The Effects of Sleep Disturbance and Close Family Presence in the Relationship Between Elder Abuse Victimization and Anxiety

The current study investigates both direct and indirect associations between elder abuse victimization and anxiety among community-dwelling older adults in the United States, with sleep disturbance and the presence of a trusted family member serving as intervening variables in the association. The study employed data from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study. All participants were older adults, aged 70 to 73. A total of 5,928 participants who completed in-person and personal communication during the graduate sample of Wave 3 were employed for the study. The findings indicated that elder abuse victimization was significantly associated with anxiety through sleep disturbance. Elder abuse as a primary stressor was strongly associated with sleep disturbance as a secondary stressor caused by elder abuse victimization among older adults. In addition, elder abuse victimization was associated with anxiety through sleep disturbance as an intervening stressor. Among the study population, having a trusted family member was associated with lower levels of anxiety both directly and indirectly in the wake of abuse, and also negatively associated with sleep disturbance. However, elder abuse victimization was not significantly associated with anxiety through sleep disturbance and the presence of a trusted family member serially. Given the significant impact of elder abuse victimization on sleep and mental health outcomes, screening and prevention programs are critical for vulnerable older adults in the community. Also, reducing risk factors while enhancing protective factors at multiple levels, including family, friends, and community, is critical for mitigating negative mental health outcomes.