Help-seeking in older crime victims: A mixed-methods study in collaboration with the Metropolitan Police Service

Abstract

Background There are growing concerns about the psychological impact of community crimes on older victims, but little is known about whether older victims obtain mental health support. Objective To understand: A) whether older crime victims seek help for psychological distress, B) what factors predict help-seeking, and C) the barriers and facilitators to accessing support. Methods Our longitudinal mixed-methods study was embedded within the Victim Improvement Package (VIP) trial. Older victims (n = 2,932) were screened for depressive and anxious symptoms with the GAD-2 and PHQ-2 within one month of a crime. Those with significant symptoms (n = 1,170) were provided with letters signposting them to their General Practitioner (GP) (Family Physician). A subsample of older Victims (n = 677) were then re-screened at three months and asked if they had acted on the signposting. Logistic regression was used to examine predictors of help-seeking. Qualitative semi-structured interviews on a sub-sample (n = 27) were undertaken to establish barriers and facilitators to help-seeking and explore views on the signposting letter, and analysed using thematic analysis. Results Only 13% (n = 85) of distressed older victims approached their GP for help, and only 32% (n = 27) of these received help. Significant predictors of acting on signposting were police-recorded vulnerability (p = 0.01) and severity of continued anxiety at three months’ post-crime (p <0.01). Help seeking appeared to be driven by feeling overwhelmed or a desire to find others with similar experiences. Barriers to help-seeking included accessibility problems and the belief that they should be able to cope. Conclusions Despite growing evidence of psychological distress in older crime victims, few receive support. Signposting older victims may be insufficient to improve psychological outcomes and help-seeking barriers suggest more active management is required.