CONSUMER'S ATTITUDES TOWARDS BUYING TINY HOUSES: A PERSPECTIVE AFTER THE POWERFUL EARTHQUAKES

The increasing frequency and severity of earthquakes in regions like Turkey pose significant threats to the safety and well-being of residents. This situation necessitates the exploration of resilient and safe housing solutions. However, there is a lack of comprehensive understanding of consumer attitudes towards alternative housing options, such as tiny houses, in the aftermath of seismic events. This research is motivated by the need to understand how safety concerns and risk evaluations influence consumer attitudes towards acquiring tiny houses in post-earthquak times. The study also investigates how consumer attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control influence intention to buy tiny houses in earthquake-prone regions, focusing on Turkey. It aims to understand the impact of seismic events on housing preferences and the potential of tiny houses as a resilient housing solution. Data was collected through a survey from and analyzed using SPSS program. The results showed that considerations about buying a tiny house influence consumer perceived risks and Perceived Psychological Risks affect consumer attitudes towards tiny houses. On the other hand, considerations, Perceived Financial Risks, and Perceived Performance Risks do not influence consumer attitudes towards tiny houses. The findings also showed that Subjective Norms affect the intention to buy tiny houses in Turkey while Perceived Behavioral control have not an effect. Finally, attitudes and intention to buy are strongly correlated. The remaining findings and suggestions for both scholars and practitioners are discussed in the thesis.

Key Words: Tiny houses, consumer attitudes, earthquake resilience, Perceived Risk Theory, Theory of Planned Behavior, sustainable housing, Turkey.