While the cover bears only my name, this book would not exist without the care and support of many people. Not all of those folks are named here.

They are our sisters, mothers, neighbors, and friends. They are homeroom moms, bring-oranges-to-soccer-practice-moms, and PTA bake sale moms. They are sit-by-your-husbands-in-the-pew-every-Sunday wives, corporate-dinner wives, and remember-his-birthday wives. They are the women whose marriages you think are “good”—or at minimum “fine.” They may even be the...

My morning ritual includes reading the news online. In the span of six months, my morning reading included three stories that challenged my own “commonsense” understandings of infidelity. Reporting on a survey conducted by a dating site called Undercoverlovers, the first related that 95 ­percent of women who cheated were not discovered by their partners...

When they created their profile, the women in this study sought partners with particular requirements to participate in a very specific arrangement. They went into this endeavor pragmatically and realistically. They adapted to the environment and culture of Ashley Madison, and carefully navigated the experience of meticulously selecting an outside partner. Their decision-making was...

The women in this study were highly personable, charming, and likeable. They were intelligent and well-spoken. They had no difficulty clearly articulating their thoughts and opinions. Many were gregarious, droll, and entertaining. I could easily imagine them at parties with a crowd gathered around them, hanging on their every word. Many were “large-and-in-charge” in their work lives....

Considering the time, expense, energy, and risk required to participate in an outside partnership concurrent to a primary partnership, the payoff must be immense to entice people to continue. After all, much is on the line. The women of this study were acutely aware of the risks, and proceeded with open eyes. They were practical and rational in their decision-making. The value of these outside...

Many of the women in this study reported having undergone a shift in ­perspective as a result of their participation in outside partnerships. ­Specifically, after having experienced the benefits of having an extra intimate relationship in their lives, many declared that their view of primary partnerships, monogamy, and relationships in general had changed irrevocably. The women began to...

Culturally, infidelity fascinates us. We all want to know who is cheating on whom, and with whom. From the cover stories of celebrity relationship woes around cheating to the stories of our neighbors’ dalliances, we are eager to be “in the know.” We reaffirm our shared cultural commitment to fidelity and being “good” as we share these stories of men and women done...

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Alicia Walker is an assistant professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology at Missouri State University. Her research interests include marriage, family, intimate sexual relationships, and the impact of gender; and social inequalities in education. Her work has appeared in Network Science, College Teaching, McGill Journal of...