Place attachment in gated communities : a case study in Bilkent housing settlements

This study brings out an analytical framework to the issue of place attachment in relation with the concepts such as place identity and environmental preferences in newly emerging communities in Turkey. With the increasing global influences, people tend to move away from the city centers to self controlled and privatized settlements with restricted access called ‘gated communities’. This research analyzes the reasons behind this shift to understand the changing nature of place attachment. To this end, an empirical study at Bilkent Housing Settlements, which is located at a recently developed suburban area in Ankara - the capital of Turkey - was carried out. This site was chosen as being a high-income neighborhood that exhibits particular characteristics of gated communities. The results indicate that there is a significant relationship between the attachment of people to Bilkent Settlements and their satisfaction from the social environment. On the other hand, the analyses revealed that there was a relationship between attachment level and length of residency.