The elderly at risk: a critical examination of commonly identified risk groups

Abstract

This study assessed the nature and extent of the risk or disadvantage for 11 subcategories of the elderly population usually referred to as risk groups. Interviews with 619 over-60-year-olds living in Aberdeen were used to score the ;personal resources' for coping with difficulties-health, psychological, activity, confidence, support, material resources. Risk profiles have been drawn up and these show substantial variation in both the nature and extent of risk or disadvantage between the groups.Of the 11 groups, we concluded that the isolated, the childless and the never married are probably the least disadvantaged. The recently widowed, those living alone, the poor and those from social class V form an intermediate group with both strengths and weaknesses in terms of risk. The groups at greatest risk are the recently moved, recently discharged, divorced/separated and the very old, who all score worse than the whole sample in terms of health and psychological functioning.