What’s cheating? Flirting with a stranger at a bar? Having lunch with your single co-worker? Kissing someone other than your partner? Men and women define it differently. We asked relationship experts to explain the gender gap and the difference between real life and online. Plus, find out if you or your partner is a likely two-timer with our quiz...
Years ago, I met a film critic who was in New York on assignment. He was married. I was not. There was an immediate spark. Drinks led to dinner and eventually back to his hotel room, where he was perfectly comfortable doing everything but. He drew the line at having s*x. That, to him, was too far. “It’s not cheating if we don’t have intercourse,” he said. His wife probably would disagree, but I was struck by his definition of cheating.
Most people agree that it's bad, but the point at which flirting or idle curiosity becomes a betrayal is a gray area, particularly with laptops, BlackBerries and Facebook. According to a 2007 MSNBC.com survey, about 22% of adults in monogamous relationships have cheated on their current partner. And nearly 50% of the 70,000 adults surveyed admitted being unfaithful at some point in their lives.
However, cheating didn’t always mean intercourse. Kissing, oral s*x and online s*x were also considered acts of infidelity by some. ...
