Adultery may be key to long, lasting marriage, claim psychologists

Psychologists have claimed that allowing your partner to sleep with other people could be the key to a happy marriage.

They argued that "outsourcing" areas of the marriage such as sex to other suitors could make a relationship work in the long run, the Independent reported.

For marriages in which the passion and intimacy has gone, Eli Finkel, from the department of psychology at Northwestern University in Illinois, advises embarking on an agreed "non-monogamous" relationship.

In the paper 'The Suffocation of Marriage', Prof Finkel and his co-authors argue that people now expect more from a partner than ever before - to be a lover, friend, confidant, therapist, and someone to help achieve their long-term goals.

Yet, couples are spending increasingly less time with each other, meaning many are left unsatisfied. He also suggests living apart and placing specific diameters on the relationship.