Introduction

This is an introduction to a collection of articles ‐‐ “Affecting Global Movement: The Emotional Terrain of Transnationality” ‐‐ that explores discourses of emotion related to global movement. Research on migration rarely captures the affective and emotional dimensions of global processes. This issue is part of an emergent body of scholarship that bridges work on transnational migration with examinations of affect and emotion. Here, we discuss several common themes that the papers collectively address: how emotion shapes, negotiates, and mediates connectedness and disconnectedness along lines of nation, community, and/or kin; the relationship between emotionality and materiality; and the emotional aspects of structural power dynamics in diverse contexts. Such study can inform and aid in the development of policies that incorporate emotional experiences, thereby improving transnational lives.