Official statistics only reflect institutional partnership status, meaning that people who live alone in their home are considered to be partnerless. However, if we look at social status, we see that a growing number of people are living in a partnership but in two households of their own. This is referred to as "living-apart-together" (LAT for short).

It is important to investigate this group of people in more detail in order to understand in which respects they are similar to couples living together, for example in terms of a reduced risk of loneliness or a greater sense of well-being, or to people without partners, for example with regard to poverty risks and housing cost burdens.

Just under 6% of the German Aging Survey respondents state that they live in a LAT partnership. But is this living arrangement self-chosen, is it the result of professional and/or private commitments in different locations, for example, or is it a precursor to moving in together?

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