Digital Bonds in Long-Distance Relationships: A Study on New Forms of Intimacy Based on Suki

DOI

10.2991/978-2-38476-611-6_120How to use a DOI?

Keywords

Long-Distance Relationship; Suki APP; Virtual Intimacy; Digital Media; Affective Practice

Abstract

Urbanization-driven mobility has made long-distance relationships increasingly prevalent, prompting the rise of vertical couple-oriented apps like Suki to sustain emotional bonds. Yet the mechanisms by which such apps construct virtual intimacy remain underexplored. Through semi-structured interviews and participant observation with 12 long-distance couples, this study examines how Suki addresses core intimacy challenges via scenarized co-presence and ritualized interaction. Findings reveal a human-platform-human inter-construction that fosters virtual symbiosis and performative expression—a novel intimate form. The study advances digital intimacy research and offers empirical insights into vertical emotional media.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Lanxin Sun
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/09/07
TI  - Digital Bonds in Long-Distance Relationships: A Study on New Forms of Intimacy Based on Suki
BT  - Proceedings of the 2026 12th International Conference on Digital Humanities and Frontiers in Social Sciences (DHFSS 2026)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 1123
EP  - 1130
SN  - 2352-5398
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-611-6_120
DO  - 10.2991/978-2-38476-611-6_120
ID  - Sun2026
ER  -