From Bill Clinton to Tiger Woods, many celebrities have been caught up in famous cheating scandals. But is there any way to spot a cheater before they stray?
According to scientists from Koç University in Istanbul, there are four red flags that indicate someone is likely to cheat.
In their study, the team surveyed 280 people about their relationships, and whether they had any intentions of infidelity.
The results revealed that people were more likely to cheat if they had a history of cheating on a prior romantic partner.
Their chances of an affair were also higher if one of their parents had had one in the past.
What’s more, high levels of attachment avoidance and low levels of perceived emotional and sexual intimacy were red flags for cheating.
‘These findings shed light on the importance of addressing parental infidelity, adult attachment avoidance, and intimacy problems in couples therapy, given the risk of engaging in infidelity,’ the researchers wrote in their study.
However, the underlying reasons for cheating have remained a mystery until now.
Writing in their study, published in The Family Journal, the researchers, Esra Selalmaz and Gizem Erdem, said: ‘Given the prevalence and negative consequences of infidelity, there is a need for further research to explore factors that are linked to infidelity.’
Research participants were surveyed about their family history, relationship style, and any intentions to cheat. An analysis of the results revealed four key trends.
THE 4 CHEATING RED FLAGS TO LOOK OUT FOR
1. History of cheating on a prior romantic partner
2. One of their parents had had an affair in the past
3. High levels of attachment avoidance
4. Finally, people with low levels of emotional and sexual intimacy were also more likely to cheat — ‘Those who lack sexual intimacy and satisfaction in their committed relationships may be prone to infidelity to meet their unmet sexual needs and seek sexual closeness through an affair,’ the team explained.
Overall, the researchers hope these results will help couples to establish more trusting relationships.
‘The findings of the present study may provide insights for couples and family therapists to tailor their sessions to reduce the couples’ infidelity risk or support individuals and couples who come to therapy because of the harmful effects of infidelity and search for meaning in this process,’ they concluded.
WHAT TACTICS DO PEOPLE USE TO STOP THEMSELVES CHEATING?
Researchers at the University of New Brunswick asked 362 heterosexual adults how they had staved off temptations to cheat while in a relationship.
1. ‘Relationship enhancement’
Seventy-five per cent of the study’s respondents, who were aged between 19 and 63, selected ‘relationship enhancement’ as their primary tactic.
This ploy included things like taking their partner on a date, making an extra effort with their appearance around them, or having more sex with them.
2. ‘Proactive avoidance’
The second most-popular was ‘proactive avoidance’, which involved maintaining distance from the temptation.
As well as physically avoiding the temptation, people also avoided getting close in conversation with that person.
3. ‘Derogation of the temptation’
The third and final tactic used by people was ‘derogation of the temptation’, which involved feelings of guilt, and thinking about the tempting person in a negative light.
Participants reported flirting less when they applied the final, ‘derogation of the temptation’ strategy.
But none of the strategies had an effect on the levels of romantic infidelity, sexual infidelity, and whether the relationship survived.
Psychologist Dr Alex Fradera, who was not involved in the research, said the findings show little can be done once feelings of temptation have crept in.
