Living Apart Together Research Articles

Living apart together in contemporary Spain: Diverse motivations across life stages

Living-apart-together (LAT) partnerships are gaining prominence in many high-income societies, prompting ongoing discussions about their significance and their role in the family formation process. This study provides a contemporary update on LAT relationships in Spain, with a specific emphasis on variations across different life stages. The study focuses on several key aspects: (1) recent trends in the prevalence of LAT relationships, (2) socio-demographic factors associated with being in a LAT relationship, (3) joint influence of both partners’ characteristics, and (4) short-term intentions to co-reside. Using data from the 2018 Spanish Fertility Survey, we employ logistic regression models to analyze the factors influencing individuals’ likelihood of being in a LAT relationship as opposed to a co-residential partnership. Our findings reveal a noticeable rise in LAT partnerships in Spain over the past two decades, except among the youngest age group. Personal motivations and socially attributed meanings of LAT relationships, however, differ depending on an individual's life stage. Among young adults, LAT partnerships largely serve as a transitional phase in the family formation process, preceding co-residence with a partner. In this early adulthood stage, unemployment and temporary work contracts – affecting any of the partners – often hinder household formation, but intentions to co-reside in the near future remain strong. In contrast, LAT partnerships in the mid-life stage often stem from a desire to maintain personal independence and are frequently linked to prior partnership and reproductive biographies.

Living Apart Together and Depressive Symptoms in Older Adulthood

Guided by the perspective that intimate relationship types represent a continuum of social attachment, we assessed how living apart together (LAT) relationships are related to psychological well-being in later life. Using data from the 2011 Wisconsin Longitudinal Study (WLS), we assessed levels of depressive symptoms by comparing LAT respondents (2.5%) with never married (2.5%), divorced (6.8%), widowed (10.4%), dating (2.8%), cohabiting (2.3%), remarried (15.1%), and first married (57.6%) men and women aged 51 and older (Total N = 7,924). However, the results did not support the theory of social attachment. The psychological well-being of men and women in LAT relationships was no different from either cohabiting or married adults. LAT relationships may have unique functions that help to reduce stress in later life. This study provides new insights about the psychological well-being of LAT adults.

Living Apart Together (LAT): A New Family Form in Urban India

With the rise of globalisation, a considerable number of married couples are opting to live apart from each other post marriage. Several studies in the West have examined the concept of living apart together (LAT). However, this marriage arrangement has not received much attention in Indian scholarship. LAT is being adopted in both (arranged and love) forms of marriage systems in India. Against this backdrop, the present study aims to understand why this form of a marriage system is gaining prominence among educated urban couples in India. Using Anthony Giddens’s theory of pure relationships and relying on in-depth qualitative interviews, the study will highlight the formation of a new form of intimacy among couples practicing LAT. Finally, the study will demonstrate how the role of the family, changing gender norms and individual aspirations shape LAT in urban India.

Having a Partner or Living with a Partner: Differences in Life Satisfaction and Mental Health

Using longitudinal data from Australia we compare the wellbeing effects of transitions both into and out relationships, using two different measures of wellbeing: life satisfaction and mental health. We distinguish between the formation, and ending of, three different types of relationships across three years: Living-apart-together (LAT), cohabitations, and marriages. For those in LAT relationships, we find they are quite distinct from other ‘single’ people. Starting, or ending, a LAT relationship has a significant impact on an individual’s wellbeing. We also find that transitions into relationships, and transitions out of relationships, do not have equivalent effects. Generally, moving from a relationship to being single had a more significant negative impact on life satisfaction and mental health, than moving into a relationship had a positive impact. These findings suggest that having an intimate partner, even one who is not co-resident, is related to higher levels of wellbeing compared to having no partner.

Marital-history differences in increased loneliness during the COVID-19 pandemic: A European study among older adults living alone

The COVID-19 pandemic and related physical distancing measures have disproportionally affected older adults living alone due to their greater social isolation. Unlike previous studies on the subject, the current research recognizes the diversity amongst older adults living alone by considering the impact of marital history. Combining information from Wave 8 of the Survey of Health Ageing and Retirement (SHARE), with data of SHARELIFE and the SHARE Corona survey, we investigated the differential impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on loneliness in older men (N = 1504) and women (N = 4822) living alone. Logistic multilevel analyses were performed on data from 26 European countries and Israel. For men, we found that the short-term widowed were more likely to report increased loneliness than the medium- and long-term widowed and those living apart together (LAT). For women, the results indicated that the short- and medium-term widowed and the divorced were at greater risk for increased loneliness than those in a LAT relationship. Also, medium-term widowed women were more likely to report increased loneliness than their long-term widowed counterparts. The three hypothesized underlying mechanisms – i.e., (i) the opportunity mechanism, (ii) the expectation mechanism, and (iii) the vulnerability mechanism – only played a small role in explaining the observed differences. In sum, our study highlights the importance of recognizing the diversity within the group of older adults living alone when investigating the effects of the pandemic on loneliness, yet the mechanisms behind the stratifying role of marital history are not fully understood.

