What makes a person cheat? Well, there are plenty of reasons. A new study in The Journal of Sex Research dug into the top motives.
Researchers polled 495 adults, around 20 years old on average. They asked if these folks had ever cheated in a relationship and, if so, what drove them to it. With an open-ended survey, they grouped answers by common themes and found 77 motives for cheating.
The number one cause? A “lack of love.” Nearly 77% of responses either flat-out said it, like “I’d fallen out of love with my partner,” or hinted at it. Relationship expert Chelsea Leigh Trescott, founder of Breakupward, says, “While it seems like cheaters have fallen out of love, it’s more that they don’t feel loved by their partner.”