Jan Gerrit Van Uffelen

Return After Flight: Exploring the Decision Making Process of War-displaced People by Applying an Extended Version of the Theory of Reasoned Action Jan Gerrit Van Uffelen

War-affected displacement and its responses by the international community is a key challenge of contemporary times. In terms of solutions repatriation policy and practice are being critiqued for lacking responsiveness to the needs, initiatives and strategies of the displaced. The Theory of Reasoned Action (Ajzen and Fishbein) is used to analyse the psycho-social antecedents of displaced people?s decision to return. Surveys amongst Sudanese war-displaced people found that return dynamics are informed by the changing nature of their return beliefs and expectations. The ?Perceived Vulnerability? variable, suggested as an extension to the model to enhance its descriptive utility in risky contexts, was found instrumental in analysing displaced people?s perception of vulnerability. This book is of interest to both academics and professionals working in the humanitarian arena who want to better understand displaced people?s return decisions. As an actor oriented approach, the theory is instrumental in developing flexible and de- centralised approaches that support and build upon displaced people?s return strategies, as appropriate to complex and dynamic contexts.