Does Sex Matter? The Role of Sexual and Relationship Satisfaction on Living Apart Together Relationship Transitions

There is limited understanding of how the aspects of sex and relationship quality are related to decisions on whether to move in together, separate or continue dating among living-apart together (LAT) couples. This paper focuses on sexual and relationship satisfaction in understanding LAT relationship transitions into coresidence or separation in Germany. The longitudinal prospective design of the German Panel Analysis of Intimate Relationships and Family Dynamics data (pairfam, waves 1-9) is used. Discrete-time competing risk hazard models on LAT relationship outcomes to coresidence or separation are estimated. The results underline the fact that sexual satisfaction is not related to LAT partners’ decision to move in together; however, higher levels of relationship satisfaction are positively related to the decision of moving in with a partner. The models reveal that low sexual and relationship satisfaction are associated with breaking-up relative to still living apart. This study highlights the importance of considering sexual satisfaction in understanding better the risk of separation from a LAT partner, in addition to the global indicator of relationship satisfaction.

Opting for Living-Apart-Together and Cohabitation Relationships in people 50+: A Longitudinal Analysis

Despite a growing body of research on later-life relationships, there are still only a limited number of explorative longitudinal studies that have investigated the factors responsible for the establishment of either a Living-Apart-Together (LAT) arrangement or a cohabitation relationship. Two waves of data collection by the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (2014/2015-2017; N= 12,155; Mage=71.96; 76.3% women) were analyzed with a special focus on family, dwelling, and financial constraints. Those who were male, younger, and had more children were more likely to enter into a LAT arrangement or a cohabitation relationship than to remain unpartnered. More rooms and fewer years spent in the accommodation raised the odds to partner. LAT persons were slightly older than those in cohabitation relationships. No other factors influenced the form of living arrangement, which indicates that factors other than financial constraints and family responsibilities affect later-life LAT or cohabitation relationship formation.

Family practices in non-cohabiting intimate relationships in China: doing mobile intimacy, emotion and intergenerational caring practices

This article applies David Morgan’s work on ‘family practices’ to the non-cohabiting intimate relationships in China. Through the lens of living apart together (LAT) relationships, I carried out in-depth interviews to examine the family life of working-away men and staying-at-home women in Chinese society. The activities which ‘doing’ family and disclosing intimacy involved when intimate couples are split geographically are contextually varied and, within this regard, three dimensions of family practices are teased out: practices of mobile intimacy, emotion and caring. While many of the studies on the practices approach emphasise ‘doing’, this research provides insight on how acts of not doing (emotion) can also be articulated as a way of doing family. It is argued that by focusing on the everyday ‘doing’ families can be experienced and constructed differently, while also being informed by cultural discourses and social institutions of family and gender.

Relationship Quality in Midlife: A Comparison of Dating, Living Apart Together, Cohabitation, and Marriage.

This study compared the relationship quality of U.S. midlife adults in dating, living apart together (LAT) relationships, cohabitation, and marriage. Unmarried partnerships are gaining ground in midlife but how these partnerships compare to each other and to marriage is unclear. From an incomplete institutionalization perspective, those in unmarried relationships, especially LAT relationships but also cohabitations, face challenges due to unclear relationship norms and expectations which may eventuate in poorer relationship quality than that of the married. Alternatively, cohabitation and, by extension, LAT relationships, offer flexibility and autonomy and thus may function as an alternative to marriage marked by comparable relationship quality. Data were drawn from the 2013 Families and Relationships Survey, a nationally representative survey of U.S. adults. The analytic sample was composed of adults aged 50-65 in a partnership (N=2,166). Multivariable models compared the associations between relationship type (dating, LAT, cohabiting, and married) and relationship quality (happiness, support, commitment, disagreement, and instability). The incomplete institutionalization perspective was supported for LATs, who tended to report poorer relationship quality than marrieds. For cohabitors, this perspective received mixed support. Although cohabitors reported less happiness and commitment than marrieds, which aligned with the incomplete institutionalization perspective, the groups did not differ on relationship support, disagreement, or instability, supporting the cohabitation as an alternative to marriage perspective. Dating, LAT and cohabiting relationships were remarkably alike. This study has implications for understanding the shifting landscape of relationships in midlife which in turn may shape individual health and well-being.

