Norfolk State University

Steps to Research Cheating Among Dating College Students

Tanikqua Epps

Method Social Research 344-03

Dr. Shen

11/26/2019
 In this paper, I will discuss the steps to achieve a proper analysis to see how many college

students in relationships have been tempted to cheat or cheated. The first step to a research

project is to find a topic that is appropriate to collect data. By articulating a proper topic, you are

interested in it makes the research more intriguing. I chose cheating among college students

because there are many obstacles and trials to withstand a relationship while dealing with school.

Especially being among the best four years of your life evolving into new individuals. People

grow apart or are tempted by peers to stray away from their committed relationship. There is a

great deal of people who look like nothing could come between their bond. But what lies behind

the eyes of the foreseen?

First, a research cannot begin without a proper topic. With choosing cheating among

college students I have narrowed my focus group. With this topic I can create different

assumptions. One being is the leading cause of infidelity because of temptation of campus life?

Second is it true that men step out far more than woman, or have times changed? Third, does

guilt come into play? And lastly how does the innocent partner find out about the infidelity? All

these assumptions can be found within my research. This topic is worth studying because it can

be valuable in the long run. I say this because a lot of people who become victim of cheating take

it hard and sometimes handle it in the worst ways. People value companionships and

relationships. They see their partner as their other half and losing them can also hurt them far

more than people realize. Some partners become depressed or guilt themselves into believing it’s

their fault. Partners even become unfocused on their schoolwork. Universities can be

knowledgeable of why certain students do so great then drop dramatically. Or even create a

program that people can go to, to help overcome a dramatic breakup. My first hypothesis would

be if college students are in a relationship and cheated on they are at a higher risk for depression
and their grades dropping. My second hypothesis would be if college students cheat is it because

of temptation. Other researchers have been curious about infidelity among dating college

students. According to Erin Kern study of “Infidelity among College Students in Committed

Relationships”, “Additional research suggests that infidelity, particularly within college dating

relationships, may be on the rise. Paul, McManus and Hayes (2000) found that casual sex is a

common behavior pattern in contemporary college students. This behavior was found to be most

common in those individuals who had high impulsivity, low self-esteem, low concern for

personal safety, low dependency, and avoidant attachment style (Paul, McManus, & Hayes,

2000). Given this information it can be postulated that many college students, especially those

who are more willing to engage in casual sex, may also be more willing to commit acts of

infidelity when they find themselves in a dating relationship. Furthermore, males have been

found to be more open to casual sex and have also been found to be more accepting of the idea of

infidelity in hypothetical situations than females; however, males and females have similar rates

of actually committing relational infidelity (Roscoe, Cavanaugh, & Kennedy, 1988; Seal,

Agostinelli, & Hannett, 1994; Feldman & Cauffman, 1999).” His study speaks heavily on the

aspects that I want to touch upon. His research reveals what reason individuals cheat. He also has

found who cheats far more.

Secondly, with my research I will begin to create a way to collect data. I would select

Norfolk State University to do my research and create an electronic survey with open-ended and

closed-ended questions to send to all the students. I believe this will be a great way to find

accurate data. I will make the items clear and anonymous. With my layout I will know if the

respondent is a male or female. I can group my respondents in an age group or ethnicity. I will

also be able to group by experiences if any of my data is similar. With open-ended questions it
provides a more personal level. They will have to answer from personal experiences. With

closed-ended questions it avoids double-barreled questions. According to Amy Wilkins and

Cristen Dalessandro, they decided to take a different route to collect data.” The data for our study

come from in-depth interviews with college women. The larger study includes interviews with

both women (40) and men (17) on relationships, monogamy, and infidelity.” (Wilkins, A. C., &

Dalessandro, C. 2013) Even though they chose to do interviews to collect data it effectively got

them accurate data. “Analysis developed collaboratively. We used interview transcripts to

develop case studies of each participant. We analyzed case studies independently, using an

inductive analytical strategy, to derive independent interpretations of the data. We then discussed

and compared emergent themes to develop analytic categories used to recode the data. Our initial

analysis revealed two sets of findings: that men's and women's narratives of relationship norms

were more similar than different, and that women's narratives contained internal contradictions

that the men's did not. These differences sensitized us to the specificity of the gendered patterns

in the women's accounts, pushing us to ask why and how women's accounts were more complex

than men's. We investigate these questions, considering the sources, effects, and uses of the

complexity in women's narratives. Our argument is about women, but we occasionally discuss

the men as a means of identifying and underscoring gendered patterns in the data.” (Wilkins, A.

C., & Dalessandro, C. 2013) It makes you question if any other method would be as effective as

interviewing. But there are downfalls to interviews. People aren’t as fully trusting, or feel as

though they should tell you what you want to hear.

Thirdly, I will analyze my data I’ve collected from my survey. I will begin to group and

observe closely to each survey to accurately decipher. With my data I can find out the response

rate and hope for an ideal rate that is more than 70 percent. At the end of my study I will
understand why someone has cheated, were there any temptations, how many of the students

were actually affected, and how did they cope. With the articles I have found they all had similar

data saying woman were doing the cheating more than men. Researchers went more with an

interview survey than electronically. Even though they went an interview route their results did

hinder that woman have their own links to cheating. As a result of one researcher study she

found that “College women use a meaning-making process also to make sense of their own

infidelity. Women interpret cheating as an emotional sign. Most often, cheating signals that a

relationship is over. Because women assume that people who are in love won't cheat, they view

cheating as a sign that love has dwindled, and end the relationship. Cheating leads to relationship

dissolution, then, because it signals a broken relationship and emotional withdrawal” ((Wilkins,

A. C., & Dalessandro, C. 2013)

In conclusion, my research study on cheating among college students will answer a lot of

underlying questions. It will even help people be more supporting to one another who do not

understand the hardship it tolls. My data collection will be much different than the researchers

I’ve come to discover. It is hard to say how accurate my data will be, but I believe it will be

accurate enough to see an ideal result. Not everyone is comfortable with one on one interviews. I

feel giving an electronic survey will enhance trust and more honesty. With this study it can

answer a lot of underlying questions to why woman cheat and how they really feel what led them

to cheat. Choosing cheating among college students may save a lot of heartache when helping

students cope with balancing a relationship. Studying this underlying relation can not only be an

interesting study, but improve students to avoid the depressing factors of being hurt.
 Works cited

Kern, E. O. Infidelity among College Students in Committed Relationships , Case

Western Reserve University

Schutt, R. K. (2019). Investigating the social world: the process and practice of research.

Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc.

Wilkins, A. C., & Dalessandro, C. (2013). Monogamy Lite. Gender & Society, 27(5),

728–751. doi: 10.1177/0891243213483878