The DOI matches its Crossref record; 30 of the 30 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
TRANSNATIONAL FAMILIES AND THE PROVISION OF MORAL AND EMOTIONAL SUPPORT: THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TRUTH AND DISTANCE
Abstract
This article is an ethnographic analysis of transnational family links between adult migrant children living in Australia and their kin in Italy, from the 1950s to the present. A key focus of the article is the persistence of bonds of emotion across distance. Drawing on Finch and Mason's research on caregiving relationships and Hochschild's work on emotional labour, it explores both the positive experiences as well as the tensions associated with the transnational exchange of moral and emotional support. The findings confirm the perseverance of bonds of emotion across distance and thus challenge arguments about the declining bonds within translocal families as a result of globalising processes. The role that new communication technologies play in sustaining these bonds is offered as a possible explanation to account for the apparent increase in the frequency of transnational emotional interaction over time. The article also calls for further work on the influence of physical co-presence or absence on emotional interaction over distance.
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In the citing paper
“Despite the emotional suffering that results from geographical separation, family members can live 'apart-together' (Baldassar 2007;Mazzucato and Schans 2011) through transnational family practices such as long-distance communication, return visits and sending money.”
From Navigating transnational childcare relationships: migrant parents and their children's caregivers in the origin country (2017) · cites this paper as Baldassar 2007
In the citing paper
“Such studies point to the diverse ways in which family members maintain a feeling of co-presence through long-distance communication, such as telephone calls, text messages, letters, remittances, photos, and visits (Baldassar 2007;Mason 2004;Parreñas 2005;Zontini 2004).”
From Navigating transnational childcare relationships: migrant parents and their children's caregivers in the origin country (2017) · cites this paper as Baldassar 2007
In the citing paper
“New information and communication technologies (ICTs), particularly mobile phones (Vertovec 2004) and the internet (Madianou 2012;Wilding 2006), have increased the possibilities for migrants and non-migrants to engage in each other's lives, facilitating the active re-creation of family ties and emotional bonds across borders (Baldassar 2007).”
From Navigating transnational childcare relationships: migrant parents and their children's caregivers in the origin country (2017) · cites this paper as Baldassar 2007
In the citing paper
“Visits allow parents to see the situation for themselves, which helps to loosen some of the strains associated with 'truth and distance' (Baldassar 2007).”
From Navigating transnational childcare relationships: migrant parents and their children's caregivers in the origin country (2017) · cites this paper as Baldassar 2007
Citations
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WILDING, R. (2006) · Global Networks · doi:10.1111/j.1471-0374.2006.00137.x · Cited by 656
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Cited by
Sorted by citations
Items 301–326 of 326
Rühr, P., Abdel-Fatah, D., & Kluge, U. (2025) · Research Square · doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-6837269/v1
Economic, Sociocultural and Political Transnationalism
Bilgili, Ö., & Erdal, M. B. (2025) · IMISCOE research series · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-91554-3_3
Geolegal distance: success and separation in gambian transnational families
Aucoin, M., & Gorman, C. S. (2025) · GeoJournal · doi:10.1007/s10708-025-11411-8
“Work on transnational families recognizes how migration and geographic distance do not necessarily diminish emotional attachments within families (Baldassar, 2007), especially given contemporary communication technologies (Leifsen & Tymczuk, 2012) and modes of transportation that create the…”
Köksal, S. Y., & Liu, F. (2025) · Journal of Youth Studies · doi:10.1080/13676261.2025.2541097
“According to Baldassar (2007), such behaviors often occur in transnational families, especially when it comes to lifestyle aspects that distant family members disapprove of.”
Hrženjak, M. (2025) · Two Homelands · doi:10.3986/2025.2.8
“It explores the mobility of older people seasonally visiting or permanently joining their emigrated kin, often children, to provide intergenerational support or receive care and support themselves (Baldassar, 2007).”
Living and navigating Ottawa as migrant Latina(s)
Diaz, L. V. V. (2025) · Canadian Journal of Latin American and Caribbean Studies / Revue canadienne des études latino-américaines et caraïbes · doi:10.1080/08263663.2025.2555339
“Loretta Baldassar (2007) mentions that along with migration, mobility has become a common affair among transnational families, who usually also provide accommodation for their loved ones when they come to visit.”