Living-Apart-Together (LAT) in Contemporary Sweden: (How) Does It Relate to Vulnerability?

Sweden is among the countries with the highest share of single households in Europe, but not all are truly partnerless. We examine the potential vulnerability of individuals in living-apart-together relationships at age 30 and above, analyzing data from the Swedish GGS. We apply multinomial logistic regression. The results show that individuals engaging in LAT occupy an intermediate position in terms of socioeconomic resources (homeownership and economic situation), being less advantaged than co-residents but better-off than singles, especially men. We find no association between ill-health and living in a LAT arrangement. Having previous family experiences (unions with or without children) is positively associated with LAT, but childhood family composition does not matter. The majority of LAT individuals claim to be constrained to living-apart-together rather than LAT being their preferred alternative. Women and the elderly (aged 70+) are, however, more likely to engage in LAT by choice and appreciate their non-residential partnerships.

Social relationships, living arrangements and loneliness

BackgroundOldest-old people are expected to be particularly likely to experience loneliness due to the loss of their intimate partner or of same-aged social network members. It is assumed that individuals in different living arrangements maintain different kinds of social networks because they adjust their networks to their specific needs. However, not much is known about the variation in the social networks of the oldest-old depending on their living arrangements and how this variation is related to loneliness. This is the first study that seeks to fill this research gap by examining how the composition and the size of a social network varies among the oldest-old depending on their living arrangements with a partner (coresidential partnership, living apart together (LAT) partnership, no partnership), and how this variation contributes to explain loneliness among the oldest-old.MethodsWe used cross-sectional data from the representative survey NRW80+ (Quality of Life and Well-Being of the Very Old in North-Rhine Westphalia). The sample of analysis used in this study consists of 1860 respondents from the German state of North-Rhine Westphalia aged 80 years and older. Associations between social network characteristics and living arrangements were tested using χ2-tests and one-way ANOVA. Ordered logit models were used to explain loneliness.ResultsRespondents in a coresidential partnership maintained larger social networks than those in an LAT partnership and those with no intimate partner. Furthermore, the respondents with no partner maintained more diverse social networks. Compared to those in the other living arrangements, the respondents in an LAT partnership maintained the smallest and least diverse social networks. Being in a coresidential partnership and the social network size were found to be negatively associated with loneliness.ConclusionFirst, the results indicate that respondents who do not have a partner adjusted their social networks to meet their needs in the absence of this relationship. Second, we conclude that being in a coresidential partnership and having a large social network protects the oldest-old against loneliness.Supplementary InformationThe online version of this article (10.1007/s00391-021-01960-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Associations among Sexual Activity, Relationship Types, and Health in Mid and Later Life.

Despite a growing amount of research on sexuality in mid and later life, relatively little is known about the associations among sexual activity, relationship types, and health. This paper analyzes data from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE) for the subpopulation of respondents residing in the Czech Republic (N = 1304, 49% women; Mage = 69.1, SDage = 8.0). Hierarchical ordinal regression models showed that persons who stayed in newly formed or less traditional relationship types, such as dating, Living-Apart-Together (LAT) relationships, and cohabitation, reported a higher frequency of sexual activity than married people. Overall, the dating and LAT relationship group displayed the highest sexual frequency and the lowest incidence of chronic diseases. People in marriages and cohabitation were comparable with respect to the number of chronic diseases. The findings suggest that sexual activity is intertwined with later-life relationships and sexual frequency may vary according to the relationship type. Future research may benefit from probing the extent to which partnered sex is important for maintaining bonds between older partners with separate households.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10508-021-02040-6.

Union Formation Expectations among Older Adults Who Live Apart Together in the USA.

