Living Apart Together Transnationally (LATT) Couples

This book provides deep insight into intimacy and distance in the complex, globalised world through the newly coined concept of couples living apart together transnationally (LATT). Based on a review of the past four decades' seminal studies and narratives from a qualitative empirical study, including both heterosexual and same-sex couples, it shows intimacy can be maintained without geographical proximity. The book has a rich, layered, and nuanced exploration of LATT couples' experiences of relationship maintenance across distance and time through diverse ways, such as digital emotions, online sexual activity, and meaning-making through spirituality, which challenge existing Eurocentric conceptualisations of intimacy and relationships. It also reveals an array of "good practices" for relationship maintenance across countries, which can inspire other couples and practitioners. Thus, the book is an important resource, not only for academics in the disciplines of psychology, anthropology, cultural studies, family science, sociology, migration, and communication but particularly useful for practitioners dealing with couple relationships, such as counselors, social workers, and mental health advisors. It is also relevant for international organizations and multinational corporations working with couples living apart together transnationally. "The implications of this book for 'how we live now' are clear - in a more closely connected and mobile world, the possibility of living our most intimate relationships across distance will affect increasing numbers of us... the book's informative, theoretical, and practical messages have valuable lessons for many of us now and in the future." Dr Lucy Williams, University of Kent, the UK

Rashmi Singla is an Associate Professor in Psychology and Interdisciplinary Health Studies, also affiliated with the Global Humanities program, at Roskilde University, Denmark. She is educated in Denmark and India, with a long-standing career in teaching, researching psychology, and counselling/psychosocial intervention. She has authored Ethnic Minority Youth in Denmark: About Their Psychosocial Situation (co-author Julio Arenas) (1995); Youth Relationship, Ethnicity & Psychosocial Intervention (2004); The One and Only - How Ethnic Minority Youth in Denmark Form Intimate Partnerships (2006); Now and Then - Life Trajectories, Family Relationships, and Diasporic Identities (2008); and Intermarriage and Mixed Parenting: Promoting Mental Health & Wellbeing (2015), along with several chapters in books and journals. Additionally, she is involved in an array of international projects and organisations related to couple/ family life,migration/ transnationalism, and decolonisation of knowledge.

1. Introduction: Doing intimacy differently - LATT/ Long distance couple an emerging trend.- 2. Setting the scene for exploring LATT couples.- 3. The dynamic processes - relevant theoretical conceptualizations.- 4. Exploring LATT Couples in Scandinavia and Global context.- 5. Emotional dynamics: How LATT relationships are sustained, among others, through social digital - technology.- 6. Embodiment: Intersection between the social and material through sexuality, sexting.- 7. 'Gendered' practices: How do LATT couple relate to gendered family expectations, care responsibilities.- 8. The broad Context for LATT Couples: Legal & societal matters.- 9. Spirituality - Making sense of the unconventional situation through 'a sense of wholeness'.- 10. Applied Perspectives: Mental Health and Wellbeing promotion pathways through 'Good practices'.- 11. Moving beyond: future trends for LATT couples, implications for psychotherapy, counselling, further research suggestions.- 12. Postscript.