Infidelity Experiences Research Articles

Comparing the Effectiveness of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Compassion-Focused Therapy in Improving Distress Tolerance and Self-Compassion in Women with Experiences of Marital Infidelity

Objective: Distress tolerance and self-compassion play a significant role in mitigating the harm caused by the experience of infidelity. This study compares the effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and compassion-focused therapy (CFT) in improving distress tolerance and self-compassion among women who have experienced marital infidelity. Materials and Methods: This quasi-experimental study employed a pre-test, post-test, follow-up design with a control group. The study population included women who had experienced infidelity by their spouse and sought counseling and psychotherapy services in Tehran in the year 2021. From this population, using purposive sampling, 45 women were selected based on the study's criteria and randomly assigned to two experimental groups and one control group (15 per group). The first experimental group received cognitive behavioral therapy, and the second received compassion-focused therapy. The control group did not receive any intervention. Data were collected using the Distress Tolerance Scale (Simons & Gaher, 2005) and the Self-Compassion Scale (Neff, 2003). Data were analyzed using repeated measures analysis of variance and SPSS software version 22. Findings: The results showed that both distress tolerance and self-compassion scores in the cognitive-behavioral and compassion-focused therapy groups were higher in the post-test compared to the pre-test (p<0.01). Furthermore, a comparison of the two experimental groups revealed no significant difference in scores of distress tolerance and self-compassion between the groups. Conclusion: It can be concluded that both cognitive-behavioral therapy and compassion-focused therapy were equally effective in improving distress tolerance and self-compassion among women.

INFIDELITY AMONGST YOUNG MARRIED COUPLES: SUGGESTIONS FOR SOCIAL WORK INTERVENTION

Infidelity is a common phenomenon in modern society and a major factor in marital dissolution across the globe. A qualitative research approach was used in this study to develop an in-depth understanding of the experiences and impact of infidelity amongst young married couples. The participants were purposively selected from a population of young married couples who had experienced infidelity in their marriage and lived within the municipal borders of Lepelle-Nkumpi, in Limpopo province, using the snowball technique. Tesch’s eight steps were used to analyse the data. To ensure the trustworthiness of the findings, the researchers assessed the qualitative data for credibility, transferability, dependability, and conformability. The findings highlight that young married couples experiencing marital infidelity require direction from social workers to understand the process of recovery from any type of infidelity to bring about improvement and change in their marriage. Keywords: infidelity experiences, infidelity, social work, social work interventions, young married couples

Effectiveness of Dialectical Behavior Therapy on Emotional Control, Communication Patterns, and Marital Intimacy in Women with Marital Infidelity Experience

Objective: The present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) on emotional control, communication patterns, and marital intimacy in women experiencing marital infidelity in the city of Isfahan. Methods and Materials: The research method was quasi-experimental with a pre-test-post-test design including control and experimental groups. The statistical population of this research consisted of all women with marital infidelity experience who referred to counseling centers in Isfahan in 2023. The research sample comprised 45 women with marital infidelity experience, who were selected through convenience sampling and randomly assigned to two groups: the DBT experimental group and the emotion-focused therapy (EFT) group, as well as a control group. Data were collected using the Marital Infidelity Questionnaire by Yeniseri and Kokdemir (2006), the Emotion Regulation Scale by Williams, Chamless, and Aheratz (1997), the Communication Patterns Questionnaire by Christensen and Salovey (1984), the Marital Intimacy Questionnaire by Bagarozi (2001), and the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire by Gross and John (2003). Data analysis was conducted using univariate and multivariate covariance analysis. Findings: The results indicated that Dialectical Behavior Therapy effectively improved emotional control, communication patterns, and marital intimacy in women. Conclusion: The findings indicate that Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is effective in improving emotional control, communication patterns, and marital intimacy in women experiencing marital infidelity. The results support the use of DBT as a valuable intervention for enhancing psychological well-being and relationship satisfaction among affected individuals.

