Young couples have trouble with monogamysubmitted by Anissa Ford on 2011-01-22
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Young couples, ages 18-25 really aren't clear on whether or not their sexual relationships are monogamous.

University of Oregon researchers studied 434 young heterosexual couples and found that young couples can't agree on whether or not their sexual relationships are monogamous.

In 40 percent of couples, only one partner says the couple agreed to be sexually exclusive. The other partner said there was no agreement.

The results of the survey demonstrate the lack of awareness young couples have about the risk behaviors of their sexual partners. The 'Journal of Sex Research' will publish the study in a forthcoming online article.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention funded the study done by two of the University's public health researchers. Researcher Jocelyn Warren said that this study is "really the first one that explores the discussions that heterosexual couples are - or aren't - having about monogamy. Miscommunication and misunderstanding about sexual exclusivity appear to be common."

Almost 30 percent of couples who agreed to be monogamous were not, as one of the partners had sex outside of the relationship.

Marie Harvey, a leading researcher in the field of sexual and reproductive health, said the study adds to a growing body of research on safer sex communication.

"Couples have a hard time talking about these sorts of issues, and I would imagine for young people it's even more difficult," Harvey said. "Monogamy comes up quite a bit as a way to protect against sexually transmitted diseases But you can see that agreement on whether one (a relationship) is monogamous or not is fraught with issues.
Read more on the University of Oregon's study here.

(source:huliq.com)

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