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

Original

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

Khaldoun AbouAssi, Corbin M Walls

Abstract

Abstract 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.