Between Right and Resistance: A Quantitative Analysis of Women's Self-Defense and Legal Legitimacy in Turkey

Women's legal right to self-defense in Turkey is limited in practice, particularly under chronic abuse. This study examines how legal knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors shape self-defense. A cross-sectional survey of 392 women was analyzed to assess the impact of socio-demographic and cognitive factors. Attitudes significantly predicted behavior, while legal knowledge alone did not. Results highlight the influence of institutional distrust, stigma, and normative pressure. The study calls for feminist-informed legal reform and recognition of self-defense education as a collective right to resist gender-based violence, emphasizing structural inequality and the gap between legal rights and real-life agency.