There is an ongoing debate over whether living apart together (LAT) relationships are simply long-term relationships or alternatives to cohabitation or marriage. This study examined cohabitation and marriage expectations among older adults who LAT in the United States to address the debate. The analyses also compared the marriage expectations of older adults who LAT and cohabitors. Using data from the 2011 Wisconsin Longitudinal Study (WLS), we examined the union expectations of 250 individuals who LAT and 234 cohabitors. After providing a demographic portrait of older adults who LAT, we used ordered logistic regression models to predict their cohabitation and marriage expectations. Additional models predicted marriage expectations for older adults who LAT versus cohabitors. Older adults who LAT were unlikely to expect to formalize their unions. Adults who LAT were less likely to expect marriage than cohabitors. LAT relationships appear to be long-term partnerships in the United States.

Envy and Jealousy of Living-Apart-Together Relationships in Continuing Care Retirement Communities

Moving to a continuing care retirement community (CCRC) and living apart together (LAT) as a repartnering form, represent new late-life beginnings. A larger qualitative study on LAT relationships constructed in the CCRC identified envy and jealousy yet they were not examined in-depth. Envy is wanting something we lack whereas jealousy is fear of losing something that is ours to another. These emotions are rarely explored in the context of older adults’ relationships. Our aim is to examine experiences of envy and jealousy from perspectives of residents aged 79 to 96 and staff, heuristically using Goffman’s framework on (semi)-totalitarian institutions. 30 semi structured qualitative interviews were conducted in three CCRCs in Israel with 10 LAT residents, 10 residents not LAT, and 10 CCRC staff members including social workers. Analysis was conducted based on principles of thematic analysis and triangulation. Findings refer to kinds of envy, ignoring envy, and the development and consequences of jealousy and/or envy related to LAT in the CCRC. Conclusions address how semi-totalitarian CCRC features influence envy and jealousy experiences including implications for assisting social workers, older adults and their family members to adjust to life in the CCRC and assist CCRC management and staff to address possible consequences of envy and jealousy.

It Protects Them From Me: Reasons Older Adult Black Women Engage in Living-Apart-Together Relationships

The preference for living-apart-together (LAT) relationships, where individuals are committed to one another but reside in separate households, has increased among older adults. Despite the growing trend to LAT in later life, there is a dearth of literature on living-apart-together exploring the experiences of minority older adult sub-groups. Particularly, few studies have explored motivations for living-apart-together among minority older adult sub-groups. In this study, using a qualitative descriptive approach, reasons older adult Black women engage in living-apart-together relationships were explored. As part of a larger study, thirteen black women ages 59-74 (married and unmarried) completed two semi-structured phone interviews about their motivations for living-apart-together and how decisions, or lack thereof, to LAT were made. Inductive thematic analytic methods revealed three major motivations for LAT among this sub-group. Motivations included: (1) to protect freedom and self-governance; (2) to maintain current living arrangements with live-in family members; and (3) to maximize healthy relationship characteristics (e.g. individuality). Participants reflected that reasons to engage in LAT were influenced by the distance between living-apart-together partners, current caregiving roles, and level of commitment. As to how older adult black women decided to engage in living-apart-together relationships, Participants reported that LAT happened by coincidence or because of a partner’s preference to maintain separate households. Boundary reinforcement regarding role strain was also identified as a core concept. Findings point to the need for applications to variations in relationship types among older adults regarding living arrangements, to professionals supporting aging families, and to further studies of family gerontology.

Envy and Jealousy of Living apart Together Relationships in Continuing Care Retirement Communities: Perspectives of Staff and Residents

Abstract Moving to a continuing care retirement community (CCRC) and living apart together (LAT) as a repartnering form represent new late-life beginnings. A large study on LAT relationships constructed in CCRCs identified envy and jealousy, yet they were not examined in-depth. Envy is wanting something we lack, whereas jealousy is fear of losing something that is ours to another. These emotions are rarely explored in the context of older adults’ relationships. Using Goffman’s framework of (semi)-totalitarian institutions, our aim is to heuristically examine experiences of envy and jealousy from the perspective of residents and staff. In total, thirty semi-structured interviews were conducted in three CCRCs in Israel with ten LAT residents, ten non-LAT residents and ten CCRC staff members, including social workers. Findings refer to kinds of envy, ignoring envy and the development and consequences of LAT-related jealousy and/or envy in CCRCs. The discussion and conclusions address how semi-totalitarian CCRC features influence envy and jealousy experiences. They include implications for social work practice with older adults and their family members regarding adjustment to life in the CCRC and may assist CCRC management and social workers in addressing possible consequences of envy and jealousy.

