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Research on extramarital sex (EMS) is commonly conducted from a perspective that implicitly understands this behavior as a violation of the marital relationship. In contrast, Vietnamese cultural norms have, at some points in history, condoned if not outright encouraged EMS in the name of preserving family lineage. Yet little is known about the prevalence of EMS among contemporary Vietnamese men and its association with marriage quality. This is a notable gap, given the enormous sociocultural and ideological shifts the country has experienced over the past several decades. Drawing upon a sample of 126 married men (Mean age = 45.56; SD = 10.52) surveyed in urban (Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City) and rural areas (Ha Tay and Can Tho) in Vietnam, we examined the relationship between EMS and geographic region, demographic characteristics, sexual values, quality of marriage, and sexual satisfaction within marriage. Our results show that geographic location had a strong impact on EMS, while most marital relationship quality variables did not impact the odds of EMS for married men in Vietnam.

Previous studies have found that males are more upset over sexual infidelity than females whereas females are more upset over emotional infidelity than males. We hypothesized that such sex differences are explained by explicit sexual imagery by males. The hypothesis was tested in a laboratory using vivid infidelity scenarios and photographs to induce detailed and sexually oriented imagery of a partner’s infidelity. In the main experiment, participants included 64 males and 64 females who were currently in committed relationships. The results showed that participants became more upset when they imagined sexual infidelity vividly and realistically than when they did not and there were no significant sex differences in jealousy found when sexual infidelity was imagined in this matter. Overall, our findings suggested that the sex differences in jealousy resulted from males’ tendency to imagine sexual infidelity more vividly than females.

Background Evolutionary psychologists hypothesized that men are more upset by sexual infidelity than women are, whereas women are more upset by emotional infidelity than men are. On the other hand, the sexual imagination hypothesis states that gender differences in infidelity responses are derived from explicit men’s sexual imagery. Based on the latter hypothesis, we hypothesized that although men would report being more distressed by sexual infidelity than women who were not in a committed relationship (NCR), no gender difference would be reported in a committed relationship (CR). Findings These two hypotheses were tested with 598 participants in a CR and 1,643 participants in a NCR. No significant gender difference was found sexual infidelity response in the CR group ( d  = 0.008, a power of .956), whereas men were more upset than women about sexual infidelity in the NCR group. Moreover, a significant interaction between gender and infidelity type was found in the NCR, whereas no significant interaction between gender and infidelity type was observed in the CR group (partial η 2  = 0.005, a power of .943). Conclusions Our findings supported the sexual imagination hypothesis but were inconsistent with the EJM hypothesis.

On 28 June 1680, people crowded into Istanbul's Hippodrome, the city's main public space, to stone to death a Muslim woman for adultery with an infidel, and to witness the beheading of the Jew who was held to be her lover. The Sultan Mehmet IV (reigned 1648-87), who attended the double execution in person, was the only sultan to order an adulteress to be executed by stoning during 465 years of Ottoman rule in Istanbul, and it is difficult to find any other examples of Islamic rulers punishing transgressors of sexual norms in this way. This article argues that this case cannot serve as an illustration of the severity of Islamic punishment; rather than focusing on \"shariah\", the reasons for the executions need to be sought in Ottoman secular law and in Mehmet IV himself, who had a political motivation for stressing male authority over women, compelling Jews to convert to Islam, and lauding sultanic and Muslim virtue. (Quotes from original text)

A seven-year randomized evaluation suggests education subsidies reduce adolescent girls' dropout, pregnancy, and marriage but not sexually transmitted infection (STI). The government's HIV curriculum, which stresses abstinence until marriage, does not reduce pregnancy or STI. Both programs combined reduce STI more, but cut dropout and pregnancy less, than education subsidies alone. These results are inconsistent with a model of schooling and sexual behavior in which both pregnancy and STI are determined by one factor (unprotected sex), but consistent with a two-factor model in which choices between committed and casual relationships also affect these outcomes.

Extramarital partnerships exacerbate high HIV prevalence rates in many communities in sub-Saharan Africa. We explored contextual risk factors and suggested interventions to reduce extramarital partnerships among couples in the fishing communities on Lake Victoria, Kenya. We conducted 12 focus group discussions with 9–10 participants each ( N  = 118) and 16 in-depth interviews ( N  = 16) with fishermen and their spouses. Couples who participated were consented and separated for simultaneous gender-matched discussions/interviews. Interview topics included courtship and marriage, relationship and sexual satisfaction, extramarital relationships and how to intervene on HIV risks. Coding, analysis, and interpretation of the transcripts followed grounded theory tenets that allow analytical themes to emerge from the participants. Our results showed that extramarital partnerships were perceived to be widespread and were attributed to factors related to sexual satisfaction such as women needing more foreplay before intercourse, discrepancies in sexual desire, and boredom with the current sexual repertoire. Participants also reported that financial and sociophysical factors such as family financial support and physical separation, contributed to the formation of extramarital partnerships. Participants made suggestions for interventions that reduce extramarital partnerships to minimize HIV risks at the community, couple, and individual level. These suggestions emphasized improving community education, spousal communication, and self-evaluation for positive behavior change. Future studies can draw upon these findings as a basis for designing community-owned interventions that seek to reduce community-level HIV risk through a reduction in the number of sexual partners.

