Sex, Self-Esteem, Dependency and Extradyadic Sexual Experience as Related to Jealousy Responses

Abstract

A study of a heterogeneous sample of 250 mostly married individuals examined the impact of sex, self-esteem, emotional dependency and extradyadic sexual experience upon betrayal-anger, disappointment and self-doubt as responses to extradyadic sexual behavior of the partner. Women scored higher in self-doubt and disappointment than men, but not in betrayal-anger. When the other variables were included as independent variables, women showed still more self-doubt than men when their partner committed adultery, and this was especially true for women of low self-esteem. Emotional dependency and one's own extradyadic sexual experience reduced all jealousy responses, whereas previous experience with adultery of the partner had a mitigating effect upon disappointment, especially among women. It is concluded that in general neither men nor women can be said to be more jealous, but that among women self-doubt and adaptation to the partner's adultery is a quite common pattern.