Many people view the notion of an “ideal” romantic relationship as having a single partner that satisfies all their love and intimate needs. Yet, others are also interested in expanding their intimate, emotional, and sexual experience beyond one partner.

As infidelity and divorce rates are growing, a larger number of individuals see that total monogamy for a lifetime is very challenging. This is why today more partners are looking for a more flexible structure and arrangement when it comes to their intimacy and sexuality.

In addition, as technologies, options, and abundance amplify, modern intimate relationships become more complex. As such, it encourages some couples to investigate and experiment with alternatives to monogamy, traditional marriage, and conventional relationships.

A non-monogamous relationship with all its variations offers possibilities beyond the exclusivity of conventional intimacy. A non-monogamous relationship is a type of relationship where the partners agree that they can have sexual and/or romantic relationships with other people outside of their partnership. For the most part, they involve one primary relationship that you are more committed to, plus a few secondary ones that are less dominant or more sexual in nature.

Here are some common examples of open relationship structures:

Open Relationship

An open relationship is defined as a........

© Psychology Today