Equity, Normative Disapproval and Extramarital Relationships

Abstract

This study examined the extent to which inequity, normative disapproval and marital dissatisfaction were related to involvement in extramarital sexual relationships. The study was conducted among 82 married men and 132 married women with a mean age of 41. Of the sample, 30 percent had been involved in extramarital relationships. The results showed that among men as well as women, normative disapproval, and to a lesser extent, relational dissatisfaction were related to the desire to become involved in extramarital sexual relationships and to actual involvement in such relationships. Fear of contracting AIDS was not an important factor in this context. Only among women was inequity associated with extramarital behaviour and inclinations. The effect of inequity was independent of the effects of relational dissatisfaction, sexual dissatisfaction, normative disapproval and exchange orientation.

Full text

!+l
EOUITY.
NORMATIVE
DISAPPROVAL
AND EXTRAMARITAL
RELATIONSHIPS
Karin
S. Prins,
Bram
P. Buunk
U niversity of Groningen
Nico W.
VanYperen
University of Nijmegan
This study examined the extent to which inequity, normatÍve dis-
approval and marital dissatisfaction
were related
to involvement in
extramarital
sexual relationships.
The
study was
conducted
among
82
married
men and 132
married
women with a mean age
of 41. Of the
sample,
30 percent
had been involved in erítramarital relationships.
Ïhe results
showed that among men as well as women, normative
disapproval,
and to a lesser
extent, relational
dissatisfaction
were
related
to the desire
to become involved in extramarital
sexual re-
lationships
and to actual involvement in such relationships,
Fear
of
contracting
AIDS was not an important Íactor in this context. Only
among women was inequity
associated
with extramarital
behaviour
and inclinations.
The
effect of inequity
was independent
of the effects
oÍ relational
dissatisfaction.
sexual dissatisfaction,
normative disap-
proval
and
exchange
orientation.
Although extramarital relationships have been observed rilherever
marriages existed. historically the attitudes towards this behaviour
have
varied
widely.
In the 1970s,
a number
of authors
advocated
extramarital
relationships
as
part
of a new
and
'liberated'
lifestyle
and proposed
arrangements
such as group
marriages,
.swinging'
and
sexually
open
marriages
(e.g.
Libby & Whitehurst,
1973;
Smith & Smith. 1974).lt
is
generally
assumed
thar during
the past
decade, partially
as a result
of the emergence
of AIDS,
individuals
have
become
more cautious with regard
to sexual
relationships
outside
their
marriage
and have
become less
inclined
to
engage in
such relationships
(Buunk
& Van Driel, 1989;
Greeley
et al.,
This rcsearch was supported
by the Netherlands
Organization
for Scientific
Rcsearch
(NWO). Address
corrcspondcnce
to the authoÍs
at:
Dcpartment
of psy-
chofogy.
Univcrsity
of Groningen.
Grote Kruisstraat
2ll. Groningen.
9712
TS.
Nethcrlands.
tournal of Social
and Personul
Relationships
(SACE. London, Newbury
park and
Ncw
Delhi). Vol. I0 (
1993).
39-53

Journal of Social and Personal Relationships
1990). However, few studies have examined extramarital sexual
behaviour since the beginning of the AIDS crisis.
The present
study aims to contribute to our understanding
of the
factors that may lead to involvement in extramarital relationships,
by focusing
particularly upon the relationship between inequity in
marriage and extramarital sexual desires and behaviours. How-
ever, earlier research
has shown that a number of other variables
are related to extramarital involvement including opportunity
(Gerstel, 1979), a need for variety (Buunk, 1984),
dissatisfaction
in marriage (Glass & Wright, 1985), feelings of friendship
(Atwater, 1979), liberal attitudes
(Maykovich, 1976),
normative
approval in the reference group (Buunk, 1980) and a need for
autonomy and
freedom
(Knapp & Whitehurst, 1977). Because
of
the apparqnt importance of other factors than equity in fostering
extramarital sexual behaviour, the present study includes a
number of variables
as covariates, i.e. the moral disapproval
of
extramarital
sex, concern about contracting
AIDS, relational
and
sexual dissatisfaction
and, finally, exchange orientation, a factor
that
has been shown
to moderate the impact
of inequity
(Buunk &
VanYperen,
l99l).
During the last l0 years,
many studies have emphasized the
importance
of equity for understanding
processes
in close relation-
ships.
A central assumption
in equity theory is that individuals
consider
another
person
with whom they have
a close relationship
as a relevant
comparison
other, and that
justice
is determined
by
the proportion of outcomes
and inputs of the person and the
comparison
other (Adams, 1965). Hatfield and her colleagues
were pioneers
in developing
this approach
in the field of close
relationships
(e.g.
