What is compersion? Is it the “opposite” of jealousy, as it is usually believed? Is it an emotion or a behavior? What causes it to arise and bloom? Can we “learn” compersion or invite more of it into our lives? Based on her seminal research with consensually non-monogamous (CNM) individuals, Dr. Marie Thouin unravels these questions and more in the first-ever book to offer a comprehensive model of compersion and a practical road map to cultivating it. Each chapter features compelling stories from real CNM people, making this a captivating and highly applicable read. In addition, Thouin addresses the broader social context, explaining how understanding compersion is a groundbreaking step toward a world that supports relational diversity and freedom. By disrupting the idea that jealousy is the only valid response to intimacy beyond monogamy, the existence and practice of compersion builds the foundation for a completely new paradigm of loving relationships. This book and its conclusions have profound implications for many fields of study and practice including psychology, sexuality studies, philosophy and ethics, and law. Indispensable for CNM individuals, therapists, counselors, and scholars, this book is also invaluable for anyone curious to learn about positive empathy, intentional relationships, and radical love.

This book is a comprehensive guide designed to help mental health professionals understand and meet the unique needs of individuals in ethical non-monogamous relationships. Drawing on a wealth of research, case studies, and expert insights, Dr. Stephanie Sigler offers invaluable guidance on fostering healthy communication, managing jealousy and insecurities, and addressing the emotional dynamics that arise in non-monogamous relationships. With a compassionate and inclusive approach, this book helps mental health practitioners develop a deep understanding of diverse relationship structures. This book covers topics such as polyamory, open relationships, and swinging, addressing the specific needs and concerns of clients engaged in these relationships. It also encourages discussions of self-care for practitioners, ethical considerations, and addressing stigma within the therapeutic process. Sigler provides clinicians with step-by-step strategies and interventions mental health practitioners can implement in their sessions. An invaluable resource for practitioners new to ethical non-monogamy, this book is equally essential for therapists looking to expand their knowledge and skills and can help practitioners provide meaningful support to clients in this often misunderstood and underrepresented community.

This is a book for people energized by the possibilities of modern intimacy, but who feel unsure about their own romantic lives. Alternative lifestyles such as nonmonogamy, while liberating in theory, can feel remote in practice, as we are fixed in place by insecurities and social pressures. In Romantic Agency, philosopher Luke Brunning encourages readers to think more deeply about what it means for relationships to not only work, but flourish. Guided by the thought that our abilities to be intimate cannot be taken for granted, he argues that our romantic agency is fragile and best cultivated alongside other people. Together we can become more realistic, balance playfulness with integrity, and value each other’s flourishing. Anyone can benefit from this exploration of intimate life, regardless of their relationship status or romantic ideals. Compelling and timely, Romantic Agency is a groundbreaking account of love and relationships.

Different forms of consensual nonmonogamy, such as polyamory and swinging, have achieved greater prominence in daily conversation and representation in mass media. Although advocates recognize that the presence of additional people creates difficulties, the author argues that this greater complexity may lead to unavoidable instability. Drawing from classic work by Georg Simmel as well as modern research in the social sciences, James K. Beggan considers how the presence of a third person is what allows the formation of coalitions which then become part of the process that can break apart the triad. This paradox—explained with reference to game theory and social interdependence—represents the existential threat to the quest for consensual nonmonogamy. Beggan describes how psychological processes involving social comparison and gender and sexual orientation can limit the formation of certain types of coalitions which, in turn, influence which relationships can be expected to emerge in the context of consensual nonmonogamy. His analysis includes macro-level social issues related to establishing consensual nonmonogamy as a valid social identity and alternative to conventional marriage. Using insights from game theory, he suggests possible meta-solutions to coalition conflicts that emerge in triadic romantic and sexual relationships.

In Love and Freedom, Jorge Ferrer proposes a paradigm shift in how romantic relationships are conceptualized, a step forward in the evolution of modern relationships. In the same way that the transgender movement surmounted the gender binary, Ferrer defines how a parallel step can—and should—be taken with the relational style binary. This book offers the first systematic discussion of relationship modes beyond monogamy and polyamory, as well as introduces the notion of “relational freedom” as the capability to choose one’s relational style free from biological, psychological, and sociocultural conditionings. To achieve these goals, Ferrer first discusses a number of critical categories—specifically, monopride/polyphobia, and polypride/monophobia—that mediate the contemporary “mono–poly wars,” that is, the predicament of mutual competition among monogamists and polyamorists. The ideological nature of these “mono–poly wars” is demonstrated through a review of available empirical literature on the psychological health and relationship quality of monogamous and polyamorous individuals and couples. Then, after showing how monogamy and polyamory ultimately reinforce each other, Ferrer articulates three relational pathways to living in-between, through, and beyond the mono/poly binary: fluidity, hybridity, and transcendence. Moving beyond that binary opens a fuzzy, liminal, and multivocal relational space that Ferrer calls novogamy. In this groundbreaking book, readers will learn practical tools to not only transform jealousy, but also enhance their relational freedom while being aware of key issues of diversity and social justice. They will also learn novel criteria to evaluate the success of their intimate relationships, and be introduced to a transformed vision of romantic love beyond both monocentrism and emerging polynormativities.

