ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Built Environ.
Sec. Urban Science
This article is part of the Research TopicAssessment of Users' Satisfaction in Public Spaces: Volume 2View all 5 articles
Negotiating Tradition and Modernity: Users preferences of Souqs and Malls in Bahrain
Provisionally accepted
- University of Bahrain, Sakhir, Bahrain
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Accelerated urbanization in the Arabian Gulf region late 20th century prompted adoption of new concepts to "modernize". Such efforts led to the introduction of several "Modern" buildings, one of which is the shopping mall, overshadowing existing Souqs' (Traditional Markets) cultural identity and heritage. This study examines and analyses users' preferences, perceptions, and experiences of Souqs and Malls in Bahrain, focusing on spatial, cultural, and social factors influencing retail choices. By addressing the tension between tradition and modernity, this study provides insights into how cultural identity and contemporary lifestyles shape retail preference. A cross-sectional approach was employed, using questionnaires capturing users' satisfaction, motivations, and demographics. The study found that Souq users value hedonic shopping preferences. While in contrast, Mall users prioritized more functional aspects aligning with utilitarian preferences. Findings indicate that a hybrid blend of both preferences, combining the convenience of malls with the cultural richness of Souqs would be a step in the right direction for the future of commercial buildings in the region.
Keywords: Traditional market, MALL, GCC, Islamic culture, User preference
Received: 28 Sep 2025; Accepted: 24 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Abid, Mestarehi, Khalfan and Almadhoob. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Motaz Mestarehi
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