Lived Experiences and Women's Perception of Urban Public Spaces(Study Case: Saqqez City Women)

In researching urban space research, it is important to take into account not only the space itself but also the individuals who use it and their actual behaviors. The current study concentrates on the women of Saqqez city in order to illustrate the experiences of women in public spaces and the manner in which they utilize and negotiate these spaces within gender, class, and socio-spatial hierarchies. The phenomenological approach was selected to provide a more detailed and in-depth report of individuals' experiences, as one of the numerous qualitative research approaches to investigate women's lived experiences of urban public spaces. This research examined women who resided in Saqqez city and had encountered public spaces. Purposive sampling is the sampling method employed in phenomenology, which involves the selection of individuals who possess knowledge of the pertinent phenomena to facilitate the comprehension of the actual experiences of women in the public context. The descriptive phenomenological method of Collaizi was employed to analyze the research data, which was expanded to include 20 participants. The results of the study are presented in the following seven themes: “Public-Private Space Interaction,” “Spatial Boundaries,” “From Necessity to the Pleasure of Presence,” “Spatial Inclusion and Exclusion,” “From Presence Stereotypes to Spatial Resistance,” and “Sense of Place.” The 19 thematic categories that comprised “perception of the city and the ideal female model” were comprehensively described.