Hatfield
et al.
,
19t15; Walster
et al., 1973,
l97tt).
Equity theory supposes
that individuals who are involved in an
inequitable
relationship will feel uneasy
about the relationship
and
become
distressed. This
is the casc for the overbenefited,
who feel
guilty because
they receive
more from the relationship
than their
partner,
as
well
as for the underbenefited, who
feel
sad, frustrated,
angry and hurt because
they receive less
than their partner (see
Sprecher, l9tt6). Not surprisingly.
the underbenefited
will feel
more distressed since
they receive fewer rewards
from the re-
lationship
than the
overbeneÍited.
ln general,
research
has supporteci the
theoretical predictions
of
Hatfield
and her colleagues.
Perceptions of inequity
- in particu-
lar feeling deprivcd,
and to a
lesser
extent feeling
overbeneÍited
-
Prins et al.: Equity and exlramarilal sex
appear to be accompanied by a lower degree of satisfaction in
close relationships than perceptions of equity (e.g. Buunk &
VanYperen, 1989;
Hatfield et al., 1985;
Sprecher,
1986). While
most studies do not offer any evidence for the causal relation
between inequity and distress, in a recent longittrdinal study,
VanYperen & Buunk (1990)
found some evidence
that equity has
an effect upon satisfaction
and not vice versa. It must be noted,
however, that various studies
have
shown that reward level may be
a more important determinant of satisfaction than equity (e.g.
Cate
et al., 1982).
Although an important assumption
in equity theory is that indi-
viduals will be motivated to restore equity (Adams, 1965), few
researchers have examined this process in the context of close
relationships
(for an exception, see Sprecher,1992.
ln particular,
little attention has been paid to involvement in extramarital re-
lationships as a way to restore equity. Nevertheless, according to
HatÍield et al. (1979),
equity theory can
predict quite
clearly how
inequity affects a person's readiness
to engage in extramarital
sex: the more deprived individuals
feel in their marriage, the
more concessions they should expect their partners to make and
the more likely they are to risk engaging in extramarital sex.
This
prediction is made for three rather different reasons: (l) resto-
ration of actual
equitv: the deprived person in a relationship may
try to 'get even' by engaging
in extramarital
sex (and may thus
increase his or her own rewards and decrease the rewards of the
spouse by inducing
jealousy);
(2) leaving the
field, i.e. temporar-
ily or definitively retreating from the unfair relationship; thus an
extramarital affair may represent
a disengagement strategy;
(3)
equity-tuith-the-world: when a person
is deprived
in one relation-
ship, he or she may feel entitled to seek compensation in supple-
mentary. outside relationships. In their study, Hatfield et al.
found some evidence
that individuals were indeed more likely to
have an extramarital affair if they felt underbenefited in their
rnarriage.
The present
study examines the
extent to which inequity in the
marital relationship is related
to involvement in extramarital re-
lationships. The first major hypothesis is
that the more a relation-
ship
is perceived
as inequitable,
the more likely the partner
is to
engage in extramarital relationships.
The implication
of this hy-
pothesis,
unlike Hatfielcl et al. (1979),
is that it is also
expected
that the r,,yerbenefited will be more inclined to become involved in
4l
,10

Prins et al-: Equity and extamarilal sex
readily respond to dissatisfaction
in their relationship by longing
for and engaging
in extramarital relationships.
Two additional factors were examined in the present study.
First, the role of marital dissatisfaction (including relationship
satisfaction as well as sexual satisfaction) as a factor fostering
extramarital relationships was investigated. One reason is that
dissatisfaction
with the marital relationship has
been found to be
an important motive to engage
in extramarital affairs (Buunk &
Van Driel, 1989). Another reason
for examining
the role
of mari-
tal dissatisfaction is that it is important to determine whether
inequity has
an independent
effect upon exiramarital
desires
and
behaviours,
as inequity and marital dissatisfaction
are closely
related.
Second,
the present
study
examined
the extent to which
normative dkapproval is related to actual
and desired extramarital
involvement.
This variable concerns the general attitude towards
extramarital
relationships,
and refers
to the degree
to which an
individual
disapproves
on a moral level
of extramarital
relation-
ships. Not only was the impact
of general disapproval examined,
we also ascertained
the extent
to which disapproval
as the
result of
the risk of contracting and spreading
AIDS plays
a role in this
regard. It is particularly important to assess
whether normative
disapproval
because of AIDS is merely
a consequence
of general
disapproval
or is an independent
factor contributing
to actual
and
desired extramarital
behaviour.
