Most people have stereotypic, and frequently unflattering, perceptions of people who have multiple sexual partners. But research done by Patrick and Charlotte Markey suggests that the personality of people who sleep around more than is typical may confound the stereotypes.

This husband-wife team of psychologists gave 210 adults an array of personality tests. They also asked them in detail about all of the sexual contacts they had experienced.

First, the researchers found that more socially dominant persons tended to have more sexual partners. However, among dominant people they found that both people who were very warm towards others and those who were cold, even antagonistic, toward others both tended to have a greater number of sexual partners.

The investigators speculate that dominance is an important factor for a person to have the confidence to approach a stranger whom they find sexually appealing. Warm and friendly people are hypothesized to enjoy sharing their warmth with others through sex. However, antagonistic people may have multiple partners to avoid having a monogamous relationship.

The finding that some warm people sleep with multiple partners is most inconsistent with some of the stereotypes about people who fit the description of promiscuous. The author has been quoted as saying, “A warm person might hug lots of people; a warm person might kiss lots of people.” Well, maybe a warm person might sleep with lots of people. While this certainly is inconsistent with many value systems, the pattern of behaviors associated with personality characteristics may not be determined by values to the extent we think. The associations between sexual activities, personality and value systems certainly would be an interesting area for future studies.

Further Reading:

Markey, P. M., & Markey, C. N. (2007). The interpersonal meaning of sexual promiscuity. Journal of Research in Personality, 41, 1199-1212.