Countering the Monogamy-Superiority Myth: A Meta-Analysis of the Differences in Relationship Satisfaction and Sexual Satisfaction as a Function of Relationship Orientation
Across 35 studies, monogamous and consensually non-monogamous participants reported similar satisfaction on average.
Orgasmaphoria editorial perspective
About this source
This synthesis directly challenges the assumption that one relationship structure automatically produces better relationships or sex. Its strongest use is comparative and modest: average satisfaction was similar, while individual agreements, communication, fit, and conduct still matter.
Why it matters: This source demonstrates that relationship structure alone does not decide care, communication, or satisfaction. It helps readers judge relationships by consent and behavior instead of treating monogamy as the automatic standard.
Purpose and scope
Compare relationship and sexual satisfaction between people in monogamous and consensually non-monogamous relationships.
35 studies and 24,489 participants; 29 relationship-satisfaction comparisons and 17 sexual-satisfaction comparisons.
Findings or central themes
Overall differences were statistically null for relationship satisfaction (g = -0.05) and sexual satisfaction (g = 0.06); subgroup results did not vary significantly by CNM agreement type or the other tested sample characteristics.
Strengths
Large synthesis, unpublished-data outreach, subgroup analyses, and no detected publication bias.
Limitations
The included literature inherits self-selection, self-report, varied measures, and uneven representation; a null average does not make every relationship equally satisfying.
Do not use this source to claim: Claims that CNM or monogamy guarantees satisfaction, or that every CNM subtype and population has been studied equally
Citation and access
Joel R. Anderson, Jordan D. X. Hinton, Alena Bondarchuk-McLaughlin, Scarlet Rosa, Kian Jin Tan, Lily Moor (2025). Countering the Monogamy-Superiority Myth: A Meta-Analysis of the Differences in Relationship Satisfaction and Sexual Satisfaction as a Function of Relationship Orientation. The Journal of Sex Research DOI: 10.1080/00224499.2025.2462988
Public abstract
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