This Study Says Open Relationships Are NBD

Relationships come in all shapes and sizes. There’s the myriad online dating apps to check out for romantic prospects, long engagements and, if we’re really lucky, we’ll have a chance to uncrown America’s longest-married couple. But what about the relationships that fall outside the spectrum of what’s considered “normal” (as if that’s actually a thing anymore)? According to a new study on relationships in America, open relationships are NBD.

The new study from Avvo, an online attorney directory, discovered that 51 percent of adults aged 18-23 (college-aged) and 57 percent of adults aged 24-32 (post-college) reported not being “morally opposed” to being in an open relationship, compared to 44 percent of adults 33 years and older.

So what accounts for the higher acceptance in younger generations? Are we all just young and dumb in love? University of Washington sociologist and sexologist Dr. Pepper Schwartz told Avvo, “When we’re young and out in the world on our own for the first time, we’re more apt to experiment with our romantic relationships and be open to new experiences when it comes to love and sex.”

And while open relationships might be cool with the college-aged and post-college groups, opinions on divorce veered more traditional. Only 23 percent of both groups felt that married couples who no longer want to be in a romantic relationship should definitely get a formal divorce.

Have you been or are you currently in an open relationship? Tweet us your experience at @BritandCo!

(Photo via Getty)