Editorial Comment on "A Comparison of Sexual Health History and Practices among Monogamous and Consensually Nonmonogamous Sexual Partners"-Moving Ahead: Accepting (and Funding) Research That Critically Examines Monogamy.

Abstract

Four years ago, my colleagues and I wrote a paper that was, initially, framed quite similarly to the target article [1]. In it, we demonstrated that people in consensually nonmonogamous (CNM) relationships were significantly more likely to use condoms, get tested for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and, generally, were more likely to employ safer sex practices than those in (ostensibly) monogamous relationships. We indicated that CNM groups were responsibly practicing safer sex. We later documented, perhaps even more surprisingly, that those involved in CNM relationships were more likely to use condoms correctly than those in (ostensibly) monogamous relationships [2]. Reviewers from the journals in which we attempted to publish our findings roundly criticized us for an approach that, consistent with our data, suggested a favorable impression of CNM. Several reviewers across a variety of manuscript submissions stated that we were biased, that our data were low quality, or that the conclusions were unsupported by the data.