Elder Abuse: National Public Awareness Efforts

1
Elder Abuse National Public Awareness Efforts

• Preliminary description of the public awareness
  resource collection conducted by the
  Clearinghouse on Abuse and Neglect of the Elderly
  (CANE) - University of Delaware for the National
  Center on Elder Abuse (NCEA) 2007-2008

2
Elder Abuse National Public Awareness Efforts

• What elder abuse public awareness (PA) materials
  exist?
• Searched the CANE database www.cane.udel.edu
• Solicited materials and information from aging
  services networks
• Searched the internet

3
Elder Abuse National Public Awareness Efforts

• What we found
• Many public awareness tools have been created
  over time and throughout the country
  approximately 500 resources were identified and
  are catalogued in the CANE database.

4
EA Public Awareness Materials Identified by Medium
5
EA Public Awareness Materials
6
EA Public Awareness Materials
7
EA Public Awareness Materials
8
Searching CANE
9
Searching CANE
10
Accessing Materials Online
11
EA Public Awareness Materials

• Components of successful national social
  marketing campaigns
• Effective campaigns include
• formative research in order to target a defined
  audience and create centralized messaging that
  resonates with the audience across campaign
  components
• use of communications channels appropriate for
  that audience
• continuous feedback, refinement, revision of
  campaign.
• As a bottom line, the success of the campaign
  depends largely upon the publics perception that
  the issue is important and that those mounting
  the campaign are credible.

12
EA Public Awareness

• Most existing EA materials are
• Designed for a general audience
• Regional in focus
• May miss an integral step of making the issue
  personally relevant and digestible to the
  audience (for example, The Odds campaign on
  autism awareness, Ad Council)

13
EA Public Awareness

• Future steps
• To develop an understanding of what is most
  likely to motivate people to take action
• To develop messages based upon this
  understanding
• To partner with community organizations and
  coalitions for input, and to disseminate these
  messages.

14
For More Information

• National Center on Elder Abuse Public Awareness
  Initiative
• Sharon Merriman-Nai
• Smnai_at_udel.edu
• 302-831-7010
• Karen Stein, PhD.
• kstein_at_udel.edu
• 302-831-4049
• Carolyn Petrak
• cpetrak_at_udel.edu
• 302-831-6495