Personal Adaptations to Remote Working in the Post-Pandemic City and Its Potential Impact on Residential Relocations: The Case of Istanbul

Abstract

A forced and rapid increase in remote working because of the COVID-19 pandemic has afforded today’s megacities several important opportunities for reducing traffic congestion, energy consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, and certain threats such as the promotion of urban sprawl. The way in which employees have adapted to working remotely during the pandemic and the potential it offers for improving their work/life balance provide indicators for developing urban policies in the post-pandemic city. The present study aims to examine the potential impact the increase in remote working during the first phase of the COVID-19 pandemic has had on residential relocations in Istanbul by investigating how employees have adapted to remote working and their thoughts about leaving the city after the pandemic. To do so, an online survey was conducted between June 1 and June 5, 2020 with 186 employees living in the city of Istanbul. The survey consisted of investigations into changes in work life during the pandemic. The differences between participants’ responses were analyzed and interpreted with respect to their personal characteristics and leisure-time preferences using Pearson’s chi-squared test and the Mantel–Haenszel test of trends (linear-by-linear association). The study finds significant relationships between personal/social characteristics and how people adapt to remote working and provides important indicators of the effects these adaptation processes have on residential relocations.