#monogamy — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #monogamy, aggregated by home.social.
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DATE: July 27, 2026 at 04:00PM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: Men are more likely than women to view infidelity favorably when relationships falter
When adults feel unsatisfied with their romantic partnerships, they are more likely to develop a lenient attitude toward cheating. This psychological link is heavily influenced by a person’s baseline willingness to engage in casual sexual encounters. These findings were published recently in the journal Sexual and Relationship Therapy.
Romantic relationships require a continuous investment of time and emotional energy. Psychologists often use the investment model of commitment to understand why people stay faithful in a pairing. This model suggests that satisfaction, the sheer quality of the relationship, and the appeal of alternative partners all interact to determine a person’s loyalty.
Unmet needs in a primary relationship often push people to seek intimacy elsewhere. A lack of sexual or emotional satisfaction can weaken the boundaries that usually prevent extradyadic affairs. Still, not every unhappy partner inevitably embarks on an affair, prompting researchers to look for underlying personality traits that tip the scales.
Human beings possess varying levels of openness to uncommitted sexual intimacy. Psychologists refer to this trait as sociosexual orientation, a concept that helps explain vast differences in romantic behavior. People with an unrestricted orientation are highly comfortable with physical intimacy outside of a committed romantic bond. They do not feel an absolute need for love or emotional attachment to enjoy sexual encounters.
Conversely, those with a restricted sociosexual orientation typically require a deep emotional bond before engaging in physical intimacy. They prefer long term strategies and heavy emotional investment with a single partner. Sociosexuality is generally broken down into three distinct components in modern psychological assessments. These include past behavioral tendencies, personal attitudes about casual intimacy, and an ongoing psychological desire for uncommitted encounters.
In the contemporary dating landscape, maintaining loyalty can be uniquely challenging for some individuals. Dating apps and digital messaging platforms provide a constant stream of alternative options for dissatisfied partners. For those with unrestricted tendencies, this modern accessibility might make an unfaithful mindset even easier to adopt.
Past research connects unrestricted sexual orientations with an increased likelihood of cheating. Less understood is exactly how the daily fluctuations in a primary relationship interact with these personal dispositions to shape thoughts about unfaithfulness. Kashish Pandey, a researcher at the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, and colleagues wanted to map this specific psychological pathway.
Pandey, along with Priyanka Tiwari, Taranjeet Duggal, and Khusboo K from the Manav Rachna International Institute of Research and Studies, designed a survey to test these interactions. They wanted to see if a person’s baseline view on casual sex bridges the gap between a struggling relationship and a willingness to cheat. The team also examined whether gender changed these dynamics, given the different social pressures placed on men and women globally.
The researchers recruited 303 adult participants from the local region encompassing Delhi, India. The sample included 135 men and 168 women, with ages ranging from 18 to 65 years old. A vast majority of these individuals were young adults between the ages of 18 and 24.
The participants reported a wide variety of relationship statuses. Just over half of the respondents were currently dating someone. The rest were cohabiting with a partner, in a loosely defined casual arrangement, or engaging in relationships they simply defined as fluid.
To gather data safely and anonymously, the researchers used online assessment tools. Participants received digital links to a questionnaire designed to take less than ten minutes to complete. The first section utilized a widely used psychological survey called the Revised Sociosexual Orientation Inventory. This test asks respondents to rate their agreement with statements regarding their sexual desires and past behaviors.
The surveying process also utilized a nine question assessment designed to capture relationship quality. This measure asks participants to evaluate their current happiness and satisfaction levels with their partners. Finally, the team administered the Attitude Towards Infidelity Scale to gauge how acceptable participants found cheating in various scenarios.
After running a statistical analysis on the survey results, the researchers noted a distinct pattern across the demographics. Lower relationship quality correlated with a much more positive attitude toward unfaithfulness. Participants unhappy with their current partners viewed outside intimacy as far more acceptable than those in thriving partnerships. This baseline finding matched expectations based on previous studies regarding marital dissatisfaction.