InfluentialMonacé, J. K., & Jardim, M. C. (2025) · Revista Brasileira de Ciências Sociais · doi:10.1590/40018/2025
Cuidado transnacional de personas adultas mayores en méxico: dificultades y resoluciones familiares
Contreras, M. G. R. (2025) · Latinoamericana de Estudios de Familia · doi:10.17151/rlef.2025.17.1.2
Rudwick, S. I., Nwagbo, A., & Schmiedl, M. (2026) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-032-10012-2_1
Włodarczyk, Z. (2026) · Journal of Immigrant & Refugee Studies · doi:10.1080/15562948.2025.2610410
‘I needed this journey’: home visits in wartime as transformative events
Falkenhain, M. (2026) · Journal of Refugee Studies · doi:10.1093/jrs/feaf088
Leszko, M. (2025) · Emerald Group Publishing Limited eBooks · doi:10.1108/s1530-353520250000033007
’If I go, who stays?’: Iranian university students’ perceptions of the sociopolitics of emigration
Badri, N., & Mirhosseini, S. (2026) · Identities · doi:10.1080/1070289x.2026.2625571
Bhatia, P., McLaren, H., & Huang, Y. (2026) · Journal of International Migration and Integration / Revue de l integration et de la migration internationale · doi:10.1007/s12134-026-01382-1
Young, C. B., Rashidnia, J., & Yu, C. K.-C. (2026) · Asia Pacific Journal of Counselling and Psychotherapy · doi:10.1080/21507686.2026.2672916
“Adjusting to the stresses of coping as a transnational caregiver contributes to feelings of guilt, anxiety, frustration, stress and depression (e.g. Amin & Ingman, 2014; Baldassar, 2007; Kalavar et al., 2020; Okigbo et al., 2025; Young, 2017).”
Mobility, Work and Families Amongst the Highly Skilled
Cranston, S., & Lulle, A. (2026) · Population Space and Place · doi:10.1002/psp.70314
“For example, much of the literature on the transnational family focuses on how care practices, enabled through ICTs, operate across time and space and replicate notions of care at a distance (Baldassar 2007; Mazzucato and Dito 2018).”
Pitt, R. (2026) · Journal of Marriage and the Family · doi:10.1111/jomf.70102
Palladino, S. (2026) · Emerald Group Publishing Limited eBooks · doi:10.1108/978-1-83708-372-520261004
Introducing a ‘Sense of Home’ Amongst Ageing Migrants
Palladino, S. (2026) · Emerald Group Publishing Limited eBooks · doi:10.1108/978-1-83708-372-520261001
Haaften, J. V., Sethi, B., & Williams-Habibi, S. (2026) · Central and Eastern European Migration Review · doi:10.54667/ceemr.2026.06
Gustafsson, H. (2026) · doi:10.24834/isbn.9789178777945
Altunay, E., Özdemir, N., Omran, L., Nenonen, O., Karpava, S., Albert, I., Telegdi‐Csetri, Á., & Ringblom, N. (2026) · Journal of Family Theory & Review · doi:10.1111/jftr.70090
Kinspire: Exploring Game-Mediated Prompts to Foster Communication in Distant Families
Wang, W.-L., Yan, Z., Fan, J., Hassan, T., Zheng, X., Haqq, D., Ma, Q., Cao, Y., Andrus, N., & McCrickard, D. S. (2026) · Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction · doi:10.1145/3816961
Fractured bonds: the silent cost of migration on African families and kinship
Shulika, L. S., & Okunade, S. K. (2026) · The Round Table · doi:10.1080/00358533.2026.2737366
Metadata
- Authors
- Baldassar, L.
- Affiliations
- The University of Western Australia (AU)
- Corresponding author
- Baldassar, Loretta
- ORCID
- Baldassar, Loretta
- Venue
- Identities
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2007-10-15
- Volume
- 14
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 385-409
- ISSN
- 1070-289X (ISSN-L)
- 1547-3384
- OpenAlex
- W2036930388
- Cited by
- 344
- References
- 30
- Citations by year
- 2026: 21 · 2025: 29 · 2024: 22 · 2023: 16 · 2022: 21 · 2021: 29 · 2020: 19 · 2019: 17 · 2018: 32 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 19 · 2015: 16 · 2014: 15 · 2013: 23 · 2012: 17
- FWCI
- 15.65
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Identities (publishedVersion)
- UWA Profiles and Research Repository (UWA) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Demography › Diaspora, migration, transnational identity
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Intergenerational Family Dynamics and Caregiving
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Migration and Labor Dynamics
- Keywords
- transnational families, migrant children, emotional support, moral support, emotional labor, caregiving relationships, communication technology, globalization, kinship ties
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