Stateless Palestinian Youth in Jordan: Negotiating Poverty and Durable Solutions Beyond Legal Status

A significant body of research focuses on understanding refugee agency beyond the legal frameworks institutionalized by the global refugee regime and hosting states. Situated within a critical approach, this thesis bridges displacement and development studies so as to expand our understanding of refugee agency. The study examines how the legal status of de jure stateless Palestinian refugee youth informs their negotiation of poverty-related constraints to enhance their livelihood. The research consists of a comparative approach that juxtaposes two groups of Palestinian refugees stateless (Gazans) and naturalized living in Amman, Jordan. A multidisciplinary analysis reveals that both groups exercise similar forms of agency interlinked to meanings they give to their lives trajectories to i) capture ontological security, and ii) challenge accumulative disadvantage. Hence, refugee agency needs to be reconceptualized to reflect its evolving and interchangeable nature, embedded in the interplay between subjectively produced meanings and livelihood outcomes in urban settings.