Rethinking transnational parenting: Chinese immigrant parents' family separation during COVID-19

Despite recent studies on cross-border immobility associated with COVID-19, little attention has been paid to the resulting prolonged separation of transnational families. This study attempts to fill this gap by examining the experiences of immigrant parents who were separated from their young children across national borders during the pandemic. Drawing on 42 in-depth interviews with parents of Chinese transnational families in Spain, this study examined the impact of global mobility restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic on transnational immigrant families' separation experiences. Our findings indicate that following the disruptions caused by the pandemic, immigrant parents had to postpone family visits and reunification with their children, ultimately causing stress and frustration. The disruptive life experiences caused by COVID-19 have raised awareness of the distance between immigrant parents and led Chinese families to rethink their transnational parenting practices. This study contributes to our knowledge of transnational parent-child relationships and how they are shaped by (im)mobility regimes and state interventions in times of crisis. Beyond the context of COVID-19, this study calls to look beyond the current frameworks of structural constraints on immigration policies and extend attention to the uncertainties associated with the changing global context in which transnational parenting is embedded.