The Guardian: "Are we hard-wired for infidelity?"

[Pluvious]

I have often wondered how many traits of the human behavior is derived from our evolutionary origins.

Survival of the species would certainly benefit from having a mix of traits, from being bellicose to passive.
Ranging from our farmers, gatherers, hunters and fighters - the mix made us collectively stronger and more resilient.

Intuitively, it would seem our humble origins would benefit from multiple impregnation pairings, and weakened by "mate guarding."

Monogamy may be held up as an ideal, but evolution has other ideas

As an evolutionary biologist who studies sex and relationships, I’m fascinated by these two truths. We humans make romantic commitments to each other – and some also break those commitments by cheating.

This might sound like a modern problem, but for me, it raises questions stretching far back in evolutionary time. Why did we evolve both a tendency to stay and a tendency to stray? If some among us will inevitably cheat, does that mean humans are hardwired for infidelity?

...

Yet some of us seek novelty more than others. In 2010, my research colleagues and I made a shocking discovery when we found that some people’s genetic makeup does indeed create a predisposition to engage in infidelity. We conducted behavioural surveys and collected DNA from a sample of young adults. We then compared the subjects’ reported behaviours against their genetic variations. Specifically, we looked at genes that influence the function of dopamine receptor cells in the brain.

In the brain, dopamine creates feelings of excitement and anticipation, and past research had shown that people who had the “long” version of specific dopamine genes, rather than the “short” version, tended toward thrill-seeking and risk-taking behaviour. This includes associations with alcohol abuse and gambling. In our study, we found that people who have the “long” version of the dopamine D4 receptor gene were 50% more likely to report having engaged in infidelity, and they were more likely to have done so multiple times.

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2026/feb/15/are-we-hard-wired-for-infidelity