Factors Determining the Attitude Towards Infidelity in Romantic Relationships: The Role of Parental Infidelity Experience, Attachment Style, and Relationship Satisfaction

Aldatma evliliklerin sona ermesinin en yaygın nedeni olarak öne çıkmaktadır. Yaygınlık çalışmaları da aldatmanın ilişki dinamikleri ve buna bağlı kişisel ve ilişkisel psikoterapi çalışmaları için araştırılmasının önemini göstermektedir. Bu çalışmada kişilerin aldatmaya yönelik tutumları ile ilişkili olabilecek (yaş, cinsiyet, eğitim durumu, ilişki durumu, çocuk sahibi olma durumları, ebeveyn aldatması, bağlanma örüntüsü ve ilişki doyumu) faktörleri incelemek amaçlanmıştır. Buna göre, 18 ila 65 yaş arasında (Ort. = 31.24, SS = 9.66), en az 6 aydır romantik bir ilişki içinde olan 751 katılımcıdan aldatmaya ilişkin çeşitli sorular içeren demografik bilgi formu, Yakın İlişkilerde Yaşantılar II Ölçeği, İlişki Doyumu Alt Ölçeği ve Aldatmaya Yönelik Tutum Ölçeği aracılığıyla veriler alınmıştır. Yapılan regresyon analizi ve düzenleyicilik analizi sonuçlarına göre, daha genç yaşın, çocuk sahibi olmanın, daha resmi bir ilişkide olmanın aldatmaya yönelik daha negatif tutumları beraberinde getirdiği görülmüştür. Cinsiyetin, ilişki süresinin ve eğitim durumunun ise anlamlı bir ilişkisi bulunmamıştır. Bağlanma biçimlerinden kaçıngan bağlanmanın ve ebeveyn aldatması deneyiminin yine bu tutumu artırdığı görülmüştür. Son olarak kişilerin ilişkiden aldıkları doyum, daha öncesindeki ilgili tüm değişkenler kontrol edildiğinde dahi aldatmaya yönelik tutumların önemli bir yordayıcısı olarak belirmiştir. Düzenleyicilik analizleri ise, bağlanma boyutları, ilişki doyumu ile aldatma tutumu arasında ebeveyn aldatmasının düzenleyici etkisi olmadığını göstermiştir. Bulgular alanyazın ışığında değerlendirilmiştir

Judgments of Event Centrality as Predictors of Post-Traumatic Growth and Post-Traumatic Stress after Infidelity: The Moderating Effect of Relationship Form

Infidelity, a betrayal within a romantic partnership, often violates a person’s core beliefs about themselves and their significant other and can influence the degree to which a person can feel safe in romantic relationships. Infidelity can also increase exposure to sexually transmitted diseases that can compromise physical and mental health. Therefore, infidelity can be judged as central to one’s identity and potentially traumatic, possibly triggering outcomes similar to other DSM-5 Criterion A traumas. The current research examines the contribution of centrality perceptions to the development of PTG and PTS post-infidelity. Bivariate regressions examined the relationships between the judged centrality of infidelity and PTG and PTS, respectively. Exploratory analyses considered the moderating role of relationship form (i.e., casually dating, exclusively dating, and engaged/married) on those relationships. In a sample of 177 adults, greater judgments of the centrality of infidelity were associated with both PTG and PTS. Results demonstrated a significant moderating effect of relationship form on the relationship between the centrality of infidelity and PTG but not between the centrality of infidelity and PTS. Moderation results demonstrated that if infidelity is considered central in a casually dating relationship, it is more strongly related to PTG than in other relationship forms. Considering infidelity as central may generate both beneficial and problematic post-traumatic outcomes. However, an early infidelity experience may provide increased opportunities for engagement in different behaviors in the future (e.g., selecting a different partner, setting different relational boundaries), which, in turn, may be more conducive to growth.

