Understanding Location Choice of Syrian Refugees From Country To Neighbourhood Level: Opportunities, Restrictions and Expectations

Abstract

This study aimed to delve into distinct strands of the location choice (LC) of Syrian refugees by uncovering its determinants at country, city and neighbourhood levels from the narratives, along with the help of content analysis. Findings providing an aggregate explanation of the Syrian emplacement process revealed that Syrian refugees in Turkey, as active agents in the process, make their destination choices within opportunities and restrictions of different scales through the contribution of other agents, places and processes. Findings emphasizing time-and context-specific features -the transitivity, interrelatedness and multi-dimensionality (legal, economic, socio-cultural and spatial) of determinants of LC -showed that the opportunities and restrictions of LC influence Syrians' future expectations.