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Paper short abstract

I examine how Arabic- and Persian-speaking migrants and refugees in Istanbul circulate “disaster knowledge” and influence each other on housing and mobility choices vis-a-vis earthquake risk, advancing a crowd psychology of preparedness to inform more inclusive, group-informed urban governance.

Paper long abstract

This research examines the multidirectional circulation of "disaster knowledge" among migrant and refugee groups from an Arabic and a Persian-speaking background in Istanbul: a context shaped by the intersecting forces of conflict induced migration and earthquake risk. This 4-year long study explores the extent to which past disasters and anticipation of future ones influence housing decisions, everyday mobility, and strategies of preparedness. Drawing on one-to-one interviews, conversations with local policymakers and focus groups, the project strives for making today's uneven urban governance politically inclusive, culturally responsive, and social group-informed. The study builds on crowd psychology theories to examine the inter- and intra-group dynamics through which migrants and refugees influence one another’s housing and mobility choices. By combining nationality-based and nationally mixed focus groups, it traces the circulation of knowledge, rumours, trust, and collective assessments of risk across and within communities. In addition, a large-scale survey maps broader patterns of mobility from overseas to Türkiye and onward to specific Istanbul districts, identifying the degree to which such movements occur on a group basis rather than as isolated individual trajectories.

Hence, this research advances the concept of a collective social psychology of disaster preparedness shaped through shared histories of displacement and negotiations of urban life. Practically, the research aims to inform municipal advocacy by highlighting the limitations of current disaster awareness programmes, arguing for approaches that integrate group-specific histories, social relations, and material hindrances rather than relying solely on technical information and linguistic translation.