Cultural expectations may also play an important role in shaping and influencing
the way older people are regarded and treated. Many authors have written about the
influence of the ascribed female gender roles of care-giving and being a battered
spouse or parent (Neysmith, 1995; Nerenberg, 1995, 1998). The societal image and
the ascribed role(s) projected on an individual to adhere to society's rules without
questioning are the key to understanding why an older victim stays in an abusive or
negligent situation (Nahmiash, 2002). My thesis will analyze the extent to which 27
cultural expectations such as filial piety and cultural images such as the role of a
"dutiful" son or daughter-in-law may become possible determinants of elder abuse
and neglect