Effects of sexual imagination, relationship experience, and personal infidelity experiences on gender differences in responses to partners’ infidelity

ABSTRACT The sexual imagination hypothesis predicts that gender differences in jealousy emerge from the differences in explicit imagination between men and women. In particular, men strongly respond to partners’ sexual infidelity because they can imagine sexual stimuli explicitly. In contrast, women strongly respond to emotional infidelity because they can effortlessly envision emotional infidelity. We hypothesised that higher sexual and romantic imaginations were associated with greater distress over partners’ sexual and emotional infidelity, respectively. Participants (226 women and 135 men) answered questions regarding experiences with personal sexual and emotional infidelity and the degree of distress they felt over their partners’ sexual and emotional infidelity. They completed the scales for sexual and romantic imaginations. Multiple regression analyses showed that the sexual imagination hypothesis provided a unique explanation for gender differences in jealousy beyond the effects of gender, including relationship experience and experiences with personal sexual and emotional infidelity. Additionally, individuals with relationship experience and experiences with personal sexual and emotional infidelity reported higher sexual and romantic imaginations than those without such experiences. Furthermore, our findings imply that responses to partners’ infidelity, considering gender, are more similar than different.

No Remorse: Sexual Infidelity Is Not Clearly Linked with Relationship Satisfaction or Well-Being in Ashley Madison Users.

Past research on extradyadic relationship experiences (including infidelity) often suffers from restricted sampling and retrospective accounts, which may have given researchers a distorted image of what it is like for people to have affairs. In this research, we shed light on the experiences people have during their affairs with a sample of registered users on Ashley Madison, a website geared toward facilitating infidelity. Our participants completed questionnaires about their primary (e.g., spousal) relationships, as well as personality traits, motivations to seek affairs, and outcomes. Findings from this study challenge widely held notions about infidelity experiences. Analyses revealed that participants were highly satisfied with their affairs and expressed little moral regret. A small subset of participants reported having consensually open relationships with their partners, who knew about their activity on Ashley Madison. In contrast to previous findings, we did not observe low relationship quality (i.e., satisfaction, love, commitment) to be a major driver of affairs and the affairs did not predict decreases in these relationship quality variables over time. That is, among a sample of individuals who proactively sought affairs, their affairs were not primarily motivated by poor dyadic/marital relationships, their affairs did not seem to have a strong negative impact on their relationships, and personal ethics did not play a strong role in people's feelings about their affairs.

Comparing the Effectiveness of Emotionally Focused Couple Therapy and Cognitive-Behavioral Couple Therapy on Forgiveness and Marital Intimacy of Women Affected by Infidelity in Mashhad

Background: The experience of infidelity is very painful and leads to serious negative consequence among couples. The aim of this study is to compare the effectiveness of emotionally focused couple therapy (EFT) and cognitive-behavioral couple therapy (CBT) on forgiveness and marital intimacy of women affected by infidelity.
 Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study with a pre-posttest design. The statistical population included all the infidelity-affected women referred to Andishe and Tafakor counseling center in the first quarter of 2020 in Mashhad city. The sample size was determined by Cochran formula as 15 participants for each group. From this statistical population, 45 people were selected by purposive method based on inclusion criteria and were randomly replaced in three groups of CBT (N=15), EFT (N=15), and the control group (N=15. They did not receive any intervention. All participants were assessed before, after, and two months after the intervention with the marital forgiveness and Walker and Thompson's (1983) and marital intimacy scale (MIS). The obtained data were analyzed in SPSS-20 by statistical methods of the repeated measure analysis of variance.
 Results: The mean age of participants was 33.11 ±5.03, and their marriage duration was 6.23±2.89. The results demonstrated forgiveness and marital intimacy were significantly increased in CBT and EFT groups compared to the control group (P <0.001). EFT showed higher effectiveness than CBT in enhancement of forgiveness and intimacy (P <0.05).
 Conclusion: According to the findings, CBT and EFT indicated efficacy in improvement of intimacy and forgiveness between couples. By comparing interventions, EFT showed higher effectiveness. Therefore, it is suggested to use emotion-focused techniques to improve the relationship of couple. In addition, considering the effectiveness of both treatments, an integrated approach can be used in future studies.

