Vulnerability in the Context of Migration: a Critical Overview and a New Conceptual Model

Abstract The notion of “vulnerability” occupies a central role in academic literature, policymaking, humanitarian debates, and everyday discourses on migration asylum. Its popularity has led some academics practitioners to use as self-explanatory condition or phenomenon. However, common systematic understanding the concept is still missing, moral political meaning often ascribed this may have (un)intended detrimental consequences for those migrants deemed vulnerable. Thus, paper sets out critically unpack highlight complexities hidden behind order provide conceptual analysis vulnerability context migration. We do so by (1) providing an overview definitions across different fields research, (2) identifying conceptualizations types discussing their implications, (3) highlighting possible negative societal psychological its implementation Finally, we propose (4) new model migration, showing how can become useful analytical tool research.