Lonely people vulnerable to financial exploitation

Researchers who study elder abuse have long believed that when older adults face loneliness or relationship problems, they are more likely to fall victim to monetary scams and exploitation. But to date researchers had not established a firm causal link.

Now, a team of researchers has collected longitudinal data showing that an increase in interpersonal dysfunction, defined as loneliness or dissatisfaction with relationships, predicts subsequent vulnerability to financial exploitation. The results are published in the journal Aging & Mental Health.

What the researchers say: “To our knowledge, this is the first study showing that the quality of older adults’ interpersonal relationships has an impact on their financial vulnerability at a later time,” said the study’s senior author.

The findings underscore that social connectedness, which is already known to enhance physical health and psychological wellbeing among older adults, may also be a key protector against financial abuse.

“This study points to a specific factor—social functioning—that could allow us to predict, and ultimately prevent, vulnerability to financial exploitation before it happens,” said another of the study.

The participants included 26 adults, aged 50 and older, with an average age of 65. At the beginning of the study, researchers evaluated each participant’s overall health, cognitive functioning, depression and anxiety symptoms, and prior history of financial exploitation and controlled for these factors in their statistical analyses.

Then, for six months, the researchers collected data at two-week intervals. They measured each participant’s interpersonal dysfunction by asking how frequently they had argued with someone, felt rejected, felt lonely, wished their relationships were better, and wished they had more friends. They also assessed participants’ vulnerability to financial exploitation during the past two weeks with questions such as “how confident are you in making big financial decisions?” and “how often has someone talked you into a decision to spend or donate money that you did not initially want to do?”

“When a person reported a spike in problems within their social circle or increased feelings of loneliness, we were much more likely to see a corresponding spike in their psychological vulnerability to being financially exploited two weeks later,” the researchers explained.

In addition to the effects within individuals, there was also a significant effect between participants: Those who had higher interpersonal dysfunction compared to other participants tended to report a greater vulnerability to financial exploitation.

The study’s results offer insight into how to counteract common financial scams that target older adults, including phishing emails, investment schemes, and the “grandparent scam,” where an older adult receives a call from someone about a grandchild in urgent need of money.

At the individual level, the lead author suggests that people watch for social upsets in their parents’ and grandparents’ lives—such as the death of a close friend or an argument with a family member—as risk factors for financial vulnerability in the immediate future.

So, what? Loneliness is increasing worldwide, and, as another study published this week found, it is a continuing a process that began before the advent of social media—which is usually blamed for the fall off in face-to-face meetings and relationships.

Since we are social animals we tend to gravitate toward those that offer relationship support. If the price of that supposed support is participation in a financial scam, so be it. If we are lonely—no matter what age we are—we react favorably to anyone who reaches out to us (no matter what kind of reaching out it is). This makes us vulnerable.