Effects of displacement on identity

The concepts of identity and identification are of enormous significance to millions of displaced people worldwide. Among the more than one billion people who lack any official form of identity are refugees, asylum seekers, and displaced people. The United Nations, European Union, and several international state and humanitarian agencies provide aid and protection for those who qualify. Processes of qualification by means of identification and registration are often made difficult by the very circumstances of displacement. Identity and identification are intertwined throughout all phases of the refugee lifecycle, acting upon each other as subject, object, and, at times, both. On a psychological level, migrant identity is affected by several events and experiences, including the identification process itself, during all phases of the journey; resulting changes in identity likely influence participation in the identification process. Ultimately, aid-seeker fate is determined by questions of identity and identification, striking at the very heart of existence: Who am I?