Method
Thc suntplt
was
thc satlrc group
rcported
on hy BLruk & VanYperen
(1991,
19Í'19:
studv -l). lt consistcd
of ll2 nren
and 132
womcn, who were recruited
by an an-
n()unccnlent
placcd
in a krcul
ncwspapcr in
which they
wcrc
askcd
to
participate in
a study on nrarital
rclationships.
Most responclents
we rc marricd
(tt7
pcrcent). ll
pcrccn( wcrc cohabiting
arrd 2 pcrccnt had rcccntly bcen divorced
or bccomc
witiowcd.-I'hc nrcan agc
was.ll ycars
(range:
22-92)
and [i4
pcrccnt had children.
l-cvcl of cducation
varicd
from only clementary
education
(4 pcrcent) to college
cducation
(7 perccnt);
7.1
perccnt of the tnen and 35
percent of thc w<lmen wcre
cmployccl
outsidc
thc honrc for 20 or morc hours pcr weck. A widc range
of
occupations
was
rcprl:sentctl.
OÍ thc samplc. about 30
percent
had actually
becn
involvcd in extramarital
rclationships.
-I'hc
sanrple includcd
ll0 couplcs.
In 47 of
thcsc relationships ncithcr
of thc partncrs had cxtramarital
affairsl
in 20
of thcm
onc ol thc
partncrs
had
bccn involvcd
in extramarital
rclationshipsl and
in [3 cases
both
Dartncrs
had had cxtrarn:trital
involvcmcnts.
Re
adcrs rcsponding to
thc announccmcnt
rcce ivcd a mailed
qucstionnairc.
'l'hcy
wcre
askctl
t0 complctc it in priv:rcy itnd trt n0i discuss it with thcir
partner until it
hacl bccn nrailcd. Aftcr I wccks.
tton-rcsnondcnts rcceivctl
a rcminder
and
after
4
43
Journal of Social and Personal Relationships
sexual relationships
outside their marriage. Although this predic-
tion may seem somewhat far-fetched, it may be plausible for at
least two reasons. First, inequity is a hedonically aversive state
that individuals
seek to escape, and that they may hope to avoid in
a new intimate
relationship.
Second,
it is
possible
that overbene-
fited individuals
justify their situation by proving to themselves
and their
partner
that they are attractive
to the opposite
sex.
The present
study focuses
upon actual extramarital relationships
as
well
as
upon the desire
to engage in extramarital
sex. There
are
several reasons
why it is important to examine both variables.
First,
when actual involvement
is related
to various
psychological
variables, it is difficult to unravel the direction of causality
(Buunk, 1980). For example, when a relation is found between
inequity
and the occurrence
of affairs, it is unclear whether this
correlation
means that inequity leads
to extramarital involvement
or that
extramarital
affairs induce
inequity
in the marital
relation-
ship. It seems
somewhat
less ambiguous
that a relation
between
inequity and desired
extramarital
involvement
would reflect
the
fact
that
the
perception
of inequity
instills
a desire for extramarital
affairs. The second
reason
why it is important to examine
both
variables
is that while inequity
may lead
to the desire
to become
involved in
extramarital
relationships,
many
factors,
including
lack
of practical
opportunity
and
the absence
of an alternative partner,
may
prevent
an individual
from making
this desire
a reality.
Thus,
actual
extralnarital inv<tlvement
may be
a poor indicator
of extra-
marital desires.
Strictly
interpreted,
equity
theory
suggests that
thc
desire
to become
extramaritally
involved would be most sensitive
to inequity.
Several authors have called for more research
on individual
differences
in how inequity is perceived
and responded
to (e.g.
HatÍield
et al., l9lt5).
Murstein
and his
colleagues
(e.g.
Mursrein
et al., 1977) introduccd the concept of exchange
orientatio,t
lo
ref'er to thc.
personality
disposition
of individuals
who are
strongly
oriented
to direct reciprocitv.
who
expect
immediate
and
compar-
able rewards
whe
n thev
have
provideci
rewards
for others
and who
feel uncomfortirble
u,hen
they receive
favours
that they cannot
immediatelv
reciprrocate.
Such an oricntation
scems
to reflect a
rather rigicl wav
of pe
rcciving
social
rclationships,
characterized
by
a low dcglee
of tolcrance
tbr cven
temporary
imbalances
in the
cxchange ploccss
(Iluunk & VanYperen.
l99l). Therefore,
it is
expected
that individuals
high in exchange
orientation
will more

weeks
a second
reminder prus
a new questionnaire. A totar of g4 percent of those
responding
to the advertisement
completed the questionnaire.
