The Age People Are Most Likely To Cheat, According To Research
While younger Americans are cheating less, the same can't be said about older generations.
Nadino | Shutterstock Sadly, there's no guarantee against infidelity in a relationship. Sure, there are some safeguards like good communication and honesty, which can improve your odds at a lifelong bond without outside dalliances, but nothing is 100% certain.
But maybe with each generation, we're getting closer to finding a level of respect for our romantic partners that makes cheating more abhorrent and less practiced. Each generation is supposed to be better than the one before it, after all, and when it comes to relationships, the younger crowd is no exception. Research has found that younger generations are less likely to cheat than their forefathers.
Research has found that younger Americans are less likely to cheat.
A study from 2017 revealed that while younger Americans are cheating less, older Americans are cheating more. That’s right, people in their 50s and 60s are the biggest cheaters!
Nicholas H. Wolfinger, a Professor of Family and Consumer Studies and Adjunct Professor of Sociology at the University of Utah, analyzed data from the Institute for Family Studies, which asked the question: Have you ever had sex with someone other than your husband or wife while you were married?
“Most married Americans remain committed to monogamy,” he said, “but the mounting age difference is noteworthy and statistically significant. The data suggests that the trend toward extramarital sex is being driven by people in their 50s and 60s."
Additional analysis of the data reveals that most of these people have been married for between 20 and 30 years.
"Once survey respondents enter their seventies,” Wolfinger noted, “rates of extramarital sex decline considerably.” Or do they? A year later, Wendy Wang reported on the same study remarking, "Women in their 60s report the highest rate of infidelity (16%), but the share goes down sharply among women in their 70s and 80s. By comparison, the infidelity rate among men in their 70s is the highest (26%), and it remains high among men ages 80 and older (24%)."
She went on to say, "The gender gap in cheating peaks among the oldest age group (ages 80+): a difference of 18 percentage points between men and women." Whatever way you analyze the data, however, it's clear that cheating begins to rise significantly in midlife when couples have been together longer.
Wolfinger begged the question, “Do people in their 50s and 60s have the most extramarital sex because they’re in midlife and have been married for 20-30 years, or because they came of age at a time that fostered greater sexual exploration?” He theorized, “The answer is probably 'both.'"
Advancements in pharmaceuticals could play a role in the increased romantic appetite of older Americans.
Wolfinger noted that “One inducement to do so may have been the proliferation of Viagra and other medications for erectile dysfunction, which only came on the market 20 years ago.”
cottonbro studio | Pexels
According to our medical statistics, urologists say that by 50 years of age, 50% of men suffer from erectile dysfunction, and by the age of 60, that number goes up to 60%. But thanks to Viagra, Cialis, penile pumps, and implants, the game has changed. The same can be said for women in and after menopause. Instead of simply letting the passionate part of life pass them by due to hormone changes, women are taking a more active interest in medications and therapies that increase libido.
Essentially, both men and women are taking advantage of pharmaceutical advances to keep things spicy into maturity. And why not? We're living longer than ever, so why wouldn't we want to do it with gusto?!
Another interesting finding of the study was that even when people cheat, they disapprove of other people cheating.
“Either people’s attitudes don’t match their behavior — a classic story in the social sciences," Wolfinger said, “or we’re witnessing sexual inequality."
According to the past 30 years of the General Social Survey, three out of every four American adults think extramarital sex is always wrong. Perhaps some of this disapproval reflects the comparably high rates of extramarital sex that 50-somethings and 60-somethings have been observing in their peers.
“No matter how many polyamorists there are nowadays, old-fashioned adultery probably has risen among older Americans,” he concluded.
One thing is for certain: It will be interesting to see how these numbers change as millennials and Gen Z age. Will the trend continue to hold, with younger adults maintaining a greater appreciation for monogamy, or will history repeat itself?
Anka Radakovich is a legendary sex columnist, certified sexologist, sex educator, screenwriter, and author. She has written for British GQ, Marie Claire, Women’s Health, Men’s Health, Harper’s Bazaar, Cosmopolitan, Redbook, Men's Journal, Seventeen, Glamour, Maxim and more.
