And, contrary to popular belief, people in open or polyamorous relationships aren’t more sexually satisfied: 71% of people in polyamorous or open relationships are satisfied with their sex life compared to 82% of people in monogamous relationships and 80% of people who are married, in civil unions or partnerships. The least sexually satisfied people are those who are single and looking for a relationship; only 40% are satisfied. Single people are also more likely to choose not to divulge information about their sex life. 
 
 
 
 The survey also shows that general satisfaction increases with age among men but stays relatively stable among women. However, for both men and women, 25-30 year olds are most likely to report that they are ‘very satisfied’ with their sex life. 
 
 
 
 
 
 (Results from Dalia’s study of European relationships can be seen here) 
 
 *Correction: This post previously listed the results as representative of ages 14-65, however, in this survey only results from ages 18-65 are presented. 
 
 Header image by Charlie Foster ||||| ANN ARBOR, MI - While monogamous relationships are considered by many to be the cornerstone of love and happiness, a new University of Michigan study indicates that those in consensual open relationships are just as satisfied. 
 
 The study, led by UM Associate Professor of Psychology and Women's Studies Terri Conley, showed that heterosexuals in consensual open relationships reported high levels of satisfaction and trust, as well as low levels of jealousy. 
 
 
 
 "Overall, the outcomes for monogamous and consensual nonmonogamous participants were the same - indicating no net benefit of one relationship style over another," said Conley, in a news release. 
 
 
 
 Conley and colleagues conducted analyses of different relationships among participants older than age 25. The sample included 2,124 people - including 1,507 individuals in monogamous relationships and 617 individuals in committed non-monogamous relationships. 
 
 The group rated relationship components: satisfaction, commitment, trust, jealousy and passionate love, which is the intense love feeling often described in new relationships. 
 
 
 
 Researchers found no differences between monogamous and consensual nonmonogamous participants in terms of satisfaction and passionate love. 
 
 Furthermore, levels of jealousy were lower and trust was higher among those engaged in committed non-monogamous relationships. 
 
 Another finding differed from people's assumptions that those in non-monogamous relationships do not care about each other enough to be happy in their primary relationship. The study, however, showed that an individual had more satisfaction, trust, commitment and passionate love in their primary mate than in their secondary relationship. 
 
 The study did show that people in open relationships generally reported somewhat poorer relational functioning than monogamous individuals. Individuals in open relationships were significantly less satisfied and less committed to their relationship than their monogamous counterparts. 
 
 They also reported lower levels of passionate love and fewer jealous cognitions than monogamous people and also scored marginally lower on the index of behavioral jealousy than monogamous individuals. 
 
 The findings appear in the current issue of Perspectives on Psychological Science. 
 
 ||||| Sex is a big part of most romances, whether a marriage or a more experimental union. A recent survey of Europeans shows that people in the most sexually liberated partnerships aren’t having the best time. Monogamous couples reported that they were the most sexually satisfied of all the groups in a large, representative survey conducted in March 2017. 
 
 Among the 1,885 people who said they were in monogamous relationships, 82% reported that they were broadly satisfied with their sex life. That compared to 80% of people in a marriage, civil union or other legal partnership, while 71% of people in open or polyamorous relationships said they were fulfilled. 
 
 The survey, conducted by Dalia, a Berlin-based research company, included over 11,000 people from the 28 countries in the European Union aged 14-65, though for the purposes of reporting they then excluded those aged under 18. 
 
 The findings echo US research that showed that people with young kids had the most sex of all Americans. People who live together (as couples with children often do) have readier access to sex than those in relationships who don’t live together. The EU survey only found 275 people, or 2.5% of the total, who said they were in open relationships. 
 
 Age and gender also affect sex-life satisfaction. Men overall reported a slight increase in satisfaction as age increased, while women’s satisfaction remained stable. For both genders, the highest peak was between the ages of 25 and 30. And though not every country in the EU provided enough respondents to produce a statistically significant finding, some that did showed marked differences. Spain proved to be the most sexually satisfied country with 41% of people saying they were “very satisfied” with their sex lives, while in Germany that number was 38%. In Poland only 23% said they were ”very satisfied,” compared to 28% in Italy and 29% in both the UK and France. 
 
 Opening up a relationship can be about more than sex. Advocates talk (paywall) about the deep trust forged by letting one’s partner have other relationships, and the intellectual stimulation and support gained from multiple romantic connections. But the surveys indicate that multiple partners may well not trump one really great one in the bedroom department.
– Feel like monogamy is keeping you from an exciting sex life? Take note: An open relationship, with the potential for more sexual partners, does not necessarily mean you'll be more sexually satisfied. That's according to a survey of more than 11,000 people from 28 European countries, aged 18 to 65. In the survey conducted by German research company Dalia in March, 82% of monogamous couples and 80% of married couples reported that they were sexually satisfied, compared to 71% of couples in an open or polyamorous relationship and fewer than half of singles, reports Quartz. Other than singles who are "looking," those in open relationships were actually the most likely to be unsatisfied sexually. Some 22% said they weren't sexually satisfied, compared to 12% of married participants and 11% of monogamous respondents. Interestingly, a University of Michigan survey of some 2,000 people over 25, published in March, found heterosexuals in open relationships were significantly less satisfied with their relationship overall than those in monogamous relationships, reported Michigan Live. On the flip side, though, those in polyamorous relationships reported having higher levels of trust and lower levels of jealousy than their monogamous counterparts. That left researchers to conclude that there is "no net benefit of one relationship style over another." (Americans appear to be having trouble in the bedroom.)