Infidelity is very common in romantic relationships. A recent study examining rates of reported extramarital sex in a US sample of over 22,000 people from 1991-2018 revealed that 16.48% of respondents admitted to having sex with someone other than their husband or wife while married (Djamba & Kimuna, 2020). Men consistently reported higher rates of cheating compared to women, and individuals who were divorced were two to three times more likely to report infidelity in their relationships than people who were still married. Of course, these estimates likely underestimate true infidelity rates because many people don’t want to admit cheating behavior openly.

The negative effects of infidelity on mental health........

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