What are your thoughts on hoe phases for men and women?

  1. Are they beneficial or detrimental?
  2. How long should they last?
  3. Would you marry someone who had one? Would you want to know if your partner had one?
  4. How many partners is too many?
  5. Did you have one? How was it? What conclusions did you draw from it?

EDIT

Num 6: Do emotionally stable and well adjusted people have hoe phases? Having a phase seems more common in people from broken homes, etc.