Boomers Have Had More Affairs Than Other Adults Sex & Intimacy

Boomers Have Had More Affairs Than Other Adults

Trend driven primarily by people in their 50s and 60s

Getty Images Americans age 55 and older are reporting extramarital liaisons at rates significantly higher than younger Americans. You might expect today's young people to be the ones with sex on their minds, but a new study reveals that when it comes to extramarital liaisons, boomers are much more daring. Since 2004, Americans age 55 and older have been reporting rates of that are significantly above those of younger Americans, according to Nicholas H. Wolfinger, a professor of family and consumer studies at the University of Utah, who analyzed data from the General Social Survey, an ongoing study that has been tracking Americans’ attitudes and behavior since 1972. He found that in 2016, 20 percent of respondents 55+ acknowledged they have strayed from their marriage vows, compared with 14 percent of those under 55. AARP Membership: According to , the adultery trend is being driven primarily by people in their 50s and 60s, who typically have been married between 20 and 30 years. The rate of infidelity drops among people 70 and older; indeed, by age 80, only 12 percent of respondents say they’ve ever had an affair. Wolfinger attributes boomers' greater tendency to have extramarital affairs to their having grown up during the sexual revolution of the 1960s and 1970s. He also notes that people in that age group typically have had more sexual partners in their lifetimes than Americans younger or older than them. Wolfinger’s work was published online by the Institute for Family Studies.

More on Sex & Intimacy

Cancel You are leaving AARP.org and going to the website of our trusted provider. The provider’s terms, conditions and policies apply. Please return to AARP.org to learn more about other benefits. Your email address is now confirmed. You'll start receiving the latest news, benefits, events, and programs related to AARP's mission to empower people to choose how they live as they age. You can also by updating your account at anytime. You will be asked to register or log in. Cancel Offer Details Disclosures

Close In the next 24 hours, you will receive an email to confirm your subscription to receive emails related to AARP volunteering. Once you confirm that subscription, you will regularly receive communications related to AARP volunteering. In the meantime, please feel free to search for ways to make a difference in your community at Javascript must be enabled to use this site. Please enable Javascript in your browser and try again.