Waiting together

Abstract

This paper examines how a group of seafarer-partners utilized cyberspace to collectively cope with long-term waiting and temporal disruption to couple relationships caused by seafarers’ working patterns. It shows that seafarer-partners shared information, experience, and stories, which helped them to manage the present, to keep track of the future, and to bring the past to the fore. In so doing, seafarer-partners strengthened their relationships despite the time erosion. Thus the paper reveals that peer support and a waiting space are helpful for individuals involved in long-term waiting.