In the movie, ‘It’s Complicated,’ Alec Baldwin’s character, Jake, cheats on his wife, Jane, with a younger woman, Agness. 10 years later, they meet again, and this time, Jake cheats on Agness with Jane!! Now if that’s not complicated, I don’t know what is! The strangest part is that Jake has absolutely no remorse attached to either of his cheating episodes!
Most of us have heard of men who’ve cheated and ended up destroying families. This is not to say that all women are virtuous and don’t cheat, but the number is certainly higher for men. Experts have been analyzing why men cheat for ages now, and there seem to be some common reasons men give for cheating, regardless of where they live. The experts also found that though men gave excuses, nearly all of them admit that what they did was wrong and quite a few would like a chance to go back and undo it.
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Since going back in time is not going to be possible anytime soon, these men will just have to sit and lick their wounds while we list out the top 25 reasons why men cheat.
Suggested read: 9 stunning scientific reasons why good guys cheat
1. Insatiable sexual appetite
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Well this one’s simple enough – why guys cheat is because they just can’t get enough at home. Another term for this is sex addiction, which is actually a disorder and requires treatment. However, there are several men who try to escape with sex addiction as a reason when the real reason is something else.
2. Differing views on loyalty
With concepts like open marriages and ‘swinging’ becoming popular in the modern world, older values like loyalty and trust seem to be disappearing. When both partners have different expectations and perhaps different religious views, it leads to trouble.
3. Self-obsessed partners
One of the main reasons many people gave for why guys cheat was a partner who was completely obsessed with herself. They claimed the women in their lives didn’t give them any love, time or attention, which they had to seek elsewhere.
4. Incompatible sexual desire
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Many men have sexual fantasies that are unacceptable to their partners and they use cheating as an outlet to try out these ‘forbidden desires.’
5. Ego boosting attempt
Men have always considered bedding women as ‘scoring,’ and the more points they score, the better they feel about themselves and their masculinity.
6. Desire to try something ‘different’
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Another common reason why guys cheat is boredom. They are bored of the same person everyday and want something different – one of the main reasons why men cheat with people from other races or countries.
7. No likelihood of getting caught
This is probably why there are so many stories of people in power cheating. When they don’t think they’ll be caught, they don’t hesitate to cheat.
8. Intoxication
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This is first among the reasons why good guys cheat. An over-consumption of intoxicants like alcohol impairs a person’s judgment and lowers inhibitions, ingredients that are a recipe for disaster.
9. Seeking a relationship exit route
For some men who are too cowardly to talk and sort things out, cheating is an easy escape route from a dead end relationship. Some men claim that their partners don’t respond to talking, leading them into taking a drastic step.
10. Friends who cheat
Peer pressure doesn’t affect only teenagers; it impacts grown men too. When a man’s friends cheat regularly and consider it a matter of pride, he is more likely to cheat as well.
Suggested read: 10 signs your girlfriend is cheating on you
11. Childhood circumstances
A man who has grown up in a household where his father or male relatives regularly cheated but didn’t face any consequences, may think that it is okay to cheat. Or maybe even think that that is ‘normal’ behavior.
12. No fear of consequences
As a continuation to the point above, another reason why men continue cheating is because they have no fear of consequences. Their partners probably forgive them over and over again, making cheating a regular happening.
13. No moral code
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Some men just don’t have any core values or principles and no sense of morality. Such men usually don’t have boundaries regarding sex and intimacy.
14. Revenge
This is another reason why good guys cheat – revenge. Especially if their partner has cheated and they’ve found out, it hurts their ego and they want to hurt them back – tit for tat.
15. Unclear relationship status
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Many guys are unclear about where their relationship stands – whether it’s a casual thing or a full-time commitment. Such guys are usually immature and end up cheating out of ignorance.
Suggested read: The complete list of all types of infidelity
16. Rebellion
Some men never outgrow the teenage ‘non-conformist’ stage. Such men cheat merely to defy societal norms, which he feels have been thrust upon him by a fascist society.
17. Building a ‘reputation’
A common reason for why guys cheat is because they want to build a reputation among their peers or even other women as a ‘playboy.’ The general impression among this group is that women prefer ‘bad boys.’
18. Unavailable partner
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For men in long distance relationships or in homes where either partner works odd hours, unavailability of their partners seems to justify cheating on other women, usually at the workplace.
19. Disturbed marriage
Probably the most common reason for why men end up cheating is a marriage that’s on the rocks. Such men claim the need for emotional intimacy and care that leads them into the arms of another woman, who they might even possibly love.
20. Opportunity
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For other men, it’s only a matter of opportunity, such as being alone with a consenting co-worker at night when everyone else has gone home. He could do it and so he did.
Suggested read: The comprehensive list of reasons why men cheat but real men don’t
21. Unattractive partner
Surprisingly, this isn’t such a common reason for why men cheat. Yet, some men cheat when they feel their partners have ‘let go’ especially after childbirth. Older men are driven towards younger versions of their wives.
22. Need for control
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Some men think of themselves as entitled to be able to have sex with whoever they want, regardless of how they feel. Such men usually have extremely chauvinistic views about women and have an innate need to control them.
23. Reaffirming of sexual vitality
This happens mainly to men who’ve been in a relationship for a while and are entering middle age. They find it difficult to get aroused with their current partner and seek validation of their sexual prowess by cheating with another woman.
24. Different sexual orientation
A rare but real reason for why guys cheat is because of their sexual orientation. Being forced to marry due to societal or familial pressure, their sexless marriage drives them to find pleasure outside with other men.
25. Mental illness
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A man suffering from a mental illness can exhibit all kinds of uncharacteristic behavior including cheating. However, in this case, cheating is just one of the symptoms and he probably shows other signs of his disorder as well.
It is obvious that apart from illness or psychiatric disorders, none of these reasons can actually be justified in case of cheating. While we can go on analyzing the various reasons why men cheat on their partners, the fact remains that most of them do realize that what they did was wrong. While there isn’t an easy cure for weak willpower or childhood issues, men who have issues in their relationship can gain a good deal by trying therapy. If it fails, they can still end the relationship in a graceful manner causing minimum damage to the family and children.
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