The analysis also showed that this was not a direct emotional jump from unhappiness to approving of affairs. Instead, a person’s sociosexual orientation acted as an intermediate variable. People in less fulfilling relationships were more likely to harbor unrestricted views on casual intimacy generally.
This general openness to uncommitted intimacy then predicted a more lenient attitude toward cheating specifically. The researchers refer to this psychological chain of events as a mediated pathway. Essentially, a poor relationship environment might activate or strengthen a person’s existing tendency toward unrestrictive intimacy.
This phenomenon aligns with a psychological concept known as self congruency theory. Socially unrestricted individuals often experience an increase in wellbeing after casual sexual encounters because the behavior matches their internal values. When a primary relationship fails to provide satisfaction, unrestricted individuals might organically lean toward thoughts that feel authentic to their personal dispositions.
Gender also altered the strength of this psychological pathway. The survey data indicated that men tended to have a higher baseline level of unrestricted sociosexuality than women. When relationship quality dropped, the men were more prone than the women to view outside sexual partners favorably.
The study authors contextualized this gender difference within the framework of evolutionary psychology. They referenced the sexual strategies theory, which proposes that male and female mating behaviors evolved under different reproductive pressures. According to this perspective, ancestral men gained a reproductive advantage by seeking multiple partners across a lifetime.
In contrast, ancestral women possessed a heavier biological burden of parental investment, leading to more selective mating strategies. Beyond evolutionary theory, the researchers also pointed to strictly sociological explanations. In many closed societies, men face a far less severe social stigma for promiscuity than women do.
Because women face higher physical and social risks associated with extramarital affairs, they might maintain less favorable attitudes toward cheating even when profoundly unhappy in a relationship. The authors noted a few methodological limitations in their current work. Because the study relied on observational data collected at a single point in time, the results cannot establish a strict cause and effect relationship.
It remains entirely possible that a naturally high interest in casual physical intimacy directly causes a decline in a couple’s happiness, rather than the other way around. To better understand this timeline, future scholars would need to follow couples over several years. Such a longitudinal approach could track how attitudes organically shift as relationships evolve and confront daily challenges.
The current measurements only reflect mental attitudes and self reported dispositions. Favorable thoughts about cheating do not always translate into actual acts of unfaithfulness. The jump from a passing thought to a physical affair involves many other behavioral hurdles. A partner might fantasize about alternative partners but never act on those thoughts due to personal morals or logistical barriers.
Looking forward, researchers could examine how other life variables influence the behavioral boundaries of fidelity. Incorporating metrics like religious beliefs, career stress, and overall mental health could provide a wider context for relationship struggles. Replicating the survey among older populations might also yield different findings, as an aging demographic often reports different long term motivations.
Understanding these psychological pathways can directly benefit modern therapeutic practices. Relationship counselors can use these insights to tailor their approach according to a client’s baseline sociosexual orientation. The findings highlight the absolute importance of emotional transparency and proactive problem solving within a romantic bond.
Addressing relationship deficits early on might prevent a partner from seeking external validation. Fostering open communication channels allows couples to handle dissatisfaction before it morphs into a favorable view of outside intimacy. This proactive approach ultimately helps protect both partners’ psychological wellbeing.
The study, “The entwined nature of infidelity and relationship quality: parallels in theory and practice through a moderated mediation analysis,” was authored by Kashish Pandey, Priyanka Tiwari, Taranjeet Duggal, and Khusboo K.
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#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #infidelity #relationshipquality #sociosexualorientation #monogamy #datingresearch #genderdifferences #evolutionarypsychology #trustinrelationships #relationshiptherapy #unfaithfulnessattitudes
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💁🏻♀️ TIL: 🐦💞 Most #birds practice social #monogamy, but only a few species actually mate for life.
Ornithologist Bart Kempenaers from the #MaxPlanck Institute explains that longevity, predation risk, and site fidelity all influence whether #animals stay partnered. Even lifelong animal pairs don’t always mate exclusively, with “cheating” and “divorce” playing a role.
