Consensual Non-Monogamies (CNM) in Spain: a Secondary Analysis of Prevalence
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
Consensual non-monogamies (CNM) are a set of relationship models whose scientific study has been limited largely to North American contexts, thus limiting the comprehension of changes and diversity within relationship and sexual practices. With the objective to offer a pioneering prevalence estimate in Spain for CNM in general and for three specific models (open relationships, swinging, polyamory), this research brief presents a secondary analysis of data from a March 2026 survey by the Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas, with a total sample of 4,008 participants. The brief presents a prevalence estimate of 1.6% of participants being in a non-monogamous relationship at the time of the survey, and of 15.5% of participants participating in CNM in the past—open relationships, swinging, polyamory, which is coherent with existing studies, and which constitutes a result that is useful for the study of changes in relationship models and sexual practices. This first estimate with current data serves to bring to the fore the diversity of relationship models and experiences in Spain, and makes it necessary to widen the knowledge on the relationships developed in our societies.
Downloads
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Este artículo se distribuye bajo Creative Commons Atribución-NoComercial 4.0 (CC BY-NC 4.0) .
References
Astle, S., Langin, K., Anderson, J. R., y Moors, A. C. (2024). Understanding relationship labels: A content analysis of consensual non- monogamous relationship agreements. Sexuality & Culture, 28, 710- 732. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-023-10141-8
Blanc, A., y Pérez, C. (2024). Psychometric properties of the Attitudes Toward Polyamory Scale (ATP) in the Spanish context. Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy, 50(7), 825- 833. https://doi.org/10.1080/0092623X.2024.2387263
Brooks, T. R., Shaw, J., Reysen, S., y Henley, T. B. (2022). The vices and virtues of consensual non-monogamy: A relational dimension investigation. Psychology & Sexuality, 13(3), 595- 609. https://doi.org/10.1080/19419899.2021.1897034
Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas. (2026). Sexualidad: hábitos y opiniones (Estudio núm. 3555). https://bit.ly/3UKz2Sb
Compton, D., y Kaufman, G. (2024). Looking beyond marital status: What we can learn from relationship status measures. Journal of Marriage and Family, 86, 1432-1449. https://doi.org/10.1111/jomf.13021
Domínguez Ruiz, I. E. (2025). No monogàmies en el context espanyol: una anàlisi secundària d’actituds socials a partir de les dades del CIS. Arxius de Ciències Socials, 52, 1-22. https://doi.org/10.7203/acs.52.31400
Domínguez Ruiz, I. E. (2026). Secondary analysis of social attitudes towards consensual nonmonogamy (CNM) in Spain. Sexuality & Culture, 30, 933-952. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-025-10452-y
Fairbrother, N., Hart, T. A., y Fairbrother, M. (2019). Open relationship prevalence, characteristics, and correlates in a nationally representative sample of Canadian adults. The Journal of Sex Research, 56(6), 695-704. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2019.1580667
Flicker, S. M., Sancier-Barbosa, F., Moors, A. C., y Browne, L. (2021). A closer look at relationship structures: Relationship satisfaction and attachment among people who practice hierarchical and non-hierarchical polyamory. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 50, 1401-1417. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-020-01875-9
Gupta, S., Tarantino, M., y Sanner, C. (2023). A scoping review of research on polyamory and consensual non-monogamy: Implications for a more inclusive family science. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 16, 151-190. https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12546
Haupert, M. L., Gesselman, A. N., Moors, A. C., Fisher, H. E., y Garcia, J. R. (2017). Prevalence of experiences with consensual nonmonogamous relationships: Findings from two national samples of single Americans. Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy, 43(5), 424-440. https://doi.org/10.1080/0092623X.2016.1178675
Herbenick, D., Bowling, J., Fu, T.-C. (J.), Dodge, B., Guerra-Reyes, L., y Sanders, S. (2017). Sexual diversity in the United States: Results from a nationally representative probability sample of adult women and men. PLoS ONE, 12(7), e0181198. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0181198
Herzog, B., Atance, B. C., y de las Heras, R. (2023). Anarquía relacional. Una novela gráfica. Continta Me Tienes.