Two different measures
of equity were employed:
Haffield Global Measure. contributions to in intimate relationship were first
described
and illustrated and_subsequentry
subjects' perceptions
of inequity were
determined using the Hatfierd Grobar Measuie (Hatfierd er ar., 1985j. lí a.ks,
'Considering
what you p'Jt
into your re rationship
compared
to what you get
out of ir
and whal your partner puts-in
compared
to *nai 1s;nË
gets
out of it, how does your
relationship "stack up"?' Seven possible unr*"r, were presented, varying írom
(-3) 'My partner is
getring
a
m_uch
better deal' through (0i .we are uott getïing
an
equally good
or bad
dea| ro (+3) 'I am ge'ing a mucli better
dear
rhan
n'ipu.t,i".,.
In line with the studies
of Hatfierd and her associates
(e.g. Hatfield "t ut., tess;,
subjects
with scores
of +r, +2 or +3 were considered
to-be advantag.a;,uui..í,
with scores
of -1, -2 and -lJ were considered to be deprived; andl score
of U
defined
the subjects
*tro perceived
equity.
Equity Formula À'reasure.
An additionar equity measure was incruded that is
based
upon questions
about positive contribuiions to the rerationship by oneseif
and one's partner, and about outcomes
for oneserf
and one's partner 1+
rtéms)
lsee
cate et al.' 1982).
Examprcs
arc: 'Ail things
considered,
how many pàsitiue
cántri-
hutions do you make t. your relationship?' and .In general, how much doe. you'
partner receive
from your relationship?'The degree
of inequity *u. "ut"utut.á-bf
(outcomes
self-inputs serÍ
)/inputs.serf- (outcoÀ.. po.,n.r-,nputs partner)/inputs
partneÍ.'l'his measure
corrclated
r = .31,
p < .fi)I, with the Fiatfieltl
Globat
Measure-
on the basis
of thesc
contributions and outcomes, various other equity
measures were carr:ulated
and rerated to extramaritar invorvement. ett ,i,..á
measufes
were not at ail,0r more weakry, rerated to such invorvement than the
present
mcasuÍe.
Maritul satLsfaction.'r-wo
scares
were used to measure
marital satisfaction:
one
for relationship
satisfaction
(ti items)
and one for sexual
satisfaction
(4 items). 1-he
relationship
satisfaction
scare
of Buunk (1990)
measures
the frequency
with which
the interaction with the partner in an intimate rerationship
is experience<r
as re-
warding
and not as aversive.
Examples
of items
are: .l feel
happy
*hen I.m with ml
paÍtner'and'We have
quarrels'.
possible
answers
range
from: (l).never,to (51
'very trften'. In this study, coefficient
arpha
was .92. The sexuar
satisfaction
..àté
was
an ad hoc
scare
constructed
by the seconcr
author, ancr
measures
the frequenlf
with which the sexuar
interaction
with the partner
in an lntimate
rerationship
is
experienced
as rewarding. Examples
of items are: .l like scx
with ,ny por,n", u.ry
much'and'we have conÍricls
about sex'. coefficient atpha
equaitea.Ír5. Th;
Pcarson
correlation between
b'th scales
was r - .38,
p < .001
for men and r : .52,
p < .fi)l for women.
. N.or^lt,:: disapproval
oJ extramarital
se_r.
This was
a self-constructetl
scale
con-
sisting
of 8 items,
each
reflecting
a
positive
or negative
attitude
towards
extram.ri-
tal
relationships,
incrudinq
morar
disapprovar.
Eximpres
of itenrs
are:
,Extramarital
sex
is
a big mistake'
antl 'Extrarnarirar
sex
can bc very stimurating
for a heatthy
relationship'.
Possible
answcrs
range
l.rom (l).disagrce
complctely,t'(5).agrcc
comp.letelv.'.
Cronbach's
alpha
equalled
.g7.
In a.dition. a separare
qucstlon
was
asked.n disapprovar
trccausc.f
AIDS: 'Extramaritar
sex
is
irrcsp.nsibre
in vicw
of
the
chance
of contracting
AIDS'. Again thc possrblc
answsrs
range
lrom (l) .clis-
agrce
completely'to
(5)
.agrce
conrpletclv..
Prins et al.: Equity and extramarital sex
Exchange orientation. Upon the request of the second author, Murstein provided
his original'Exchange Orientation Scale'of l9 items.
This scale was
translated into
Dutch and, by omitting items that reflected
more marital dissatisfaction
instead
oÍ
exchange
orientation, reduced
to an 8-item scale
(S-point
scale:
(l)'disagree com-
pletely' to (5) 'agree
completely'). Examples of items are: 'I feel resentment if I
believe I have spent more on a friend's present
than (s)he has spent
on mine'and
'My spouse's
relationship with others
sometimes
makes him/her neglect
me'. Cron-
bach's
alpha equalled .67.