Relationship expert and bestselling author Tristan Taormino offers a bold new strategy for creating loving, lasting relationships. Drawing on in-depth interviews with over a hundred women and men, Opening Up explores the real-life benefits and challenges of all styles of open relationships — from partnered non-monogamy to solo polyamory. With her refreshingly down-to-earth style and sharp wit, Taormino offers solutions for making an open relationship work, including tips on dealing with jealousy, negotiating boundaries, finding community, parenting and time management. Opening Up will change the way you think about intimacy.

Love, sex, and relationship wisdom from the polyamory movement are offered in this practical guide to spiritual enlightenment. Contrary to popular belief, monogamy and celibacy are not the only two options for exploring a spiritual path. In Opening Love, Dr. Anya translates the lessons learned by the pioneers of the polyamory (many loves) movement for readers who actively pursue personal growth through spiritual practice. Drawing on both personal experience and philosophical reflection, this nonfiction guide explains how to cultivate intentional, creative, non-conventional relationships that center on principles of honesty and consent. Instead of committing solely to a single person, spiritual seekers can instead commit to pursuing openness and courage in all their interactions. As polyamorists understand: love, sex, and relationships are not scarce commodities, rather they are an abundant resource for healing and evolving one's consciousness. With eloquence and precision, Dr. Anya describes how to cultivate compersion (the opposite of jealousy), find an intentional community based on common core values, and build advanced emotional and communication skills. Meditation and reflection practices are offered throughout, to create an interactive, truly transformative learning experience.

This guidebook is designed to increase readers’ social resilience and assertiveness in response to minority stress. It highlights the need for belonging and community building and a safe, collaborative, and peaceful coexistence with our diverse, pluralistic cultures. The LGBTQIA+ Peacemaking Book Project offers two guidebooks, Feel Secure in Yourself and Relate to Others with Confidence, and twelve e-resources self-published by each set of chapter coauthors. The chapter coauthors are scholars, clinicians, and/or community leaders, with differing and sometimes politically opposing viewpoints. They collaborated to find common ground, reduce prejudice, and improve LGBTQIA+ health and self-development for a wide range of readers. These self-help resources are written for the general public and can be used by academics, clinicians, researchers, religious leaders, parents, and other providers who want to learn updated and integrated ideas and skills about sexuality, gender, race and ethnicity, faith and purpose of life, emotional health, resilience, and relationships. This book project is a social experiment of bridge-building and hope to empower readers with identity and skill development and to reduce the side-taking that impairs growth.

This guidebook is designed to increase readers’ personal resilience, self-acceptance, and growth from minority stress. Readers are encouraged to clarify their beliefs and improve their relationship with themselves to develop self-awareness, self-value, and self-direction. Conflicts can be resolved as readers develop knowledge of themselves and others and consider resilient ways of experiencing sexual and/or gender diversity. The LGBTQIA+ Peacemaking Book Project offers two guidebooks, Feel Secure in Yourself and Relate to Others with Confidence, and twelve e-resources self-published by each set of chapter coauthors. The chapter coauthors are scholars, clinicians, and/or community leaders, with differing and sometimes politically opposing viewpoints. They collaborated to find common ground, reduce prejudice, and improve LGBTQIA+ health and self-development for a wide range of readers. These self-help resources are written for the general public and can be used by academics, clinicians, researchers, religious leaders, parents, and other providers who want to learn updated and integrated ideas and skills about sexuality, gender, race and ethnicity, faith and purpose of life, emotional health, resilience, and relationships. This book project is a social experiment of bridge-building and hope to empower readers with identity and skill development and to reduce the side-taking that impairs growth.

This Handbook covers the most urgent, controversial, and important topics in the philosophy of sex. It is both philosophically rigorous and yet accessible to specialists and non-specialists, covering ethics, political philosophy, metaphysics, the philosophy of science, and the philosophy of language, and featuring interactions with neighboring disciplines such as psychology, bioethics, sociology, and anthropology. The volume’s 40 chapters, written by an international team of both respected senior researchers and essential emerging scholars, are divided into eight parts: I. What is Sex? Is Sex Good? II. Sexual Orientations III. Sexual Autonomy and Consent IV. Regulating Sexual Relationships V. Pathologizing Sex and Sexuality VI. Contested Desires VII. Objectification and Commercialized Sex VIII. Technology and the Future of Sex The broad scope of coverage, depth in insight and research, and accessibility in language make The Routledge Handbook of Philosophy of Sex and Sexuality a comprehensive introduction for newcomers to the subject as well as an invaluable reference work for advanced students and researchers in the field.