Earlier this year, we asked whether it is realistic to expect men and women to have only one sexual partner. If you haven’t had the chance to vote in this poll, please do so now.

You can also share your views by leaving a comment at the end of this post.

During our research on multiple concurrent partnerships, many people said that it is not possible for a man to have one sexual partner. Some said it was part of a man’s nature to have many sexual partners.

“From the beginning a man was made to be a hunter, so the reason why a man goes and takes two women is this - we as men are made to be strong from the beginning, from the beginning… and what happens is that if my wife does not satisfy me in my bed, even though there might be trust between us, then a man quickly goes out and looks for other partners,” a 30-year old Namibian man said.

Others say men cannot control their sexual desire for other women.

“You cannot control the feelings. Basotho believed that the solution is to marry many wives. The person who said he can manage to control the feelings is mentally ill. Men are born that way,” says a man from Lesotho.

However, Cassandra  George Sturges, a writer and university lecturer makes a strong case that while it is natural for men to have sex, they can control how they do it.

In her article entitled Is it natural for people to be faithful to one sexual partner,” published below this post, she says that sex is natural; however, we can choose where we have it and with whom we have it.

She compares this process with our need for food: we all have to eat, but our culture and tradition tells us what we can eat and how we eat. Some people will not eat pork, even though they have to eat. Others will not use their fingers to eat. In the same way, yes, we do have to have sex, but we can choose to have one sexual partner, rather than multiple partners.

Talk about it

Share your views on the issue by leaving a comment at the end of this post. Tell us why you think it is realistic or not to expect men and women to have one sexual partner at a time. And if you feel that “it depends on the people involved,” explain the circumstances which may change to either make it realistic or not realistic.