forms of violence in older women. Older women receive support in the form of special housing to escape violence.