“Polygamous perception” and couple’s relational choice: definitions, socio-cultural contexts, psychopathological profiles, and therapeutic orientations. Clinical evidence

Giulio Perrotta*

Purpose: Starting from the concept of ‘polygamy’, this research investigates the perception and motivations behind this relational choice by couples, distinguishing between various adaptive forms, including cuckolding and troilism. 

Methods: Clinical interview and administration of psychodiagnostic tests for personality disorders (PICI-1TA) and individual sexual matrix survey (PSM-1).

Results: The research on a population sample of 540 heterosexual people, aged between 18 and 72, of Italian nationality, with Italian ancestors in the last three generations, sexually active, with experience of at least two years, in a stable affective/ sentimental relationship with another person for at least one year and with a specific declaration of monogamy or polygamy, showed strong levels of dispersion of phenomenological reality linked to the polygamous world, strongly compromised by preconceptions, prejudices and subjective psychopathological conditions. In particular, if we then compare the 81 positive subjects with the results of the PICI-1 clinical interview, in relation to the PSM-1 (section A, B, C, E), we discover that 100% of those subjects present at least 3 dysfunctional traits of cluster B personality disorders (in particular borderline and narcissist), as well as other traits belonging to anxiety, depressive, phobic and somatic disorders, demonstrating that a good part of polygamous subjects are unaware of their dysfunctional clinical condition, probably deserving of specific psychotherapeutic support.

Conclusions: The research revealed the presence of a strong prejudice and preconception about polygamy, which is almost always confused with cuckolding or other forms of of dysfunctional love. The reasons that justify the monogamous choice are often related to the idea that polygamy does not involve love, or that sex is more important than love, or that the  important than love, or that social judgment is a deterrent to a free and conscious choice, or that jealousy and possessiveness prevent people from opening up to polygamous visions. Despite the fact that 63.84% (336/540) state that they are in favor of experimenting with casual threesome sex, as long as the partner is not present or does not interact with other people or does not interact with other people. The research also showed that in the young people selected, curiosity and the desire to discover make them lean more towards the idea of polygamous discovery (even if they often fall into fantasies and thoughts closer to dysfunctional forms); however, it is only in adulthood and maturity that However, it is only in adulthood and maturity that this relational system (polygamy) manages to take root, also thanks to possible individual traumatic pasts.

Keywords:

Published on: Jun 28, 2021 Pages: 54-61

Full Text PDF Full Text HTML DOI: 10.17352/apt.000031
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