The Effect of COVID-19 on Leisure Related Public Space Use in Turkey

Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic has created radical changes in all aspects of daily life associated with public space. This paper aims to ascertain the effect of COVID-19 on the use of leisure-related public spaces in Turkey. This study investigates how public space usage differs for various socio-demographic groups and how information and communication technologies (ICT) affect changes in public space use during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using purposive and snowball sampling methods, a nationwide online survey was conducted between September and October of 2020. The answers obtained from 531 participants were included in the analysis of the variance and path analysis. The analyses revealed that the frequency of urban public spaces usage during the COVID-19 pandemic decreased significantly as expected, in particular the use of internal public/quasi-public spaces and shopping malls. The use of external public spaces was relatively less affected by the pandemic. However, the use of virtual space increased significantly. The results also showed that the changes in the use of internal public/quasi-public spaces, shopping malls, and virtual space differ according to socio-demographic characteristics. It was concluded that ICT had statistically significant effects on changes in public space usage during COVID-19.