‘Some kind of cheating’: Boundary transgressions and open relationships

Open relationships as a form of consensual non-monogamy (CNM) offer ways of ‘doing’ intimacy and relationships aside from solidified norms of monogamy. At the same time, open relationships can go along with ambiguity or disagreements regarding their boundaries and their transgressions – especially among young adults. Drawing on semi-structured interviews, this study examines how young adults based in England negotiate and give meaning to boundary transgressions in open relationships. Such transgressions refer to the breaching or breaking of implicit or explicit relationship boundaries – for instance, with whom one can be sexually intimate. I argue that ‘infidelity’ serves as a cultural repertoire that young adults draw on when navigating the ambiguity of open relationships and in setting symbolic and moral boundaries. Furthermore, this study highlights the tenacity of mono- and heteronormativity – even in open relationships – as dominant ideologies structuring intimate lives.