NM #1

A substantial number of people engage in relationships that are openly and consensually non-monogamous (i.e., may involve multiple consenting partners and do not require romantic and/or sexual exclusivity; Conley et al., 2013). Indeed, recent research suggests that as many in 1 in 5 adults in the U.S. and Canada have engaged in some type of ethically non-monogamous relationship over the course of their lives (Fairbrother et al., 2019). This should perhaps be relatively unsurprising, given that monogamy is not universal; indeed, research reveals significant variability of relationship structures across both species (Ryan & Jetha, 2010) and human cultures (Schmitt, 2005). Further, high rates of infidelity and divorce in monogamous relationships suggest that monogamy may not be a universally-positive, sustainable, or desirable relationship structure (Guerrero et al., 2017). In addition, a substantial body of evidence reveals that the various forms of non-monogamy are not associated with poorer outcomes relative to monogamy (see Conley et al., 2013 for a discussion). Instead, some studies reveal the opposite pattern; non-monogamous participants report experiencing more trust, sexual satisfaction, and less jealousy relative to comparable monogamous participants (Conley et al., 2017) and are also more likely to utilize safe sex practices (Conley et al., 2012). Thus, although monogamy is commonly considered the default relationship structure, non-monogamy appears to represent a valid or even advantageous opportunity for many individuals. And yet, some evidence suggests that people practicing non-monogamy encounter stigma, whereas monogamous individuals are viewed with “halo effects” of excessive positivity (Conley et al., 2013). For example, non-monogamous people report being dehumanized (Rodrigues et al., 2023), and undergraduate participants demonstrate an implicit preference for monogamy (Thompson et al., 2018). While relatively few experiments have explored potential non-monogamy stigma, those that do reveal troubling patterns of bias. For example, participants rated a non-monogamous couple substantially more negatively than the identical monogamous couple (Conley et al., 2013), and this was true for both White and Black target couples (St. Vil et al., 2022). The current work seeks to expand the existing experimental literature by expansively probing the existence and nature of stigma for non-monogamy. Additionally, it will seek to identify the processes underscoring the effect, and ultimately, test evidence-based interventions that can reduce this harmful stigma. This first study seeks to conceptually replicate existing evidence of non-monogamy stigma in an important new context (judgments of couples seeking to adopt a young child), while also affording exploratory tests of potential moderators and mediators. Specifically, participants will read about one of four couples, identical apart from their relationship structure (monogamy, infidelity, polyamory, open), and then provide their reactions to the couple (see procedure below). This between-subjects design allows for an experimental test of potential stigma targeting people engaged in non-monogamy, as a function of their relationships structure. We expect that non-monogamous couples will be rated more poorly than identical monogamous couples. We will explore any possible specific conditions differences within this basic hypothesis. Further, we will conduct exploratory analyses to begin to probe potential mechanisms, with an eye towards developing interventions in future work.

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