Gendered anxieties in urban space: Urban mobility of middle-class women in contemporary Istanbul

With the understanding that space is a complex network of relationships that includes domination and subordination, solidarity, and cooperation at the same time, this comparative sociological research aims to interrogate how gendered anxieties affect middle-class women's mobility in urban space. Through the study of the mobility of middle-class professional women in Istanbul, I aim to assess and analyze the relationships among gender, social class, urban space and mobility. Physical space and social space have a relationship based on mutual construction. In this case, space, gender and class relations mutually and continuously construct each other; they cannot be considered independently. Using qualitative research methods, I had semi-structured in-depth interviews with 15 middle-class women settled in Istanbul. I seek to understand the impact of gendered anxieties on the urban mobility and urban experience of middle-class women, further focusing on the impact of class, and conveying the participants' suggestions for a safer city. I argue that gender and class-based concerns affect women's urban mobility and that this can only change with changes in the legal framework.