Comparison of the Effectiveness of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Compassion-Focused Therapy in Improving Rumination and Enhancing Emotional Regulation in Women with the Experience of Marital Infidelity

Objective: One of the harms that put families at risk of disintegration is the phenomenon of marital infidelity. The present study compared the effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy and compassion-focused therapy in improving rumination and enhancing emotional regulation in women who have experienced marital infidelity. Materials and Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study with a pre-test-post-test-follow-up design and a control group. The study population included women with experiences of marital infidelity, who sought help from counseling and psychotherapy centers and clinics in Tehran in the year 2021. From the mentioned population, 45 women with experiences of marital infidelity were selected based on the entry criteria of the study and were randomly assigned to two experimental groups and one control group (each group consisting of 15 individuals). The first experimental group received cognitive behavioral therapy intervention, and the second group underwent compassion-based therapy. The control group did not receive any intervention. Data were collected using the Garnefski and Kraaij Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (2006) and the Nolen-Hoeksema et al. Ruminative Responses Scale (1999). Data were analyzed using the analysis of variance with repeated measures and SPSS software version 22. Findings: The results showed that emotional regulation in both the cognitive-behavioral and compassion therapy groups was higher at the post-test stage than at the pre-test, and the scores of rumination in the two groups were lower at the post-test stage than at the pre-test (p < 0.01). Also, the comparison of the two experimental groups showed that the scores of emotional regulation and rumination variables in both cognitive-behavioral and compassion therapy groups significantly differed from each other (p < 0.01). Conclusion: It can be concluded that cognitive-behavioral therapy had a greater impact on improving emotional regulation and rumination in women compared to compassion-focused therapy.

“But it wasn't really cheating”: Dark Triad traits and perceptions of infidelity

Infidelity constitutes a threat to those in exclusive romantic relationships and may lead to relationship dissolution. There is, however, substantial variation with regards to the acts that are or are not considered to be infidelity. In the present study, we investigate the relationship between Dark Triad traits and the acts perceived to constitute infidelity. Five categories of infidelity are considered; online infidelity, fantasized infidelity, emotional infidelity, sexual infidelity, and hidden attachment. Dark Triad traits (Machiavellianism and primary psychopathy) predicted the extent to which specific acts were perceived to constitute infidelity when controlling for demographic factors and personal experience of infidelity. In particular, those high on Machiavellianism were less likely to perceive fantasizing and expressed emotion as infidelity. Those high on primary psychopathy were more likely to perceive fantasizing and emotional expression as infidelity and less likely to consider sexual acts or hidden attachment as indicators of infidelity.

Adult Attachment and Personality as Predictors of Jealousy in Romantic Relationships.

Functional relationships between romantic jealousy and traits, such as neuroticism or adult attachment styles, are well-known. For the first time, we conducted a joint analysis of the Big Five traits and attachment dimensions as predictors of jealousy, which considered gender differences as well as differences in infidelity experiences and relationship status. In 847 participants, path modeling showed that higher neuroticism, lower agreeableness, and lower openness predicted higher romantic jealousy. The attachment dimensions “anxiety” and “depend” partly mediated the effect of neuroticism and fully mediated the effect of agreeableness on romantic jealousy. The direct and indirect relationships did not differ as a function of gender, relationship status, and infidelity experiences. These findings contribute to a better understanding of individual differences in romantic jealousy from a personality perspective.

Being the infidelity partner: Narratives of lived experiences in an online support group

Taking into account the secretive nature of infidelity experiences and their adverse impact on the involved partners, the aim of the present qualitative study was to examine how individuals—who have been engaged in extradyadic relationships, as “affair partners”—narrate their experiences in an online support group. The study analyzed 60 posts, published over a period of 6 months in an online support community. Three main themes emerged through the thematic analysis conducted. The first theme involved conflicting dimensions of affair partner experience, in which the following sub-themes were identified: 1) living in the shadow of loss, and 2) the prevalence of ambivalence: when opposite impulses coexist. The second theme refers to the centripetal aspects of the relationship and within this section the following sub-themes are defined: 1) the relationship as a supportive environment and 2) between plenitude and dearth: the desire for exclusivity. Finally, the third theme refers to the lessons learned by the affair partners and their generalizing conclusions such experiences. The present study underlines how group participants reconstruct their experiences of extradyadic relationships and how they create new ways of meaning making about them. The findings involve reflexive conclusions about intimate relationships capturing elements of broader cultural narratives, representations and dilemmas of self and relationships, as presented in written transactions in online support groups.

