ABSTRACT
Experiences of return migrants are shaped by mutually overlapping factors. This chapter examines to what extent degree of volition in return affects the lived experiences of returnees, including their post-return psychosocial wellbeing. It considers a subset of qualitative data from the Possibilities and Realities of Return Migration (PREMIG) project (2011–2016). PREMIG studied the experiences of migrants living in the UK and Norway, focusing particularly on how they engaged with the possibility of return and its effects on their lives in Europe. The chapter refers to data from the fieldwork with Afghans, Pakistanis and Poles, capturing a cross-section of categories of forced or voluntary return experiences. The comparison incorporates three contexts, categorised according to how degree of volition is often perceived: where almost all return is 'forced' (Europe-Afghanistan); where almost all return is 'voluntary' (Western Europe-Poland); and where most return is 'voluntary' but it is to an insecure political situation sharing some characteristics with Afghanistan (Europe-Pakistan).
