Multiple husbands serve as child support and life insurance in some cultures: researcher

Thursday, August 2, 2012 - 12:05 in Psychology & Sociology

(Phys.org) -- Marrying multiple husbands at the same time, or polyandry, creates a safety net for women in some cultures, according to a recent study by a University of Missouri researcher. Extra husbands ensure that women's children are cared for even if their fathers die or disappear. Although polyandry is taboo and illegal in the United States, certain legal structures, such as child support payments and life insurance, fill the same role for American women that multiple husbands do in other cultures.

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