Introduction:

The increase of the elderly population develops new challenges to society, revealing an increase of the incidence of violence against the elderly. The early identification of these situation is assumed to be the basis for an effective approach, requiring a deepening of knowledge regarding risk factors.

Objectives:

Identify the main factors that contribute to violence against the elderly, in the family context.

Methods:

Integrative literature review in the databases B-On, BVS and Scopus, from 2015 to 2020, in Portuguese, English and Spanish, using the descriptors “elder abuse”, “risk factors” and “family”.

Results:

Prevalence rate between 9.6% and 77.8%; risk factors associated with the elderly: age > 69 years, illiteracy, physical and economic dependence, cohabitation, conflicting family relationship, neuropsychiatric impairment and depression and absence of regular contact with family/friends; risk factors associated with the caregiver: < level of informal support, physical/social/emotional overload, use of substances, young age, cohabitation and neurotic personality.

Conclusion:

The caregiver burden and conflicting relationships come up as the main risk factors. The importance of a family, holistic and systemic assessment is emphasized, imposing the creation of protocols and training for professionals, and the development of educational activities. Further studies are required in the Portuguese/European context, due to the influence of cultural factors.

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