Skip to main content

An Overview: Internet Infidelity

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Internet Infidelity
  • 1048 Accesses

Abstract

This chapter provides an overview of internet infidelity as an emerging yet widely practised phenomenon. The rise of social media as well as technological advancements that create “real” experiences online have made it possible for people to engage in multiple kinds of online relationships. Internet infidelity provides a new challenge to couples seeking to establish and maintain both emotional and physical intimacy. This book provides an interdisciplinary and coherent perspective of internet infidelity and its impact on relationships. This chapter end by providing an overview of the all the contributions in this volume. This book is ideal for marital therapists, counsellors, criminologists, legislators, researchers and students.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. 1.

    http://www.cybererotica.com

  2. 2.

    World Wide Web Size, Daily Estimated Size of the World Wide Web. http://www.worldwidewebsize.com/ (accessed 25 June 2017).

References

  • Adams, A. N. (2017). Social networking sites and online infidelity (Ph.D. dissertation). Walden University, Minneapolis.

    Google Scholar 

  • Adamse, M., & Motta, S. (1996). On-line friendship, chat-room romance, and cybersex: Your guide to affairs of the net. Deerfield Beach, FL: Health Communications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Aron, A., Fisher, H., Mashek, D. J., Strong, G., Li, H., & Brown, L. L. (2005). Reward, motivation, and emotion systems associated with early-stage intense romantic love. Journal of Neurophysiology, 94(1), 327–337.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barta, W. D., & Kiene, S. M. (2005). Motivations for infidelity in heterosexual dating couples: The roles of gender, personality differences, and sociosexual orientation. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 22(3), 339–360.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baym, N. K., Zhang, Y. B., Kunkel, A., Ledbetter, A., & Lin, M.-C. (2007). Relational quality and media use in interpersonal relationships. New Media and Society, 9(5), 735–752.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bingham, J. E., & Piotrowski, C. (1996). Online sexual addiction: A contemporary enigma. Psychological Reports, 79(1), 257–258. https://kuscholarworks.ku.edu/bitstream/handle/1808/6827/zhang_relationalqualityandmedia_afd.pdf;sequence=1. Accessed August 21, 2017.

  • Cooper, A. (1998). Sexuality and the internet: Surfing into the new millennium. Cyberpsychology and Behavior, 1(2), 181–187.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Delmonico, D. L., Griffin, E., & Carnes, P. J. (2002). Treating online compulsive sexual behavior: When cybersex is the drug of choice. In A. Cooper (Ed.), Sex and the internet: A guidebook for clinicians (pp. 147–167). New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Drigotas, S. M., Safstrom, C. A. & Gentilia, T. (1999). An investment model prediction of dating infidelity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 77(3), 509–524. https://www.unc.edu/courses/2006spring/spcl/091p/016/InvestmentModelofInfidelity.pdf. Accessed August 21, 2017.

  • Fisher, H. (2006). Why we love, why we cheat. TED Talk, February. https://www.ted.com/talks/helen_fisher_tells_us_why_we_love_cheat. Accessed August 21, 2017.

  • Fisher, H. E., Brown, L. L., Aron, A., Strong, G., & Mashek, D. (2010). Reward, addiction, and emotion regulation systems associated with rejection in love. Journal of Neurophysiology, 104(1), 51–60.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gerson, M. (2011). Cyberspace betrayal: Attachment in an era of virtual connection. Journal of Family Psychotherapy, 22(2), 148–156.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Glass, G. Z., & Wright, T. L. (1985). Sex differences in type of extramarital involvement and marital dissatisfaction. Sex Roles, 12(9), 1101–1120.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Griffiths, M. D. (1999). All but connected (online relationships). Psychology Post, 17(6), 6–7. https://www.academia.edu/862995/Griffiths_M.D._1999_._All_but_connected_Online_relationships_._Psychology_Post_17_6-7. Accessed August 21, 2017.

  • Helper, E. J., & Whitty, M. T. (2010). Netiquette within married couples: Agreement about acceptable online behavior and surveillance between partners. Computers in Human Behavior, 26(5), 916–926.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hertlein, K. M. (2010). The integration of technology into sex therapy. Journal of Family Psychotherapy, 21(2), 117–131.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hertlein, K. M., & Piercy, F. P. (2006). Internet infidelity: A critical review of the literature. Family Journal, 14(4), 366–371.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hertlein, K. M., & Piercy, F. P. (2008). Therapists’ assessment and treatment of internet infidelity cases. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 34(4), 481–497.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hertlein, K. M., & Stevenson, A. (2010). The seven “As” contributing to internet-related intimacy problems: A literature review. Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace, 4(1), 1–8. https://cyberpsychology.eu/article/view/4230. Accessed August 21, 2017.