Number of extramarital relotionships. The subjects were asked: 'How many
extramarital relationships did you have during your marriage or cohabitation?'
Answers ranged from 0 to 5.
Desire to engage in extramarital sex. The question was as follows: 'How many
times did you want to have sex with another (wo)man, during your marriage or
cohabitation?' Possible answeÍs range from: (l) 'never' to (5) 'very often'. The
correlation between the desire to engage in extramarital sex and the number of
extramarital partners was r : .29 for men, p < .01 and r = .50, p < .001 for
women.
Results
We first examined gender
differences on all variables
and the correlations
between
the moderator variables (marital dissatisfaction,
exchange
orientation, normative
disapproval)
and dependent variables (extramarital involvement) to assess
whether
all variables
needed
to be included in the final multivariate analyses.
Gender differences.
For each of the predictor and dependent variables, t-tests
were executed to determine the difference between men and women. These
analyscs
revealed a number of gender
differences
in the variables
employed in the
study. As can be seen
in Table l, men had a stronger
desire to engage in extramari-
taf sex than women, but men and women did not differ in actual behaviour.
Furthermore, women felt more underbenefited and men more overbenefited on
both equity scales,
and men had a higher degree
of relationship satisfaction
than
women. No gender differences
were found on sexual satisfaction.
Norms against
extramarital relationships
and attitudes
towards AIDS were the same for men and
women.
Finally, women
had a stronger
exchange
orientation
than men did.
TABLE
I
,-Tests
betw€en men
and
women
for all vsriables
Variable MMen(nl M Women (z)
45
ExtraÍnarital rclationships
ExtramaÍital dcsirc
Normativc disapproval
Rclationship
satisfaction
Scxual
satisfaction
Exchange
oricntation
Equity Formula
Hatficld Global
.s0
(82)
2.s7
(821
2.41
({Jl)
4.16
(i9)
3.72
(tgl
2.ll
(nl)
.03
(m))
3.rJ3
(lJl)
.60 (l2e)
2.r0
(t26)
2.5e
(l
18)
3.80
(120)
3.60
(120)
2.43
(tZZ)
-.28 (tZ4)
4.20
(tz6)
-.65
2.96.
l.ó0
.96
-2.
l8-
'p <.05i
-+*2
<,(X)1.
Notc:
f()r all multi-itcm
mcasurcs,
thc scorc
was dividcd
by thc numbcr
of items

4746 Journal of Social and Personal Relationships
Correlations between moderalor variables and dependent variables. The corre-
lations between the moderator variables and actual and desired extramarital in-
volvement are presented in Table 2. One noteworthy result is that normative
disapproval of extramarital relationships because of the risk of contracting or
spreading the AIDS virus d<xs
not seem
to influence actual and desired extramari-
tal involvement. Howcver, of all
variables,
general
normative disapproval
was
most
clearly related to extramarital involvement among both men and
women. Relation-
ship satisfaction, sexual satisfaction and exchange orientation were particulaÍly
related to desired extramarital involvement, but for exchange orientation this was
only true among
women. Women high in exchange
orientation had stronger desires
to become involved in extramaÍital relationships, and
did so more often. As norma-
tivc disapproval becausc of AIDS was
not correlated
with the dependent
variables,
this variablc was droppecl from further analyses.
Peamn correlations betwen *"tt*, ,li.ï":Ï"", normctiye disapproval and exchange
orientalion and
actml behaviour snd dsire to €ngage ín extramrrilil s€x
Prins et al.: Equity and extramarital sex
accuÍate picture of the data. To give some indication of the effect size, multiple
regression analyses
were executed
by entering all the variables
that weÍe significant
(or nearly significant) in the ANCOVAs. The R2s calculated
with these
regression
analyses, will be described together with the results of the ANCOVAs. For this
purpose, the equity measures were recoded in such a way that a high score
indi-
cated a high degree
of inequity.
For men there were no main effects of either equity measure
upon the desire
to
engage in extramarital sex oÍ the number of extramarital relationships. Neverthe-
less, for both equity m€asuÍes
the analyses
showed that relationship satisfaction
(F
(1,75)
= 10.35ó,p < .01) and normative disapproval
(F(1,75) = 16.698,p
< .001)
were significant
covariates of the desire for extramarital relationships
(we report
here only the results in the case that the Hatfield GIobal Measure
was entered as
factor). Relationship satisfaction and normative disapproval
explained a substantial
amount of variance
in extramarital desire, R2 : .30. Although sexual satisfaction
correlated positively
with the desire for extramarital relationships, this relationship
disappeared in the analysis of covariance. Thus, the results show that men who
were dissatisfied with theiÍ marriage, and who did not morally disapprove
of extÍa-
marital relationships,
had the desire to engage in extÍamarital relationships
rela-
tively more often. Normative disapproval was the only variable relating to the
incidence
<rf actual extramaÍital relationships among men (I' (
|
,75) : 11.487
,
p <
.([], whcn the Hatfield Global Measure was
entered as factor). 'fhus, nor surpris-
ingly, the more extramarital relationships men had had, the rnore often they
approved of such relationships
(R2
: . l4).
