{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,17]],"date-time":"2026-06-17T17:56:51Z","timestamp":1781719011223,"version":"3.54.5"},"reference-count":45,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"6","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,17]],"date-time":"2026-06-17T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1781654400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosone.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS One"],"abstract":"<jats:sec id=\"sec001\">\n                    <jats:title>Purpose<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Elder abuse is a global concern, yet detection methods focus mainly on victims. In community settings, trusted caregivers may perpetrate abuse that remains hidden due to cultural norms. Existing tools lack a contextual fit for sub-Saharan Africa. This study developed and validated the Screening Tool for Identifying Elder Abuse by Caregivers (STIEAC) in Southwest Nigeria.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec id=\"sec002\">\n                    <jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>The study used Artino\u2019s seven-step questionnaire development framework, combining a literature review and caregiver focus groups to create culturally relevant items across the neglect, physical, psychological, financial, and sexual abuse domains. Expert panels ensured content and face validity, followed by pilot testing after which the revised tool was administered in a survey among 1119 caregivers. The psychometric evaluation included factor analysis, reliability (Cronbach\u2019s alpha, Guttman split-half), and construct validity via correlations with the Zarit Burden, General Health Questionnaire-12, and Katz Activities of Daily Living scales.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec id=\"sec003\">\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>The STIEAC\u2019s 10-item structure encompasses the five elder abuse domains, demonstrating high internal consistency (Cronbach\u2019s \u03b1\u2009=\u20090.90) and reliability (split-half coefficient\u2009=\u20090.713). Bartlett\u2019s test was significant (\u03c7\u00b2\u2009=\u20097642.08, p\u2009&lt;\u20090.001), and the KMO measure was adequate (0.896). Domain-specific reliability was highest for neglect (\u03b1\u2009=\u20090.87) and lowest for sexual abuse (\u03b1\u2009=\u20090.03). Construct validity was supported by a positive correlation with the ZBI (r\u2009=\u20090.294, p\u2009=\u20090.001) and negative correlations with the GHQ-12 (r\u2009=\u2009\u22120.349, p\u2009=\u20090.001) and the Katz ADL (r\u2009=\u2009\u22120.160, p\u2009=\u20090.001).<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec id=\"sec004\">\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>The STIEAC is a reliable 10-item tool reflecting culturally nuanced elder abuse perpetration by caregivers in community settings. Despite the low consistency of the sexual abuse subscale, it has strong overall validity, filling a critical gap for screening for elder abuse in sub-Saharan Africa and assisting researchers and practitioners.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0351005","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,17]],"date-time":"2026-06-17T17:26:16Z","timestamp":1781717176000},"page":"e0351005","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Development and validation of the screening tool for identifying elder abuse by caregivers (STIEAC)"],"prefix":"10.1371","volume":"21","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0416-5705","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Oludoyinmola Omobolade","family":"Ojifinni","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5283-4782","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Obioma C.","family":"Uchendu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"340","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,17]]},"reference":[{"key":"pone.0351005.ref001","first-page":"261","article-title":"Screening tools for the identification of elder abuse","volume":"18","author":"M Cohen","year":"2011","journal-title":"JCOM"},{"key":"pone.0351005.ref002","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2154","DOI":"10.1111\/jocn.13721","article-title":"Screening tools for identification of elder abuse: a systematic review","volume":"26","author":"C Gallione","year":"2017","journal-title":"J Clin Nurs"},{"key":"pone.0351005.ref003","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1793","DOI":"10.2147\/CIA.S261877","article-title":"Elder Abuse Assessment Tools and Interventions for use in the Home Environment: a Scoping Review","volume":"15","author":"K Van Royen","year":"2020","journal-title":"Clin Interv Aging"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0351005.ref004","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"852","DOI":"10.1186\/s12877-022-03569-4","article-title":"Abusive episodes among home-dwelling persons with dementia and their informal caregivers: a cross-sectional Norwegian study","volume":"22","author":"G Steinsheim","year":"2022","journal-title":"BMC Geriatr"},{"key":"pone.0351005.ref005","first-page":"4633","article-title":"Caregiving and elder abuse: A complex relationship","volume-title":"Handbook of interpersonal violence and abuse across the lifespan: A project of the National Partnership to End Interpersonal Violence Across the Lifespan (NPEIV)","author":"GJ Anetzberger","year":"2021"},{"key":"pone.0351005.ref006","article-title":"Global Prevalence of Elder Abuse: A Meta-analysis and Meta-regression","author":"C Ho","year":"2017","journal-title":"East Asian Arch Psychiatry"},{"issue":"1","key":"pone.0351005.ref007","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"346","DOI":"10.1111\/jomf.12609","article-title":"Families in later life: a decade in review","volume":"82","author":"D Carr","year":"2020","journal-title":"J Marriage Fam"},{"key":"pone.0351005.ref008","article-title":"Elder Abuse: Global Situation, Risk Factors, and Prevention Strategies","author":"K Pillemer","year":"2016","journal-title":"Gerontologist"},{"key":"pone.0351005.ref009","article-title":"Effectiveness of Nurses\u2019 Training in Identifying, Reporting and Handling Elderly Abuse: A Systematic Literature Review. 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