United Kingdom: 52% of adults do not view infidelity as morally wrong

A recent Ipsos survey reveals that 52% of British adults do not consider sexual relations with a married person to be morally wrong. This figure represents a slight decrease from 1989, when 52% of respondents viewed infidelity as morally incorrect.

While social attitudes toward homosexuality, divorce, and births outside of marriage have shifted significantly in the United Kingdom over recent decades, moral standards regarding infidelity appear relatively stagnant. Interestingly, the younger generation (ages 16–24) maintains a stricter stance than the national average, with 53% labeling infidelity as morally wrong.

Despite these shifting views on infidelity, researcher Alex Bogdan noted that most respondents still value the institution of marriage. However, actual marriage and legal partnership rates in England and Wales have declined from 58% in 1991 to less than half of the adult population today. Additionally, a separate YouGov poll found that 17% of British adults have cheated on a spouse or partner.

In a broader survey of socially unacceptable behaviors, drug use ranked first (71%), followed by football hooliganism (62%), with infidelity ranking third.