Swansea University research reveals how people judge potential partners’ sexual timelines

New Swansea University research has revealed how people judge potential partners’ sexual timelines when considering a long-term relationship.

The findings showed it’s not just about the number of sexual partners a person has had, but factors such as when these sexual encounters took place.

The international study was led by Dr Andrew G. Thomas, who has since become a senior lecturer in the School of Psychology at Swansea University, having received a BSc (Hons) in psychology from Cardiff University.

Consisting of 5,331 participants from 11 countries and five continents, it was found that people care more about the timing of a potential partner’s sexual activity.

According to the research by Swansea University, people prefer having partners who have not been as sexually active closer to the time of them becoming involved, regardless of whether the number of sexual partners a person has had is high.

Andrew also mentioned the many “relationship risks” surrounding why someone may care about a sexual activity timeline, consisting of: STIs, risk of infidelity, emotional stability, and the possibility of issues with an ex-partner.

The senior lecturer also added: “Previous studies have shown people are generally less inclined to pursue relationships with individuals who have had many sexual partners.

“However, what’s particularly interesting about this study’s findings is that this effect diminishes when those encounters accrued primarily in the past and this is something we found across the globe.”

via Pexels

Over 5,000 participants globally were shown simple visual timelines, representing a potential partner’s sexual history which highlighted the amount of past sexual partners they had, some early in life, some spread evenly, and some decreasing over time.

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Participants were then asked to rate their willingness to pursue a committed, long-term relationship with the potential partners based on these sexual timelines.

The participants’ answers revealed people were, in general, less willing to be in a committed relationship with someone who had a higher amount of sexual partners, as long as that number had become less frequent over time. These findings suggest a shift away from the notion of casual sex.

Although, participants who seemed more open about the idea of casual sex and therefore casual relationships, were found to be less impacted by someone’s sexual history, only showing “some sensitivity to it.”

Published in Scientific Reports, the research found little evidence to suggest a double standard between the attitudes towards men and women, as participants evaluated their sexual timelines similarly, with only slight differences across countries and cultures.

Featured image via Google Maps and Canva