👉 https://www.popsci.com/science/do-animals-mate-for-life/
#mating #wolves #science #biology #evolution #ornithology #nature #wildlife #swans #eagles #albatrosses #love
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Friday's fire take:
Monogamy is not the natural state of humans and defs not the natural state of hellions.
"But humans are naturally monogamous!"
U are not.
- U cheat like, a LOT.
- U divorce at crazy rates. Like up to 50% of first marriages and up to 70% of other ones.
- Even when u don't cheat, u often skirt the border of like... emotional cheating. Or u know, climb the fence and sneak into emotional cheating land lol.
Okie, some of u might be monogamous but I don't think its as common as u think. Ur obsession with it is bc even if u were never Abrahamic, u have been force fed their views. I think probs, u are not entirely mono, even if u do tje mono thing for short times."What about hellions?"
Pfft we are mostly like u. Including the dumb indoctrination.
"What about u?"
I'm non-mono but demi. So not mono but super picky.
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Do humans have a high capacity for commitment? One way to find out is to explore the default of nearly all of our romantic relationships: monogamy. Are we wired for it? Scientists have searched for the answer to this for decades. Here’s more from @sciencefocus:
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Nice paper out in @PNASNews on the #evolution of #monogamy. It shows that monogamy worldwide mostly appeared as a result of competition for heritable wealth at the individual level, rather than as a way to promote cooperation at the group level.
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You know what would probably blow the mind of your average monogamist? Asexual polyamory people. The next time someone finds out I'm poly and jumps right to talking about sex and threesomes, I'm going to bring up that counterexample and let them sit with what that says about their ideas of love and relationships.
#polyamory #lgbtqia #asexuality #ace #monogamy #ENM #ethicalNonmonogamy #poly #lgbtq #queer -
A scientist produced a monogamy ranking of dozens of mammals, including humans.
From @WSJ: "Humans are less monogamous than some mice but rank higher than one breed of sheep."
Gift link: https://flip.it/7nkbWY
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Vatican defends monogamy against polygamy, polyamory
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Shameless #Sexuality: More than Monogamy Panel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GUc0r9urYc&list=WL
From #pansexuality to #polyamory, join us for a discussion that is guaranteed to be about More than #Monogamy, featuring:
Janice Selbie
Founder of CORT, Divorcing Religion Workshop, & Shameless Sexuality: Life After #Purity Culture, Divorcing #Religion
Keith Mullin
Mandisa Thomas
- Founder and President, Black Nonbelievers
Marie LePage
Sheldon and Katherine Roberts -
My first iOS app is finally available on the App Store! I am really excited about this and super hyped about everyone who gives it a try or shares it 🥰
Relationship Menu is an app that can help people to reflect on what they need and want in a relationship - alone or together with one or multiple partners.
Get it here: https://apps.apple.com/app/id6746169721
You can also use it on the web: https://relationshipmenu.org
#SwiftUI #Swift #iosdev #relationship #polyamory #monogamy #nonmonogamy #indiedev #ios26
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Woohoo! My first app arrived on the App Store! 🎉😍
https://apps.apple.com/de/app/relationship-menu/id6746169721Much appreciation to anyone who finds it interesting, gives it a boost, or simply tries it out 🙈 #AppStore #iosdev #Swift #relationships #polyamory #monogamy #nonmonogamy
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Is #Monogamy Natural or Just a #SocialConstruct? So what’s the deal?
https://goodmenproject.com/featured-content/is-monogamy-natural-or-just-a-social-construct/
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#Monogamy vs. #Monogamish? 7% of #Americans Are in Monogamish #Relationships
When asked about their feelings towards monogamy, America tipped #nonmonogamous, with 39% of respondents saying monogamy is the only type of relationship they’d consider, and the other 61% saying otherwise.
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Monopoly is when you switch between monogamy and polyamory, right?
:PolyamoryFlag: -
Hey,
I'd like to start a collection of books, that are great eye-openers against normative concepts.I have read 2 books so far, that I think fit:
#Ace by #AngelaChen: Maybe the standard work on asexuality and a great book to understand and question allo-normativity (allo(sexual) being the opposite of ace/asexual)
#Platonic by #MarisaGFranco: An homage to platonic partnerships and against romantic normativity or also allo normativity (allo(romantic) being the opposite of aromantic here)
I'm next looking for a book on #RelationshipAnarchy to add to the list. Is there like a go-to book or must read? Please let me know.
