Bullying Among Older Adults: How to Recognize and Address an Unseen Epidemic

Unbeknownst to many, bullying is not an experience limited to childhood, but is an epidemic occurring far too often among older adults as well. Studies have revealed the alarmingly high rate of peer bullying in programs and care settings for older adults, resulting in profoundly negative effects on the targets, staff, and communities in which the behaviors are occurring. Bullying Among Older Adults is the first resource to address this critical issue, providing the knowledge and tools to recognize bullying behaviors and develop constructive ways to intervene and prevent them. Drawing upon a growing body of research and her own expertise, as well as the voices and actual experiences of the targets and perpetrators of bullying, Robin Bonifas explains the nature of this phenomenon and then presents positive, proactive ways for community-based or long-term care staff to recognize and prevent it from happening. Practical resources and examples offer effective intervention strategies, including empathy training, empowerment strategies, and bystander intervention, to focus on each component of the bullying equation: the program or care setting, the targets of bullying, and the bullies themselves. Downloadable materials, learning activities, cases studies and more!