REPORT CARD OF TÜRKİYE METROPOLITAN CITIES IN THE CONTEXT OF THE LIFE INDEX: AN EVALUATION USING A HYBRID MCDM APPROACH

Throughout history, efforts to improve well-being have not been limited to economic indicators but have also encompassed multidimensional concepts such as quality of life, happiness, and sustainability. This transformation has highlighted the need for analytical frameworks that can evaluate regional living conditions more comprehensively; the life index approach was developed to address this need. Multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) methods, which allow for the simultaneous evaluation of conflicting criteria, go beyond traditional equally weighted index approaches and produce more realistic results. This study is designed to objectively and systematically evaluate 30 major cities in Türkiye in terms of quality of life, taking advantage of this methodological superiority. In the first stage of the hybrid MCDM framework established using Türkiye Statistical Institute (TÜİK) Provincial Life Index (2015) data, the criterion weights of 11 dimensions of quality of life were determined using the Spherical Fuzzy DEMATEL method; the traditional equal weighting assumption was overcome. In the second stage, the determined weights were transferred to the PROVAN method, and the metropolitan cities were ranked. According to the SF-DEMATEL results, life satisfaction was found to be the criterion with the highest weight, while civic participation was found to be the criterion with the lowest weight. In the PROVAN ranking, the top five places were taken by Sakarya, Balıkesir, Istanbul, Eskişehir, and Konya.