‘Infidelity is one of the most destructive and painful evils you can experience when you are in a relationship,’ says the author of this new study, academic Rosie Shrout, who can be read in Vice. This young student wondered what the physical, psychological and mental consequences are when you are a victim of infidelity.
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In addition to the feeling, for some people, of seeing their world collapse, what are the consequences and changes that this can bring about on the behaviour of the deceived person? The study was published in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships and was conducted on 232 students from several different universities.
All the deceived respondents had been in a relationship for more than a year and a half on average and had experienced infidelity over the past three months. Each student was asked to analyse whether they considered they had played a role in this situation. Did they feel a little guilty? Just a victim? They also had to assess their mood and psychological condition. Had they felt depressed, or were they more anxious than usual?
Finally, they were asked if their lifestyle had changed since they learned that they had been cheated on. Had they turned to risky behaviours such as binge drinking, soft drugs? Eating disorders?
The results? Most students said that they did not feel guilty. It was noted that since the infidelity, they had developed destructive behaviour: a change in diet (45%), an addiction to alcohol (44%), excessive exercise (29%), sexual intercourse under the influence of cannabis or alcohol (27%) and the use of marijuana (19%).
The results were different according to gender
The results of the study showed that the gender issue is far from trivial and that people did not react in the same way if they were a deceived woman or a deceived man. Women are more likely to blame themselves in these situations because they think that if their partner has cheated on them, it is also their fault. The researcher called on the PsyPost magazine, which reacted to this conclusion by explaining that a woman is more likely to place the relationship as a part of herself. In the case of adultery, it is, therefore, a part of herself that has been lost.