Also do you know of any other books, that fit into the collection? It can be about/against any kind of normativity, not just related to gender, relationships and identity.
#BooksTodon #BookRecommendation #normativity #asexuality #asexual #aromantic #RelationshipAnarchism #QueerFeminism #HeteroNormativity #AlloNormativity #polyamory #monogamy #patriarchy
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Really enjoying the podcast!
A couple of topics I'd love to hear covered:
* Creating a consistent sleep routine - all podcasts seem to focus just on "how to get your brain to stop keeping you awake as you lie in bed". I've literally paid thousands of dollars to coaches, hypnotists etc to help me just to get INTO bed at a consistentish time that gets me 8 hours of sleep. So far to almost no effect. I really don't understand how my diet can be so good, and my sleep times so bad!
* ADHD dating - Does it work better with an ADHD or non ADHD partner?
* ADHD and sex - Is monogamy incompatible with ADHD? Is polyamory, or swinging more compatible, given novelty etc. Or worse, given RSD?
* Building a network of friends with adult ADHD.
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#SeparationofChurchandState / #SOCAS #NEWS -
Federal agency flies #Christiannationalist flag
#Christianity Is Ramping Up in #PublicSchools
Trump #ReligiousLiberty Commission promotes #Christian #Nationalism
Christian-Owned Spa Cannot #Discriminate Against #TransWomen, #FederalAppealsCourt Rules
#Abstinence, #patriotism and #monogamy all required #curriculum under new #Ohio bill
When #Religious #Employers Get a Pass, #Workers Pay the Price
https://flipboard.com/@dustcircle/church-state-separation-g5hp0m0uy
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My Relationship Menu app now finally supports filtering items by search! You can join the beta here: https://testflight.apple.com/join/4drmtcfm
I would love to add a mode that allows filtering by mode but I haven't figured out how I can add a button after the search field yet in #SwiftUI unfortunately.
#Swift #iosdev #relationships #polyamory #nonmonogamy #monogamy
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Made for Each Other: Evolution of Monogamy in Poison Frogs
by @GrrlScientist via #Substack
#frogs #monogamy #evolution #SciComm https://substack.com/home/post/p-164371623
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Made for Each Other: Evolution of Monogamy in Poison Frogs
by @grrlscientist via #Substack
#frogs #monogamy #evolution #SciComm https://substack.com/home/post/p-164371623
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JSON attachments also work now btw. for PDFs generated with the iOS version of my tool. We also now have support for sharing menus as end-to-end encrypted links! #relationship #Swift #swiftUI #iosdev #relationships #polyamory #nonmonogamy #monogamy
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Finally added PDF support to the iOS version of my #relationship menu tool! Haven’t managed to add a json attachment to to the PDF yet like the web version does unfortunately - open for suggestions! https://testflight.apple.com/join/4drmtcfm #Swift #swiftUI #iosdev #relationships #polyamory #nonmonogamy #monogamy
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Added a proper introduction sheet to the app now and redesigned a couple of things! #swift #swiftUI #iosdev #relationship #polyamory #poly #nonmonogamy #monogamy
Get the beta here: https://testflight.apple.com/join/4drmtcfm
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iPad support is now available in the beta! You can join here https://testflight.apple.com/join/4drmtcfm
#relationshipmenu #relationship #relationship #polyamory #poly #nonmonogamy #monogamy #swift #swiftUI #iosdev #ipad #iphone #pleaseboost
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New beta is available with a new menu creation flow thanks to the great feedback from @toffifeelix! I also added an example menu when no menu has been created yet ☺️
Link to TestFlight: https://testflight.apple.com/join/4drmtcfm iPad support will come tomorrow!
#iosdev #ios #swift #swiftUI #beta #relationshipmenu #relationship #relationships #polyamory #poly #nonmonogamy #monogamy #pleaseboost #boost