Women runners in public spaces - pleasures and dangers

What is it about?

This article contributes to a small, developing research literature by employing a feminist phenomenological theoretical framework to analyse lived experiences of running in ‘public’ space. As feminist theorists have argued, such space is gendered and contested, and women’s mobility remains constrained by fears of harassment and violent attack. Running also generates intense pleasure, however, and embodied empowerment. Drawing on findings from two separate but linked running research projects, here I explore themes cohering around lived experience of pleasure and danger in both urban and rural spaces.

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Photo by Oktay Yildiz on Unsplash

Photo by Oktay Yildiz on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Women runners often report feeling anxious about running in public spaces, and constrained by fears of encountering verbal and physical threat and harassment. This research explored women's experiences of pleasure and danger when out running in what are construed as 'public' spaces.