Among women, inequity was clearly related to extramarital involvement. The
Hatfield Global Measure showed
a main effect upon the desire to engage in extra-
marital sex (F (2,105)
: 4.316, p < .05), with relationship
satisfaction,
sexual
satisfaction and norms towards extramarital sex being significant covariates (F
(
I, l0s) : t4.3$. p < .u)l ; F (1,105)
= 12. I 10,
p < .001;
r (1,105)
: 33.229,
p <
.(X)l respcctively). As cquity is related to maÍital satisfaction, it is particularly
notcworthy that inequity had an
effect
upon extramarital desires
that was indepen-
dcnt of relationship
satisfaction as well as sexual satisfaction. The HatÍield Global
Measurc explained togethcr with the significant
covariates
39 percent of the vari-
ancc
(Rr: .19).
As Figure I shows, for the Hatfield
Global Measure the results
among
womcn are in line with the predictions
from equity theory: the equally
well-
off thought less about having cxtramarital sex than those who felt woÍse or lletter
off than thcir spouse
(f (125) : 1.945, p : .054; T (125) = 2.278,
p : .024
rcspectively).
Thus, those women who felt overbenefited or deprived, who were
dissatisÍied with thcir marital relationship, including the sexual aspects,
and who
approvcd of extramarital relationships, were relatively strongly inclined to engage
in sexual
relationships
outside their marriage.
Inequity as measured with thc Equity Formula Measure
had no significant effect
upon women's
desire
to become involved in
extramaÍital relationships,
F(1,105)
=
2.049,
p: .13, whereas
relationship
satisfaction, sexual
satisfaction and norms
trrwards ext ramarital scx were significant
covariates
(
F (
I ,105)
= 22.997
,
p < .001;
F (
I. 105)
= 12.040.
p < .001
; F (
I. 105)
= 33.080, p ( .001 respectively).
However,
the effect of inequity was
also in this case in the expectcd
direction: women who felt
equally well off thought the least about having extramarital sex.
The differences
bctween
this
group and the worsc
and better
off approached significance
(T (123)
=
1.693,p: 09-3;7'(123)
= 1."189,p:.0T6respectively).
AlthoughnotveÍystrong,
Variable
Men (n : 721
Ilehaviour
Women (z : 103)
Eehaviour DesireDesire
Rclationship satisfaction
Scxual
salisfaction
Normativc disapproval
AIDS disapproval
Fixchangc orientation
(14
20
3ri"'
ll
il)
14-
-
30"
t4
ta
- .29'
.2(l
.46-"
.14
.23-
-.36"
-.43-'
.52-
-
.lt
.32-
-
'2<.01:.'p<.(lol.
Normative disapproval, nnritul .satisfaction, e.rchange orientation and extramari-
tul
involvement. lt was
cxpected that inequity in a rclationship, as
wcll as marital
drssatisfaction,
exchange
orienlation
and
positive
norms towards extramarital
scx,
would be related to the desire to have cxtramarital
scx and to actual involvement in
extramarital relationships, I-hcsc expectations
were testcd by executing
univariate
analyses of covariancc
(AN('OVAs) for each
of thc cqurty mcasurcs as indepcn-
dcnt variable.
In thesc analyscs,
normalive disapproval, relationship satisfaction,
scxual
satisfaction and exchange orientation
werc included as covariates. Each
analysis was done twicc, oncc with thc number of cxtramarital relationships and
once with the dcsire to cngagc in extramarital sex as the dependcnt variable.
'Ihe ANCOVAs were
done separatcly for men and
women, as well as for thc
total sample. ln the last casc.
gender
was includcd as an additional
factor,
but n()
rnteractions hctwecn
gendcr
and equity wcre found. It furthcr
appcarcd that in all
cases, the covariates that wcre significant for womcn werc also signiÍicant in thc
total sample. including cases
whcre no significant cffcct was
found among men.
