Kiwi women lead the world

A devil-may-care attitude among young people is behind Kiwi women's newly acquired reputation for being the most promiscuous in the world, believes Auckland psychologist Sara Chatwin.

"Eighteen to 25-year-olds don't adhere to such a strict code of ethics with regard to random sexual exploits," Chatwin said.

She was commenting on the results of the Durex sexual wellbeing global survey which showed Kiwi women were the most wanton in the world, having an average of 20.4 sexual partners. The global average was 7.3.

Kiwi men have an average of 16.8 partners, making our blokes the 11th randiest in the world.

The survey questioned 26,000 people in 26 countries about their sex lives. People were invited to take part in the survey through a random email invitation.

Christchurch-raised Coralie Robinson, who's now a UK tabloid regular, is not shy about her romantic exploits with many men, including cricketer Shane Warne and singer Robbie Williams. She's said: "Yeah, I do like sex way more than everyone else, and I do have a lot more sex than anyone else I know."

Chatwin said while the methodology used may have skewed the results, attitudes towards sex had changed, particularly among the younger generation.

"The boundaries seem to have loosened. I don't think that is a good thing."