Open relationships are on the increase

Despite most of us holding monogamy in high esteem, it would seem we are less willing to commit to only one person than we will admit reports The Times.

Statistics state that although monogamy is expected by 95% of couples, 27% of 18-39 year old men and 18% of women reported that during their most recent sexual relationship, they had had sex with at least one other partner. The results of the survey, by the Social and Economic Science Research Centre at the Washington State University do not come as a huge surprise as we are generally becoming more receptive to the idea of open relationships.

An evolutionary biologist from Manchester university recently wrote a novel about the topic of mammals and basic human instincts. It is normal behaviour for a mammal to have more than one mate and it is nurture rather than nature that makes us monogamous.
However, despite this, open relationships are still viewed by the public as something that only the most free-spirited of us partake in.

Most people who are in an open relationship don’t have an idealistic view of love and relationships like the rest of us do. They are often born of necessity and couples may have a verbally negotiated “blind eye” policy, which is akin to an open relationship in that what the eye doesn’t see, can’t hurt you.