Equity had. in the total sample, Ícwer significant
cffccts than among womcn, but
more than among men. Apparently.
prescnting
thc analyscs
for thc total sample
would
havc obscurcd somc clfccls that
wcre
signilicant among women,
but would
also have
suggestcd some
signiÍicant
effccts of covariates lbr the total sample
that
wcre
in
fact only obtained among
wome
n. J'hereforc. it was
decided
to
present
only
the results
of the separatc analyscs for
mcn and
womcn.
as
this
would
give
the
most

Prins et al.: Equity
and extramarital
sex
FIGURE 2
Associatlon
between the Hatfield Global Mcasure
and the number oÍ aclual
extramarltal relationshlPs
Deprived Equal Advantaged
clear evidence
that this
was indeed the
case for women. Deprived
as
well as advantaged
women had been
involved in more extramar-
ital relationships than
women
who felt equally
well off, and both
groups
more often desired such relationships. These
results are
even
more noteworthy
when
we consider
that these effects
were
independent
of the effects of marital dissatisfaction,
because this
variable has been found to relate closely to inequity.
Thus, our
study suggests
that for women inequity is in itself related to
interest
in alternative relationships,
whatever the
general
dissatis-
faction
in the relationship
may be, and that such dissatisfaction
seems to contribute
further to the
inclination
to become sexually
involved outside one's
marriage. Furthermore, the fact that the
effects
of inequity and dissatisfaction
were independent of nor-
mative disapproval indicates that even those
who have moral
objections
towards
extramarital
affairs are contemplating such re-
lationships when their relationship is inequitable and
dissatisfying.
It must further
be
noted
that among
women the
effect
sizes were
substantial: around
40 percent
of the variance
in extramarital
desires and over 25 percent
of the variance
in the incidence of
actual
affairs could be explained by inequity, marital dissatis-
faction and normative
approval.
Of course, although measuring desires may be a better method
for assessing
causality
than measuring actual behaviour, the
49
48 Journal of Social and Personal Relatiowhips
the results
with the Equity Formula
Measure
were
virtually the same as
those
obtained
with the
Hatfield Global
Measure,
and the
amount
of explained
variance
in extramarital
desires
by this
measure
and the three
covariates
was
even
slightly
higher
(R'z
= .41).
FIGURE I
Association
between
the Hatfield Global Measure
and desire
to engsge in
extramarital
sex
Deprived Equal Advantaged
Regarding actual extÍamarital relationships, among women a main effect was
again
found for the Hatfield Global Measure
(f (2,105)
:4.528, p <.05) with
relationship satisfaction
and norms towards extÍamarital sex as significant
covaÍ-
iares
(F(1,105) = 4.ffi2,
p < .05; F(1,105) = 21.O39,
p < .001 respectively).
For
these
thÍee variables, Rz = .27 . Also the Equity Formula Measure
was significantly
Íelated to the number of extramarital relationships
of women (F (2,103)
= a-580'
p
< .05).
The effects of relationship
satisfaction and normative disapproval
were also
significant(F(1,103)
=6.157.p<.05 f (1,103)
=21.528,p<.001 respectively).
In this case, Ra = .29. For both the Hatfield Global Measure and the Equity
Formula Measure, the results
were among women as predicted by equity theory
(see Figure 2, which shows these results for the Hatfield Global Measure): the
equally well off had had fewer extramarital relationships
than those worse off or
better off (for the Hatfield Global Measure, T (126) = 1.854,
p : .067; T (126) :
2.035.
p = .051
respectively; for the Equity
Formula:
T (123)
= 2.614,
p = .011;
I
(123)
-- 2.0ó1,
p: .M9 respectively).
Discussion
This
study tested
the
rather bold hypothesis
that inequity
in mar-
riage
would be related
to being open
to and engaging in extramari-
tal relationships
as a way to restore equity.
The results showed
x
q)
6
o
.=
; 2.5
E
o
X
(t)
;t
'6
o)
o
o1
CL
E
a
g
o
(o
E
ï
F.5
E
(o
x
c,
o
o
llÊ
zo
1.5
Deprived

50 Journal of Social
and Personal
Relationships
present
study
does not
allow
any final
conclusions
on the
direction
of causality.
The
pronounced
relation
between
inequity
and actual
extramarital
involvement
among women
could mean
that - at
least in part - extramarital
relationships
lead to feelings
of
inequity,
and not vice
versa.
Even
the desire to become
involved
in extramarital
relationships
may
be interpreted
in this way.
Thus,
actual
involvement
in affairs
as well
as longing
for such
affairs may
make women
feel
guilty
and overbenefited,
or may
enhance
their
comparison
level
and
may thus
increase
feelings of deprivation
in
their
marriage.
In line with
other studies
(Buunk
& Van
Driel, 1989),
men were
more
inclined
to engage in extramarital
relationships,
especially
when
they weré
dissatisfied
in their marriage
and
had no moral
objections
against
such relationships.
Remarkably,
for men actual
extramarital
involvement
was not related to marital dissatis-
faction:
among
men who
were
dissatisfied
with their relationship,
as
many had
been
involved
in extramarital
affairs
as
among
men
who
were
satisfied
in this
respect.
