From perfection seeking to online infidelity: The role of partner-oriented perfectionism and rumination in online infidelity.

Online infidelity has become an important phenomenon in relational dynamics with the increase in digital interactions today. It is thought that social media can facilitate the search for an ideal alternative partner in a romantic relationship and that this situation can feed into partner perfectionism. Having high expectations of a partner can negatively affect decisions to continue the relationship. Failure to meet expectations, disappointment, and emotional distress can lead to negative ruminative thoughts in individuals. In this context, rumination about interpersonal offense has gained importance as a focused way of thinking in which negative feelings towards the other party persist in relation to a past event. The aim of this study is to examine the role of partner perfectionism and rumination about interpersonal offense (RIO) in predicting online infidelity tendencies when controlling for relationship satisfaction levels in emerging adulthood. The study participants consisted of 362 individuals (201 women and 161 men) aged 18–29 who were single and had been in a relationship for at least three months. The study utilised the Demographic Information Form, Online Infidelity Scale, Rumination About an Interpersonal Offense Scale, Relationship Assessment Scale and The Dyadic Almost Perfect Scale. Data were collected via the Qualtrics system and analysed using SPSS 25.0 software. Hierarchical regression analysis was conducted to examine the main variables. Demographic variables were evaluated through additional analyses. Findings examining the relationships between variables reveal that the tendency toward online infidelity is positively associated with RIO and partner perfectionism, while relationship satisfaction is negatively associated with the tendency toward onlline infidelity, RIO, and partner perfectionism. The findings of hierarchical regression analysis reveal that when relationship satisfaction is controlled, partner perfectionism positively predicts online infidelity tendencies, while RIO negatively predicts them. This study, conducted to examine the factors associated with online infidelity tendencies, is the first to jointly address the role of phenomena such as partner perfectionism and rumination on online infidelity patterns in emerging adulthood. It is anticipated that this study will offer a new perspective on the cognitive and relational dynamics underlying the tendency toward online infidelity.