Gender Segregation of Urban Space and Intimate Gender Relations: A Comparative Study of Flexible and Inflexible Segregation

This paper is an anthropological research about the effect of the emphasis on gender segregation in private and public spaces on the quality of intimate relationships between the girls and the boys.Policymakers pursue an emphasis on gender-based spatial segregation with the aim of promoting moral health and preserving the Islamic identity of cities. For an assessment that how politicians 'goals in gender separation of space affect users' gender actions and attitudes, we have benefited from the participation of two groups of girls with different lifestyles. One of these two groups, which strongly follows the rules of space separation based on gender, has been identified as an inflexible lifestyle and Compared to the other group, which is more flexible in adhering to gender segregation and It is referred to as a flexible lifestyle group. Lefebvre's theory has been used to emphasize space as a social product and to distinguish between spatial action, spatial representation, and representational space. The research method was ethnographic and comparative with an emphasis on participatory observation techniques and ethnographic interviews. Research shows that inflexibility in gender segregation accompanies sex-gender actions with secrecy and more risky decisions.Research therefore shows that inflexible spatial separation does not meet the moral and identity goals of policymakers.