Overview

This work, which is part of a monograph that concluded the Specialisation course in Social Gerontology (Federal University of Pernambuco - UFPE) in conjunction with a section of the first author's Master's dissertation in Clinical Psychology (Catholic University of Pernambuco - UNICAP), supervised by the co-authors, deals with a subject of the utmost importance today: 'domestic violence against the elderly' as a consequence of family dysfunction. In this sense, we propose that it is necessary to understand the phenomenon in order to combat it, with the aim of promoting the eradication of this inhumane treatment of those who are most vulnerable in old age. We hope that this article can contribute, as a seed, to understanding this issue that plagues so many elderly people in Brazil and around the world.