How Prevalent is Cheating? Numbers and Figures You Should Know

Cheating isn’t new. It’s been around for hundreds, even thousands of years and many of those sexual dalliances have been well documented. The views and practice of cheating have changed over the years and many of the available studies are difficult to confirm. However, here are some very interesting stats you should know about:

According to a 1992 study, men are more likely to cheat than women and the older they get, the better chance they will cheat on their wives and girlfriends. Thirty seven percent of men in the 50 to 59 age range, for example, have cheated. Compare that number to only 7% of men in the 18 to 29 age range.

For women, the old statistic that showed that they cheated as much as men is considered a myth. Women are less likely to stray, although the older they get, the more likely they will have affairs. In general, only about 13% of the women in the study said they had cheated on their partners. In the same year of the study, only 15% of married women cheated, compared to 20% of married men.

Married love
Another survey showed that about 14% of married women were involved in an affair at least once when they were married. For men, it’s 22%. Only 46% of married men knew about their wives’ extramarital affairs while only 30% of married women were aware. According to the book ‘Monogamy Myth’, approximately 60% of men and 40% of women will be involved in an extramarital affair during their married lives.

Cheating and morals
About 60% of Americans think adultery should not be considered a crime in their country while 35% think it should be. However, a whopping 90% of Americans consider adultery as a violation of moral standards.

Cheating and the internet
If you think the internet has made cheating a lot easier, you probably have a point. Sex is the most searched topic on the internet and according to the National Coalition for the Protection of Children and Families, about 40 million people in the U.S. have been involved in a sexual way via the internet.

It is also believed that many of the people who join chat rooms and other social networking sites have several ’special friends’. Interestingly, only about 45% of men surveyed said they considered online affairs as adultery and about 75% believe visiting an adult website is acceptable.

The end of the affair
One of the facts showed by several surveys seems to indicate that most affairs have no future. In a study performed by Dr. Jan Halper, for example, out of the 4,100 men (successful professionals, executives and entrepreneurs) surveyed, only 3% of them divorced their wives and walked down the aisle with their lovers.