Gendered spatial practices in the spontaneous transformation of traditional houses: A case study of Goulan Yao Village in China

This study highlights gender's critical role in shaping rural living environments, linking individuals, families, and broader social structures. In contemporary rural China, the spontaneous transformation of traditional houses reflects the wide-ranging effects of urbanization and modernization on social organization, cultural values, and economic models. Gendered spatial practices in this spatial transformation reveal how evolving socio-spatial dynamics reshape gender roles. Using behavior-setting theory and behavioral mapping, this study examines gendered spatial practices in the self-renovation of traditional residences in Goulan Yao Village. By comparing past and contemporary residential layouts, gendered behavior settings and spatial practice, findings reveal the persistence of traditional labor divisions, with men engaged primarily in economic production and women in domestic work. However, contemporary gendered spatial practices increasingly challenge past spatial hierarchies manifested in the externalization of women's activities and internalization of men's activities. The two findings reveal an uneven socio-spatial reconfiguration shaped by modernization and reproduced gender relations. Finally, gender-sensitive strategies for rural housing design, policy, and planning are proposed to foster socially adaptive and gender-inclusive rural residential environment. Although limited to one village and a binary gender perspective, this study provides a transferable approach for analyzing gender–space relations and guiding inclusive rural strategies.