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Scientists Studied Why People Have Sex When They Don’t Want To. Here’s What They Found.

A new study explores why people have sex out of obligation, finding links to relationship insecurity and fears of infidelity.

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There’s sex you want to have, and then there’s sex you have because you feel like you owe it to them.

Researchers call the second kind “duty sex,” and a new study published in Evolutionary Psychology found that men and women reported it at similar levels. People who worried their partner might cheat were more likely to have sex out of obligation, as were those who felt their partner was out of their league. Researchers also found a connection with neuroticism, a personality trait associated with anxiety and emotional instability.

Lead author F. Sid Dougan, a doctoral candidate at the........

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