Aim of the Study: This study aimed to clarify the factors that were relevant to an individual’s self-determination to return amidst anxiety after a long-term evacuation due to the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident. Method: Semi-structured interviews on whether to return were conducted with nine participants aged 60 - 80 years (eight males and one female) residing in areas where evacuation orders were canceled. The data obtained were analyzed qualitatively and inductively. Result: All participants were returning to their homes. Factors relevant to self-determination to return were represented by five categories: a desire to return 1) emerging from life-experience as a long-term evacuee, 2) retained after obtaining information about the original place of residence, 3) acquired from a long-term life as a refugee, 4) retained with the acceptance of the potential risks of returning, and finally 5) people’s apprehension over talking about the importance of the future of the younger generation. Discussion: These categories were based on the participants’ desire to return and they continued to maintain these thoughts by gathering information and preparing for their return after the long-term evacuation caused by the nuclear accident. It was suggested that the risk perception and the norm in that age group could be among the factors that promoted the choice in maintaining the desire to return.
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