Exploring the lived experience of parental infidelity

ABSTRACT The current study explored the lived experience of parental infidelity; how individuals make sense of this experience and what its' implications are. Qualitative data were collected from individual, semi-structured interviews with six adult participants. An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis methodology was used and a critical realist epistemological stance was taken. Analyses revealed findings of four master themes: adultification, challenges in romantic relationships, the psychological experience and the pathway to healing. These master themes were sub-categorized into super-ordinate themes as follows: adultification – becoming an emotional carer and awareness of parental sexuality, challenges in romantic relationships – fear of abandonment and relationship breakdown, intergenerational transmission of infidelity and differentiation, the psychological experience – an everlasting pain, the sense of self and loss: detachment and disconnection, the pathway to healing – restoration through destruction, perspective: intellectualization and understanding and honesty and openness. Theoretical, research and clinical implications alongside limitations and ideas for future research are discussed.

Understanding digital dating abuse from an evolutionary perspective: Further evidence for the role of mate value discrepancy

Decades of research have been dedicated to understanding intimate partner violence. A recent form of intimate partner violence is digital dating abuse, which involves electronic intrusion in romantic relationships. Previous research has focused on the effects of digital dating abuse on victims, yet little research has focused on the factors which drive the perpetration of digital dating abuse, especially from an evolutionary perspective. Recent research has focused on whether mating-relevant factors such as mate value discrepancy predict the perpetration of digital dating abuse, suggesting digital dating abuse could be a mate retention tactic. Here, we replicated and extended that finding in two independent samples (study 1, n = 177; Study 2, n = 134) by showing large mate value discrepancies positively predict digital dating abuse, therefore suggesting that digital dating abuse could be a contemporary cost-inflicting mate retention strategy. We also explored whether intrasexual competition, self-esteem, and experience of previous infidelity predicted the perpetration of digital dating abuse, finding no significant relationships. These findings from two studies, replicate, extend, and provide further support that digital dating abuse is a mate retention tactic. This research advances our understanding of digital dating abuse from an evolutionary psychological perspective.

The obsessions of the green-eyed monster: jealousy and the female brain

The present brain-imaging study assessed neural correlates of romantic jealousy in women who had suffered real infidelity by their partner. We predicted to find activation across different brain structures associated with the processing of negative emotions and cognitive processes as well as obsessive-compulsive behavior. FMRI scans were administered while participants listened to descriptions of their own or another person’s experience of infidelity and jealousy, or to nonsense words. In the self-experienced (vs. other-experienced) jealousy condition, activity was greater in areas commonly associated with the interaction between different negative emotions (i.e., insula, anterior cingulate cortex, medial prefrontal cortex) such as fear, anger, sadness and cognitive processes like rumination. Enhanced activity was also found in the fronto-striato-thalamo-frontal circuit, a network implicated in habit formation and obsessive-compulsive disorder. Activation in the above networks was not enhanced when participants listened to other-experienced infidelity reports, as indicated by comparisons with the neutral condition. We discuss implications for the understanding and treatment of jealousy.

Influences of Sociosexuality and Commitment on Online Sexual Activities: The Mediating Effect of Perceptions of Infidelity

The perceived infidelity of online sexual activity (OSA) has been noted as an important factor contributing to individual differences in OSA among people in romantic relationships. We proposed that two major factors related to infidelity—sociosexuality (willingness to engage in uncommitted sexual relationships) and commitment—might be associated with engaging in OSA via the perceived infidelity of OSA among individuals in romantic relationships. OSAs were classified as viewing sexually explicit material, seeking sexual partners, cybersex, and flirting. Participants were 313 heterosexuals in romantic relationships who completed measures of OSA experience, sociosexuality, commitment, and perceptions of infidelity. The results showed that more unrestricted sociosexuality and less commitment were associated with more frequent engagement in OSAs. Moreover, perceptions of infidelity mediated these associations of sociosexuality and commitment with OSA. These findings suggest that perceived infidelity is important for understanding the mechanism underlying people’s engagement in OSA.

