Volodymyr Vakhitov

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has led to the forced displacement of 6.3 million Ukrainians seeking refuge abroad as of January 2024. This demographic shift presents significant challenges for Ukraine's economic and developmental planning. At the same time, both refugees and those who stay in the country experience huge uncertainty regarding their future. Will more Ukrainians leave, and will some of the refugees return? This proposal seeks to understand the factors influencing Ukrainians' moving intentions. Since February 2022, studies on Ukrainian refugees in Europe have focused primarily on socio-demographic profiles and living and working conditions. However, emotional drivers like homesickness, despair, guilt, and home attachments are often overlooked despite their impact on migration decisions and everyday lives. Additionally, existing studies face methodological challenges, such as small, unrepresentative samples and difficulty establishing causal relationships between socio-demographic factors and relocation intentions. I would like to conduct a study of Ukrainians in several countries using behavioral approaches to explore intangible factors like national identity, trust, and risk perception. By integrating surveys and experiments, this study aims to provide valuable insights to inform post-war repatriation strategies and resettlement policies.  

References [1] UNHCR. Ukraine Emergency. https://www.unrefugees.org/emergencies/ukraine/. Access: 23/01/2024. [2] Kļave, E., Šūpule, I. (2019). Return Migration Process in Policy and Practice. In: Kaša, R., Mieriņa, I. (eds) The Emigrant Communities of Latvia. IMISCOE Research Series. Springer. [3] Hagen-Zanker, J., Hennessey, G. (2021). What Do We Know about the Subjective and Intangible Factors That Shape Migration Decision-Making? PRIO Paper, Oslo.

 Website address: https://ibs.auk.edu.ua/