Cheaters: why men, women step-out on relationships

So, why are so many unfaithful?  Almost half of the students surveyed at East say they have been cheated on.  

It has been found that within the United States, infidelity has a higher rate in men than women according to MSN lifestyle. Men and Women view sex and relationships in very distinct ways as well as infidelity. Men mostly cheat to satisfy sexual urges and tend to not think that it will affect their primary relationship according to Psychology today.  People cheat for many reasons; for example, researchers say that men mostly cheat when they feel threatened and women are most likely to cheat when they feel disregarded. Studies show that 15% of men that are economically dependent on their significant other are more likely to cheat, and 5% of women are less likely to cheat the more money they receive.  In a random survey of 95 Morton East students, 24 percent reported that they have cheated on by a boyfriend or girlfriend, and 42% said that they have been cheated on by a girlfriend or boyfriend.  

“Men are more likely to sexually cheat on a partner while Women are more likely to emotionally cheat on a partner,” Morton east senior Luis Pimentel said.   

Men and Women have different motives that lead them to cheat on their partners because their views on romantic relationships are contrasting. Not only that, but society also views cheating differently between Men and Women depending on who is the cheater. 

“In society, it’s normalized for men to get away with many things, like infidelity and such, so they’ll continue to do so as long as they’re praised for it. However, if a woman were to cheat, the backlash they’d receive would be unbearable, making them less likely to cheat,” Morton east senior Maricela Nateras said.  

Even though men are more likely to cheat than women, women do cheat. However, women’s intentions aren’t based on sexual desires, but sometimes on ending a relationship that is toxic to the other person. 

“I didn’t want to be with my ex-boyfriend anymore, so I had to give him a reason to leave because he didn’t want to let me go even after I told him I didn’t love him anymore,” 23-year-old Briseira Alvarez said. 

Women aren’t the only ones that sometimes cheat to get out of a toxic relationship. Instead of rightfully communicating with their partner, men rather take the easy way out of the relationship by cheating.  

“The guy that I was seeing at the time confessed and told me that he cheated because he knew that our relationship was toxic to my mental health, and the easiest way was to break my heart in order to get me to forget about him,” said 19-year-old Emily Schafer.