ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to find any differences in theperceptions of elder abuse in perceiving daughters-in-law’s attitudetoward elderly lady who was described as being demented ornondemented in 14 vignettes. The participants were the 304 people(152 men & 152 women) living in the Kwangju area. Half of themwere in their 30s, and the other half 50s. Men perceived thedaughters-in-law's behavior toward the elderly as more seriousstate of elder abuse than women did. However, there were nodifferences in perceiving elder abuse between two age groups. Inaddition, the participants perceived less serious state of elder abusewhen they were informed that the elderly lady was a dementiapatient than when they were not informed. The findings werediscussed in the context of gender role as well as the burden ofthe caregivers with demented patient.