Those who use Twitter the most are apparently more likely to cheat on each other and divorce, is today's scientific finding.
Surveying 581 (very specific number there, maybe it was meant to be rounded up to 600 but 19 of the people in the survey were too busy tweeting to give proper answers) Twitter users, the research rated how active a Twitter user was by the information they gave about what they do on the social-media site and how often. And the findings – in summary – published in the journal of Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking, showed that people who tweet, cheat.
Apparently, this has nothing to do with the psychology behind the type of people who seek attention and validation online, but more to do with the actual practicalities of spending so much time online. 'If high amounts of Twitter use does, indeed, lead to high amounts of Twitter-related conflict (ie arguments pertaining to a partner’s Twitter use, etc) among romantic partners, it is plausible to speculate that such conflict could lead to unfavorable relationship outcomes such as cheating, break-up, or divorce,' Russell B. Clayton, a student at the University of Missouri School of Journalism, told Time.
And it sort of makes sense; relationships are going to be strained if entire nights are spent by a couple sitting side-by-side on the sofa, the blue glare of their laptops/tablets/phones gleaming at them as they barely say anything to one another. Or, if one person in the couple just can't put their phone down for one moment to have a kiss/cuddle/serious chat, or perhaps more realistically, take the bins out.
Not all is lost, though. Those who tweet a lot also have a great way of meeting new people…
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Picture: Li Hui
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.