When someone cheats, it is usually not an isolated event, but a symptom of an underlying problem. A study on how couples resolve conflict reveals that demanding partners – individuals, who assign blame and put pressure on the other person to change, were also more likely to be cheating.
This pattern, however, only occurred when the cheating was unknown. In other words, cheating individuals acted more demanding during an argument, but only when their partners were in the dark. When the cheating was known, the pattern reversed.
One possible explanation for this set of findings – people, who are unhappy in a relationship, are more likely to act in controlling ways. Unhappy campers are also more likely to cheat. But, when the cheating is discovered, the tables turn; the victim gets to take control.
Infidelity is rarely an isolated event.