The year is just starting and the news of couples splitting because of infidelity in their relationship is anything but news. It can feel like the world is ending once you find out that your partner is cheating on you, but how common is cheating in relationships? Do men cheat more than women or is it the other way around? The fact is about 40% of all relationships will deal with infidelity at one point and this doesn’t stop with marriage, as married people report about 25% occurrence of infidelity no matter how slight. Could it be true that infidelity and cheating are part of the norm these days? Or is this a trend that has been going on for years?
2018 and 2019 Infidelity Statistics
The survey data from General Social Survey says that men are more likely to cheat than women in 2018 and 2019, with 20% of men and 13% of women admitting to having sex with someone who isn’t their spouse. This reflects the same trend for the past 2 decades with the total number of cheating incidences largely staying the same. What changed, though, is that there is an increase in women who admitted to cheating. Cheaters from both sexes cite sexual dissatisfaction as their main cause for cheating except for those who opted to cheat online via dating apps. According to YouGov, 1 in every 6 people in dating apps are there to cheat on their relationship, and that men are 3X more likely to use the apps for casual sex.
Who Cheats More?
Men are still cheating more than women although the pattern is changing as per the survey by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago. The younger the respondents are, the higher the percentage of women who cheated while the pattern is the opposite for men.
At What Age Do People Cheat More?
Both women and men cheat more during their middle ages. It peaks at 18% for women between 40 and 49 years old and 31% for men between 51 and 59 years old.
Is Cheating Likely to Happen Again?
According to a study in the journal Archives of Sexual Behavior, people who cheated are 3X more likely to engage in infidelity again.
Is Religious Belief A Factor in Cheating?
Although no specific religion or belief stands out for faithfulness in relationships, it seems that people who are involved in a religion or a church are less likely to cheat.
Do Divorcees Cheat More?
According to the Institute of Family Studies, 40% of cheaters are divorcees. Additionally, 50% of divorcees with a history of infidelity remarried while 76% of those who never cheated remarried.
Is Cheating More Prevalent in Heterosexual Relationships or Same-Sex Relationships?
Some people may find this intriguing but according to a study featured in Evolutionary Psychology journal, 2.9% of people who cheated experience attraction to both sexes and may have cheated with a same-sex partner. Another interesting piece of information is that 33% of male respondents say that they will tolerate their female partner cheating if it is with a same-sex partner. 22% of female respondents said the same. When asked with whom they prefer their partner to cheat with, 76.4% of men said that they prefer their woman to cheat with a same-sex partner while 62.2% of women said they would prefer their men to cheat with another woman rather than a same-sex partner.
Which is More Common, Sexual Infidelity or Emotional Infidelity?
According to recent studies, emotional infidelity can be more troublesome than sexual infidelity especially with the ease of access provided by dating websites and apps. In a study published in Evolutionary Psychology by the University of Wisconsin, they say that men and women have different perceptions when it comes to sexual infidelity and emotional infidelity. Women find emotional infidelity more upsetting and the opposite is true for men. With this said, 56% of men and 73% of women said they would feel very upset if they were to find out about an emotional affair that their partner had with someone else.
Can Family Background and History Play A Role in Cheating?
13% of respondents who grew up in a two-parent household with either adoptive or biological parents cheated while the number is 18% for those who did not grow up with both parents.
Do Cheaters Confess to Their Partner?
A survey conducted in Michigan USA says that 47.9% admitted to a person other than their partner while 52.1% admitted to their partner. Of those who confessed to their partners, 47.7% informed their partner within a week, 26.6% confessed within a month, and 25.7% took more than 6 months. 15.5% of those who told their partner stayed together while 54.5% broke up.
Which Happens More? Long-Term Cheating or A One-Night-Stand?
Only 10% of affairs are longer than 6 months. 65% end in the first 6 months and around 25% last less than a week.
Does Offline Cheating Happen More than Online Cheating?
Of those who engaged in infidelity, around 8% of men and 3% of women said that they found their partners online and 90% of them shared that they start a new online affair as soon as the current one is over.
Do People Cheat More in Business Trips?
In a Gleeden survey with 8,000 respondents, 62% of men and 57% of women shared that they engaged in infidelity while away on a business trip. 27% of women and 53% of men said that their affair was with a co-worker.
Is There An Increased Likelihood to Cheat with A Former Lover?
People who cheat on a new relationship tend to do so with a former partner. No specific study has been done yet for people who cheat with an ex while in a current relationship.
What Are the Biggest Reasons for Cheating?
40% of men say that they cheated because they wanted more variety in sex and 44% of men say that they cheated because they wanted more sex. As for women, 33% said they engaged in infidelity to feel desired while 50% said they did it to feel an emotional connection. An interesting piece of data is that 11% of women shared they cheated for revenge.
Michael Smith
Michael Smith is a relationship blogger for Haywood Hunt & Associates Inc. They are a full-service private investigation agency located in Toronto, which specializes in cheating spouse investigations. To learn more about Haywood Hunt & Associates and how they can help click https://www.thedivorceangels.com/vendor/haywood-hunt/