From Living Apart to Living Together: Do Children Born before the Current Partnership Matter?

This study examines the association between having children born before the current partnership and women’s and men’s likelihood of transitioning from living apart together (LAT) to co-residing. LAT partnerships are common among individuals with pre-partnership children, but have so far been under-researched. Our study not only focuses on those in LAT relations, but also takes the different pathways to becoming a single parent into account. Event-history analysis was performed using waves 1-4 from the Netherlands Kinship Panel Study.
 The results indicate that separated and widowed mothers were less likely to transition to co-residence with their LAT partner than childless women who had previously been in a co-residential union. Mothers who had previous out-of-union children were found to be even less likely to enter co-residence. Results were mostly similar for men and women. The only exception was the effect of being widowed with children; for men this resulted in higher chances of transitioning to co-residence with a new partner whereas for women the chances were lower.
 The findings suggest that individuals’ parenthood and union histories are associated with the development of their later partnerships, and that these patterns vary by gender. Given contemporary and future patterns of partnership separation, our study provides insights for better understanding how LAT relations develop for different sub-populations.

LIVING-APART-TOGETHER RELATIONSHIPS: EXPLORING OLDER ADULT BLACK WOMEN’S PERSPECTIVES ON CAREGIVING EXCHANGES

Recent research suggests that the preference for living-apart-together (LAT) relationships, where individuals are committed to one another but reside in separate households, has increased among older adults. However, older adult LAT couples prefer not to exchange care to maintain autonomy. In this study, we examine future expectations of spousal caregiving exchanges among older adult black women in LAT relationships. Eleven black women ages 60-74 (married and unmarried) completed two semi-structured phone interviews about future spousal caregiving expectations as to receiving and providing emotional, financial, and physical support. Regarding providing spousal care, findings from this qualitative descriptive study suggest that participants were consistent in their intent to provide emotional support, yet divided in visualizing themselves providing both financial and physical support for a spouse. As to receiving care from a spouse, participants envisioned their spouses providing emotional support, but responses were inconsistent on the expectation of spouses providing financial and physical support. Participants anticipate receiving emotional and physical support from their adult children and/or close family members instead of spouses. Autonomy, level of commitment, and the exchange of health information were also identified as core concepts. This study has implications for applications to different intimate relationships regarding living arrangements, to professionals supporting caregiving families, and to further studies of family gerontology.

Chinese ‘Study Mothers’ in Living Apart Together (LAT) Relationships: Educational Migration, Family Practices, and Gender Roles

Chinese people have a long history of giving great weight to education. Under the one-child policy, Chinese parents usually spare no efforts to devote themselves to their child’s development. This study examines how the gendered experiences of Chinese ‘study mothers’ ( peidu mama) who accompany their children to study while living apart from their partner, has impacted upon their everyday practices of ‘doing’ family in the Chinese social, historical, and cultural contexts. Drawing on data from qualitative interviews, this article examines how family is culturally constructed and practised in order to reclaim conventional forms of family and gender norms in China. For a woman, being a full-time study mother, even when it is at the cost of living separately from her partner and established career development, has been considered as a way to privilege ‘motherhood’ over ‘wifehood’. The dramatically opposite parenting roles reinforce and entrench the existing traditional gendered division of labour and gender hierarchy in contemporary Chinese society, which has a long tradition of patriarchal families within Confucian culture. This research suggests that family practices in the multi-local household setting are often closely implicated with practices of gender, class, mothering, and social norms. By focusing on these often-neglected groups, this study opens a new avenue to examining the diverse strategies employed by people in varied living arrangements, to negotiate gender roles and everyday family practices.

Receiving Support and Care in Older Age: Comparing LAT Relationships With First Marriages, Remarriages, and Cohabitation

Living apart together (LAT) combines intimacy with autonomy and flexibility but, possibly, with lower commitment to exchanging support and care compared with first marriages, remarriages, and cohabitation of older adults. Data from 50- to 79-year-old respondents in the Family and Fertility Survey 2013 (Statistics Netherlands; N = 4,108) showed that older LAT partners are most often involved in exchanging emotional support. No differences were found in the receipt of daily care. Multivariate analyses showed that receiving support and care from the partner was associated with more health problems, higher quality of the partner relationship, and a broader support network. When in poor health, LAT partners were less likely to receive daily care, but not emotional support, from their partner compared with the other types. Partner relationships in later life are well equipped to provide emotional support, but partner care is facilitated largely by help from others.