It seems
as if for men
extramari-
tal involvement
is only
slightly
related
to the state
of their
marital
relationship.
This is especially
apparent when we consider
the
relationship
between
inequity
and
extramarital
desires
and
behav-
iours: underbenefited,
equally
well
off and
overbenefited
men
all
have
about the same
number
of extramarital
relationships
and
equally
strong
desires. For men,
extramarital
sexual
desires
seem
to be more
or less
independent
of the way
they
feel about
their
marriage.
There
may
be various
explanations
for the finding
that inequity
in a relationship
seems
much
less important
for men
in fostering
extramarital
involvement
than for women.
First, because
some
double
standards
still
exist,
women
may feel
more
than
men
they
have
to have
better reasons
for engaging
in extramarital
relation-
ships than
men.
A second
explanation
would
be that
for women
-
given
their more disadvantaged
position
- inequity
is a much
more
salient
issue than
it is
for men
(Buunk
& Vanyperen,
l9g9).
The women's
movement
has
emphasized
the
importance
of
gender
role
equality,
and has,
more
than
ever before, prompted
men
and
women
to
question
how
well
off
they
are in comparison
with
their
partner.
The fact that women
have
a stronger
exchange
orien-
tation
than
men
certainly
suggests
that women
are
watching
equity
in their
relationship
more
closely
than
men
are,
and
that
being
worse
off or better
off than
the
spouse
is
more
salient
for women
Prins et al.: Equity and extramarital sex
(see
Buunk & VanYperen,
1991). Remarkably, among \r/omen
exchange
orientation
was particularly
related to the desire
to
engage
in extramarital
relationships. Thus, rvomen who expect
direct reciprocity
in their relationships are in
general
more inclined
to become
involved in sexual
relationships
outside
their marriage.
Interestingly,
while men
have
stronger desires to engage in extra-
marital sex, women have as many extramarital relationships
as
men. It seems as if women who are unhappy in their marriage
translate
this into actual extramarital
relationships, while men
show it mainly in their desires to engage in extramarital sex.
Some other findings need to be discussed briefly. First, for men
and women, normative approval of extramarital relationships
appeared to be the most
significant covariate that had effects inde-
pendent
of those
of dissatisfaction and inequity. Personal norms
may apparently
be a very important factor determining if an indi-
vidual will engage in extramarital relationships. It is, of course,
also
possible
that the reverse causal direction operates: those who
have
an affair (or think seriously
about
one), may change their
attitudes in a more positive
direction. A second finding that
deserves a brief discussion
concerns
the role of sexual
dissatis-
faction. Although this variable did
not
have
an independent
effect
upon
extramarital
desires,
sexual
dissatisfaction was,
particularly
among women,
quite
strongly related to the desire to engage in
extramarital affairs. Apparently, those contemplating extramarital
relationships are sexually rather dissatisfied in their marriage, and
may see extramarital affairs
in part as a way of fulfilling their
sexual
needs. Another
finding
is that
asking individuals
directly
to
indicate the degree of equity in their relationship with the Hatfield
Global Measure does lead to similar results as calculating
equity
by an equity formula, based on global
inputs
and outcomes. This
suggests that individuals are cognitively
quite capable of using
some
sort
of equity formula to determine if their relationship is
equitable or not.
Finally, in addition to the
problem
of making causal
interpret-
ations,
some limitations of our
study
must be noted. A first limi-
tation concerns
the fact that we do not know exactly what the
respondents
defi ne as'extramarital relationships'.
Their interpret-
ations
may range
from one-night
affairs to long-term relationships,
and the motivations
underlying different types of extramarital
relationships
as well as the impact of such relationships upon
marriage
may
vary
considerably.
Furthermore, while we used a
5t

53
52 Journal of Socíal and Personal Relationships
translation of
Murstein's Exchange Orientation Scale
(Murstein
et
al.,1971),
recently
some similar scales have been
developed that
might be more
useful in future
research. For example, Sprecher
(1992)
distinguishes
underbenefited
exchange
orientation and
overbenefitecl exchange orientation.
The first assesses if individ-
uals mind giving
to others,
while the second
focuses on whether
individuals feel
conrfortable or not receiving from
others. This last
variablc
may be
very important in shedding more light upon
one of
the intriguing findings
in our study, i.e.
why
overbenefited
individ-
uals
engage
in extramarital
relationships. Despite these
limi-
tations,
the present
study
provides
at least
some
evidence that
equity
may bc an ímportant issue when considering extramarital
affairs, in addition
to personal
norms about extramarital affairs
and satisfaction
with
the marital relationship.
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