From a fear of old age to simply being selfish, cheating can occur for a number of reasons, and new data from IllicitEncounters.com found that one major reason for infidelity is revenge. According to the website, which connects married people with other married people looking for affairs, one-third of cheaters do so to get back at a partner for having an affair.
"They had not planned to cheat but feel justified in doing so because their partner has had an affair first," IllicitEncounters.com spokesperson Christian Grant said in a statement.
The survey also found that women revenge cheat more than men
Of those who chose to revenge cheat, 37% identified as women while 31% identified as men, according to the survey of 1,000 people. According to a release from IllicitEncounters.com, women tend to revenge cheat more than men do because men "tend to have the first affair in a faltering relationship."
Read more: 8 surprising reasons why people cheat
In fact, sex and relationship expert Esther Perel said that women cheating can be viewed as a rebellion against patriarchal standards. "In Mexico, women I spoke with proudly see the rise of female affairs as a form of social rebellion against a chauvinistic culture that has long made room for men to have 'two homes,' la casa Grande y la casa chica — one for the family, and one for the mistress," Perel told The Atlantic.
Over half of revenge cheaters told their partner about the affair for the ultimate payback
Following such affairs, eight out of 10 cheaters said they didn't feel any remorse or guilt for cheating on their partner out of revenge and even told them about the act of infidelity.
In fact, 54% of revenge cheaters told their partners about the infidelity to get back at them, the survey found. Additionally, 43% of respondents said getting caught for their affairs didn't stop them from continuing to revenge cheat.
According to IllicitEncounters.com, this revenge cheating trend is popular due to financial circumstances. "More unhappy couples were staying together because they cannot afford to split up and set up two new homes," said a release from the website.
Visit INSIDER's homepage for more.