The purpose of this study was to explore extradyadic sexual activity (ESA) in Norwegian heterosexual couples and to identify factors connected to each of the parties that may predict ESA. The study comprised a representative sample of 399 couples (798 individuals) between 22 to 67 years of age. The data were collected by means of self-administered postal questionnaires. In 6% of couples the female partner had had a concurrent sex partner, in 13% of couples the male partner had had a parallel sex partner and in 4% of couples both had engaged in ESA. A man with experience of ESA experienced negative work-to-home interference, was preoccupied with sex, and frequently thought of others during sex with his wife. The male partner of a woman with experience of ESA was reported being self-confident and she perceived him as easy to talk to about sex. Furthermore, his attitude was that two persons who love each other should not have secrets from each other. The woman with experience of ESA, on the other hand, reported having secrets from her partner and to think of others during intercourse.

Background The rising prevalence of extramarital sexual networking has led to increasing susceptibility to HIV infection among married couples. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of extramarital sex among married individuals in Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital, the factors linked to it and its relationship with HIV. Methods Data were collected using an interviewer-administered questionnaire. Participants were clients seeking HIV testing at a tertiary hospital in southwestern Uganda between June and September 2025. All clients received standard pre- and post-test counselling. Data was analyzed using Stata version 17. Results The study included a sample of 384 participants, with an almost equal distribution across the genders (50.3% female; 49.7% male). The prevalence of extramarital sex was 58.1% (95% CI: 0.51–0.65) among men and 8.2% (95% CI: 0.05–0.13) in women. Among those who reported extramarital sex, the prevalence of HIV was 10.5% (95% CI: 0.07–0.16) and 5.1% (95% CI: 0.03–0.13) for men and women respectively. An equal number (8) of men and women who denied involvement in extramarital sex were also diagnosed with HIV. The results suggested no relationship between extramarital sex and HIV (OR 0.9, 95% CI: 0.38–1.90, p  = 0.7). However, women were found to be at an increased risk of acquiring HIV (RR = 2.02, 95% CI: 0.91–4.47) compared to men. Multivariate logistic regression identified the following factors to be linked to extramarital sex: being male (aOR = 16.4, 95% CI: 9.13–29.41, p  < 0.001), monogamous marriage status (aOR = 3.2, 95% CI: 1.51 − 6.93, p  = 0.002), marital duration exceeding 19 years (aOR = 3.8, 95% CI: 1.92 − 7.56, p  < 0.001), being Muslim (aOR = 2.4, 95% CI: 1.04 − 5.49, p  = 0.04), alcohol consumption (aOR = 3.5, 95% CI: 2.14 − 5.58, p  < 0.001), sexual dissatisfaction among females (aOR = 11.1, 95% CI: 3.82–15.14, p  < 0.001) and sharing workplace (aOR = 7.6, 95% CI: 0.96–61.01, p  = 0.05). Conversely, factors negatively linked to extramarital sex in this study included identifying as female (aOR = 0.7, 95% 0.03–0.14, p  < 0.001), and having no formal education (aOR = 0.3, 95% CI: 0.09 − 0.63, p  = 0.003). Conclusion The study observed a high rate of extramarital sex in the study setting. This was a baseline study. Therefore, subsequent research is needed to identify the underlying reasons for seeking extramarital affairs in Southwestern Uganda. Contributions to the literature What is known Uganda currently contends with one of the world’s highest prevalence rates of Human Immunodeficiency Virus/Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS). Compounding this challenge, recent trends show a notable increase in the incidence of HIV infection, specifically among married couples, signaling that marriage might no longer be the protective factor it once was. Our contribution In addressing this critical public health issue, this paper reveals the influential factors for extramarital sexual networking, subsequently proposing actionable solutions to curb this high-risk practice.

In many human societies, high male social status associates with higher fertility, but the means by which status increases lifetime fitness have not been systematically investigated. We analyse the pathways by which male status begets reproductive success in a small-scale, Amerindian society. Men who are more likely to win a dyadic physical confrontation, i.e. dominant men, have higher intra-marital fertility for their age, and men with more community-wide influence, i.e. prestigious men, exhibit both higher intra-marital fertility and lower offspring mortality. Both forms of status elicit support from allies and deference from competitors, but high status men are not provisioned more than their peers. Prestigious but not dominant men marry wives who first give birth at earlier ages, which multivariate analysis suggests is the strongest pathway between status and fitness in this population. Furthermore, men are motivated to pursue status because of fitness gains both within and outside of marital unions: dominant and prestigious men have more in-pair surviving offspring as well as more extra-marital affairs.