Intrapersonal, Interpersonal, and Contextual Factors in Engaging in and Responding to Extramarital Involvement

Surveys reveal that the vast majority of people in the United States expect sexual monogamy in marriage and disapprove of extramarital involvement (EMI; Atwater, 1979; Buss & Shackelford, 1997; Singh, Walton, & Williams, 1976; Smith, 1994; Thornton, 1989; Treas & Giesen, 2000; Wiederman & Allgeier, 1996) with up to 97% of respondents stating that married persons should not engage in extramarital sex (C. A. Johnson et al., 2002). Despite these attitudes, many individuals eventually engage in EMI. Specific findings regarding rates (and correlates) of EMI vary in part as a function of the manner in which such involvement is operationalized. Most survey research uses extramarital sex as the target variable, but another popular approach is to ask participants about ‘‘affairs’’ although the definition of affair may be fairly idiosyncratic (e.g., someone who has had a casual sexual encounter may not consider this an affair). Some researchers have included a broader continuum of involvement, such as assessing all types of physical involvement (not just intercourse). Moreover, there is emerging empirical interest in ‘‘emotional infidelity’’ in which emotional intimacy and sexual attraction to another person are combined with secrecy from the spouse (Glass & Wright, 1988). A growing literature demonstrates that individuals do consider a broader range of involvement, including sexualized Internet relationships, to constitute ‘‘infidelity’’ (e.g., Whitty, 2003). In recent studies with large representative samples, approximately 22% to 25% of men and 11% to 15% of women indicate that they have engaged in extramarital sex. These numbers likely underestimate rates of EMI because some individuals refuse to disclose such sensitive Address correspondence to Elizabeth S. Allen, Department of Psychology, University of Colorado at Denver and Health Sciences Center, CB173, PO Box 173364, Denver, CO 802173364. E-mail: [email protected].