The voice of the voiceless: refugees' perceptions of participation under constraint

• 成果类型: Article; Early Access
• 署名作者: AbouAssi, Khaldoun; Walls, Corbin M.
• 署名单位: American University
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION RESEARCH AND THEORY
• ISSN/ISSBN: 1053-1858; 1477-9803
• DOI: 10.1093/jopart/muag019
• 发表日期: 2026-08-01
• 关键词: refugee camps; refugees; public participation; citizen participation; public deliberation; engagement; camp; performance; governance; work; aid

摘要

Refugee camps have evolved into durable governance sites characterized by centralized authority and monopolistic service environments where residents lack exit options. While public administration scholarship extensively theorizes the benefits of participation, research often assumes a baseline of stable, democratic institutions, leaving participation under constraint underdeveloped. This study examines whether thin participation-awareness of feedback mechanisms and consultative outreach-is associated with refugees' perceived outcomes at individual, community, and institutional levels. Using household-level survey data from 876 households across thirty-three refugee sites in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, we find that both latent awareness and consultation are significantly associated with improved subjective well-being. Our findings reveal a tiered impact: passive awareness correlates with community and institutional gains, while the relational intensity of consultation is required for individual-level improvements. These results suggest that even minimal engagement functions as a vital generative mechanism for institutional legitimacy in high-dependency, non-democratic environments.