Partner commitment moderates the association between commitment and interest in romantic alternatives

Previous studies have shown that individuals who are committed to their relationship are less interested in romantic alternatives. This research examined whether the negative association between commitment and interest in alternative partners depends on the level of partner’s commitment. In Study 1, married individuals (N = 289) completed questionnaires assessing their commitment, perceptions of their partner’s commitment, and two indicators of interest in alternatives. We found that committed individuals’ tendency to remain inattentive to alternatives and to report fewer infidelity experiences was significantly weaker among individuals who perceived their partner to be low (vs. high) in commitment. In Study 2, we recruited both members of married couples (N = 156) and replicated the moderating effect of partner commitment using the partner’s self-reports. Our findings suggest that how committed the partner is, or is perceived to be, can play an important role in committed individuals’ faithfulness, highlighting the dyadic processes of relationship maintenance.

Understanding Infidelity: How Perceptions of Infidelity Behaviors Vary by Sex and One's Own Infidelity Experiences

ABSTRACTThis study examines (1) how previous history with infidelity influences perceptions of cheating behaviors, and (2) sex's impact on ratings of cheating behaviors. A total of 83 undergraduate students enrolled in psychology courses volunteered to participate through an anonymous online survey. Participants rated sexual and emotional behaviors on a scale that ranged from “always” to “never,” indicating if the behavior was perceived as cheating. Individuals that had previous experience with infidelity either as the involved or non-involved partner rated sexual behaviors higher than those with no experience with infidelity, while non-involved partners rated emotional behaviors higher than the rest. Overall, females rated sexual and emotional behaviors higher than males. Non-involved males rated sexual behaviors higher than non-involved female partners. However, males who have not committed an infidelity rated sexual behaviors lower than any other group. The results provide further evidence that perceptions of cheating behaviors are influenced by gender and one's own history of infidelity, including both involved and non-involved roles.

Swiping right: Sociosexuality, intentions to engage in infidelity, and infidelity experiences on Tinder

Tinder is a popular mobile dating app among young adults that may be used to facilitate meeting extradyadic partners. Participants who had used or were using Tinder (n=550) indicated that most knew somebody who had used Tinder to meet extradyadic partners, and several participants reported that their own infidelity had been facilitated by Tinder. Participants were varied as to whether Tinder was an effective method for meeting extradyadic partners. Sociosexuality and intentions to engage in infidelity were associated with having used Tinder to engage in infidelity. Gender was not significantly associated with using Tinder to meet extradyadic partners when sociosexuality and intentions to engage in infidelity were also included in analyses.

Betrayals in Emerging Adulthood: A Developmental Perspective of Infidelity

Infidelity is associated with considerable distress and discord in dating relationships. The current mixed methods study examined both the written narratives and survey responses of 104 (59.6% women) emerging adults to investigate reasons for engaging in infidelity (i.e., sexual and emotional infidelity). Emerging adults’ reasons for engaging in infidelity were attributed primarily to their primary relationships and/or their romantic partners not fulfilling their needs for interdependence and thus feeling motivated to fulfill these needs elsewhere. Although the majority of participants provided independence and/or interdependence reasons for their infidelity, a large proportion of responses (40%) referenced alternative reasons. These responses included (a) the opportunity to become intimate with an infidelity partner while under the influence of alcohol, (b) attraction to an infidelity partner, and (c) the excitement and novelty that the infidelity experience provided. Those who reported engaging in infidelity because of unmet interdependence needs, and intimacy needs in particular, were more avoidantly attached than those who did not reference unmet interdependence needs. Those who reported engaging in infidelity because of unmet independence needs were more anxiously attached than those who did not reference unmet independence needs. Implications for the developmental importance of infidelity in terms of research and applied work are discussed.