Fear of crime in the use of public space: Case of Rüsumat coastal area

People living in cities from ancient times to the present have created public spaces that are the use of different functions from time to time. Many researchers have revealed that the using purpose of public spaces has been changed due to the changes in the needs and expectations of people living in cities over time. In this context, today's public spaces are not used as idealized for many reasons such as globalization, increasing population, and economic differences. This differentiation raises the fear of crime in the use of public space. People avoid using public spaces due to the fear of crime in public spaces. In this study, it is aimed to reveal the relationship between the use of public space and the fear of crime in public spaces with its reasons. Accordingly, it was investigated to what extent and why individuals living in Ordu city feel the fear of being exposed to crime while using the study area. In the scope of this research, some software has been applied such as SPSS 22.0 for the data obtained by the survey method, ArcGis 10.7 for the cognitive mapping, and MAXQDA 2020 for the oral interview. Independent t-test, one-way ANOVA, and bivariate person's correlation were used for the analysis of socio-demographic variables. The effect of fear of crime on the use of public space and the hypothesis created for this purpose was tested with optimized hotspot analysis. According to the results, fear of crime negatively affects the use of public space and there is a direct relationship between the fear of crime and spatial characteristics. According to the results, the suggestions that focused on design were made to reduce the fear of crime in public space.