  • Hofstede, G. (1983). The cultural relativity of organizational practices and theories. Journal of International Business Studies, 14(2), 75–89. http://www.aogaku-daku.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/culturalRelativity10.pdf. Accessed August 21, 2017.

  • Hofstede, G. (1984). Culture’s consequences: International differences in work-related values (p. 5). Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hofstede, G. (1991). Cultures and organizations: Software of the mind. London: McGraw-Hill.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hofstede, G. (2011). Dimensionalizing cultures: The Hofstede model in context. Online Readings in Psychology and Culture, 2(1), 3–26. https://doi.org/10.9707/2307-0919.1014.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • King, S. A. (1999). Internet gambling and pornography: Illustrative examples of psychological consequences of communication anarchy. Cyberpsychology and Behavior, 2(3), 175–193. https://doi.org/10.1089/109493199316311.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mao, A., & Raguram, A. (2009). Online infidelity: The new challenge to marriages. Indian Journal of Psychiatry, 51(4), 302–304. https://doi.org/10.4103/0019-5545.58299.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mileham, B. L. (2007). Online infidelity in internet chat rooms: An ethnographic exploration. Computers in Human Behavior, 23(1), 11–31.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Perry, M. S., & Werner-Wilson, R. J. (2011). Couples and computer-mediated communication: A closer look at the affordances and use of the channel. Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal, 40(2), 120–134.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ross, M. W., & Kauth, M. R. (2002). Men who have sex with men, and the internet: Emerging clinical issues and their management. In A. Cooper (Ed.), Sex and the internet: A guidebook for clinicians (pp. 47–69). New York: Brunner-Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schneider, J. P. (2000). Effects of cybersex addiction on the family: Results of a survey. Sexual Addiction and Compulsivity: Journal of Treatment and Prevention, 7(1–2), 31–58.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tikkanen, R., & Ross, M. W. (2003). Technological tearoom trade: Characteristics of Swedish men visiting gay internet chat rooms. AIDS Education and Prevention, 15(2), 122–132. https://doi.org/10.1521/aeap.15.3.122.23833.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Underwood, H., & Findlay, B. (2004). Internet relationships and their impact on primary relationships. Behaviour Change, 21(2), 127–140. https://doi.org/10.1375/bech.21.2.127.55422.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vossler, A. (2016). Internet infidelity 10 years on: A critical review of the literature. Family Journal, 24(4), 359–366.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, C. C., & Hsiung, W. (2008). Attitudes towards online infidelity among Taiwanese college students. International Journal of Cyber Society and Education, 1(1), 61–78. http://www.academic-journals.org/ojs2/index.php/IJCSE/article/viewFile/509/1. Accessed August 21, 2017.

  • Whitty, M. T. (2003). Pushing the wrong buttons: Men’s and women’s attitudes towards online and offline infidelity. Cyberpsychology and Behavior, 6(6), 569–579. https://doi.org/10.1089/109493103322725342.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wysocki, D. K., & Childers, C. D. (2011). “Let my fingers do the talking”: Sexting and infidelity in cyberspace. Sexuality and Culture, 15(3), 217–239. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-011-9091-4.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Young, K. (1998). Caught in the net: How to recognize the sign of internet addiction and achieving strategies for recovery. New York: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Young, K. S. (1996). Internet addiction: What makes computer-mediated communication habit forming? Paper presented at the 104th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, Toronto. http://chabad4israel.org/tznius4israel/newdisorder.pdf. Accessed August 21, 2017.

  • Young, K. S., Griffin-Shelley, E., Cooper, A., O’Mara, J., & Buchanan, J. (2000). Online infidelity: A new dimension in couple relationships with implications for evaluation and treatment. Sexual Addiction and Compulsivity: Journal of Treatment and Prevention, 7(1–2), 59–74.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Garima Jain .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2018 Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd.

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Sahni, S.P., Jain, G. (2018). An Overview: Internet Infidelity. In: Sahni, S., Jain, G. (eds) Internet Infidelity. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-5412-9_1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-10-5412-9_1

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Singapore

  • Print ISBN: 978-981-10-5411-2

  • Online ISBN: 978-981-10-5412-9

  • eBook Packages: Law and CriminologyLaw and Criminology (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics