Elder abuse spans 70 years as a recognized health and social problem, attracting the attention and response of multiple disciplines concerned about the fate of older adults suffering such harm. Throughout this period, it has been challenging to derive consensus on how to delineate elder abuse and which theories should dominate. One in ten older Americans experience the problem in a given year. However, it is infrequently reported to authorities charged with investigation. In addition, although research has identified many salient risk factors for its occurrence, much less is known about protective factors. The effects of elder abuse upon victims are evident in signs of its occurrence along with its harmful outcomes and financial losses. Five service systems exist to respond to the problem, with adult protective services exclusively focused on it. Besides systems, various interventions are used to prevent or treat elder abuse, many borrowed from other fields but relatively few with established evidence of effectiveness. However, a cornerstone approach for addressing elder abuse rests with multidisciplinary networks and teams, the former aimed at improving response through education, policy, and practice and the latter functioning to provide case review and recommendation.