CHEATING, A GENETIC TRAIT?

“Once a cheater always a cheater” they always say, right? Often it is quickly claimed that this is nonsense and that people can learn from their mistakes. That may be true, but new research seems to indicate that cheating is embedded in your genes and that you will always continue to do it.

To begin with, it is interesting to know that only 31% of mammals engage in monogamous relationships, including humans. The idea that people are not made for just one partner is a topic that causes much discussion, because through the idea of “your true love” and “the one” people indeed try to bind themselves to one person – and stay with them. From an evolutionary perspective, the monogamous existence of humans comes from the fact that one parent (the male) had to hunt for food, while the other (the female) protected the offspring. But nowadays that often goes wrong; one in three marriages ends in divorce and there are very few couples who are truly always completely monogamous.

There hasn't been much scientific research on this, but a new study provides interesting insights. Whether a person cheats or not can actually be read from their genes. A significant role is attributed to the structure of dopamine receptors, and the research quickly goes over my head, but it boils down to the following.

Dopamine is also known as the “happiness hormone” and is necessary for experiencing pleasure, joy, excitement, and well-being. Then, your traits and physical characteristics are (partly) determined by your genes, where different versions of a gene can have different effects on those traits. A version of a gene is called an ‘allele’, and that is the crux of this matter.

You have short and long alleles, and the research showed that 55% of the participants with a long allele had cheated, while only 22% of those with a short allele had done so. Ta-da! The idea is that people with a long allele are quicker to give in to excitement-inducing activities, including cheating. Additionally, that group had a higher chance of indulging in excessive alcohol and drug use and they sought risks more quickly..

So now you know that too. Did you snag a guy who has peed outside the pot in the past? There’s a good chance he’ll do that with you too.

P.S.: if you are more familiar with the world of genes and alleles and see a gross error in the above, feel free to email me.