Levine, E. C., Herbenick, D., Martinez, O., Fu, T.-C., y Dodge, B. (2018). Open relationships, nonconsensual nonmonogamy, and monogamy among U.S. adults: Findings from the 2012 National Survey of Sexual Health and Behavior. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 47(5), 1439-1450. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-018-1178-7
López-Sáez, M. A. (2025). Guía práctica para la inclusión de la perspectiva de diversidad sexual y de género en la investigación. Universidad Rey Juan Carlos y Ministerio de Igualdad.
MacInnes, J. (2017). An Introduction to Secondary Data Analysis with IBM SPSS Statistics. SAGE.
Meil, G.-L. (2023). La transición de la familia patriarcal a la familia posmoderna en España. Recherches familiales, 20(1), 1-14. https://doi.org/10.3917/rf.020.0346
Moors, A. C. (2023). Five misconceptions about consensually nonmonogamous relationships. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 32(5), 355-361. https://doi.org/10.1177/09637214231166853
Moors, A. C., Vaughan, M. D., Flicker, S. M., Matsumura, K., y Schechinger, H. A. (2025). Advancing consensual non-monogamy in psychological research, practice, and policy: A guide for psychologists. Social Issues and Policy Review, 19, e12108. https://doi.org/10.1111/sipr.12108
OECD. (2019). Society at a Glance 2019: OECD Social Indicators. OECD Publishing.
Ramírez Dueñas, J. M., y Cordero, G. (2025). ¿Consolidación o retroceso? Explorando las actitudes sociales hacia la diversidad sexual en España (1980-2022). Empiria: Revista de Metodología de Ciencias Sociales, 64, 23-50. https://doi.org/10.5944/empiria.64.2025.45200
Rodríguez-Castro, Y., García Manso, A., Martínez-Román, R., Aguiar-Fernández, F. X., y Peixoto Caldas, J. M. (2022). Analysis of the experiences of polyamorists in Spain. Sexuality & Culture, 26, 1659- 1683. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-022-09964-8
Rubel, A. N., y Bogaert, A. F. (2015). Consensual nonmonogamy: Psychological well-being and relationship quality correlates. The Journal of Sex Research, 52(9), 961- 982. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2014.942722
Rubel, A. N., y Burleigh, T. J. (2020). Counting polyamorists who count: Prevalence and definitions of an under- researched form of consensual nonmonogamy. Sexualities, 23(1- 2), 3- 27. https://doi.org/10.1177/1363460718779781
Rye, B. J. (2024). Review and critique of the quantitative literature regarding attitudes toward consensual non-monogamy (CNM). Sexes, 5(2), 120-147. https://doi.org/10.3390/sexes5020010
Scoats, R., y Campbell, C. (2025). Understanding service preferences among consensually non-monogamous individuals seeking sexual healthcare. Culture, Health & Sexuality, 27(1), 32- 45. https://doi.org/10.1080/13691058.2024.2350434
St. Vil, N. M., y Giles, K. N. (2022). Attitudes toward and willingness to engage in consensual non-monogamy (CNM) among African Americans who have never engaged in CNM. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 51, 1823-1831. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-021-02268-2
St. Vil, N. M., Leblanc, N. M., y Giles, K. (2021). The who and why of consensual nonmonogamy among African Americans. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 50, 1143-1150. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-020-01835-3
Stults, C. B., Abreu, R. L., Tjia, L., Kaczetow, W., Brandt, S. A., Malavé, D. M., y Chumpitaz, M. (2023). Enacted and anticipated stigma related to consensual nonmonogamy among LGBTQ+ adults. Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity, 10(3), 461-472. https://doi.org/10.1037/sgd0000546
Vasallo, B. (2015). Romper la monogamia como apuesta política. En (h)amor2 (pp. 11-25). Continta Me Tienes.
Vasallo, B. (2018). Pensamiento monógamo, terror poliamoroso. La Oveja Roja.
Veh, R., Fernández García, P., y García-Vega, E. (2025). Relationship satisfaction, sexual desire, jealousy, and conflict resolution in monogamous and consensually non-monogamous romantic relationships. Sexes, 6, 19. https://doi.org/10.3390/sexes6020019
Watkins, D. C. (2023). Secondary Data in Mixed Methods Research. SAGE.