Although the factors listed below cannot explain all types of elder abuse, because it is likely that different types (as well as each single incident) involve different casual factors, they are some of the causes researchers say are important.

Some families are more prone to violence than others because violence is a learned behavior and is transmitted from one generation to another. In these families, abusive behavior is the normal response to tension or conflict because they have not learned any other ways to respond. In such cases, the family members have a way of relating to each other that is generally hostile and non-nurturing.

The adult children may have been abused by their parents, and having learned to interact in such a manner, carry it on into the next generation. Or there may be some unresolved family conflicts which foster abuse. The family may have a history of wife abuse which carries on into old age. Or in some cases, the roles may become reversed if the former abusing partner becomes incapacitated and his wife seizes the opportunity to retaliate.

In some cases, the elderly person becomes dependent to some degree on family members for assistance. Such dependency can tax the resources, both material and psychological, of family members and set the stage for abuse. Stress caused by too many demands and too few resources can contribute to abuse.

Caring for frail older people is a very difficult and stress-provoking task. This is particularly true when older people are mentally or physically impaired, when the caregiver is ill-prepared for the task, or when the needed resources are lacking. Under these circumstances, the increased stress and frustration of a caregiver may lead to abuse or willful neglect.

Researchers have found that abusers of the elderly (typically adult children) tend to have more personal problems than do non-abusers. Adult children who abuse their parents frequently suffer from such problems as mental and emotional disorders, alcoholism, drug addiction, and financial difficulty. Because of these problems, these adult children are often dependent on the elders for their support. Abuse in these cases may be an inappropriate response by the children to their own sense of inadequacy.

Ignorance about the aging process and the needs of elderly people sometimes results in harm to the psychological and/or physical well being of elders.

Our society emphasizes competence, energy, self reliance and physical beauty characterized by smooth skin and slim bodies. When these characteristics start to fade as people age, the value of the people themselves lessens in the eyes of many. Little respect is given to persons who are seen as useless and unattractive. It is much easier to abuse people who are not respected.

Rarely will any one of these factors on its own lead to abuse. Usually a combination of circumstances is involved.