Polls
August 27, 2015 (Toronto, ON) – A new Mainstreet/Postmedia poll finds most Canadians saying they have never cheated on their partners but one out of five say they have seriously considered it. With 2,459 respondents the Mainstreet Research poll conducted for Postmedia has a margin of error of +/- 1.98%, 19/20.
“Canadians agree, on the most part, on what constitutes cheating” said Quito Maggi, President of Mainstreet Research. “But there are some things Canadians disagree on, and when they do, the difference falls mainly among gender lines. 17% of Canadian women, for instance, believe watching pornography constitutes cheating compared to 9% of Canadian men who think the same.”
“Most Canadians say they have not cheated, though many have thought about it. Again, we see a gender divide with 13% of Canadian men saying they have cheated compared to just 8% of Canadian women. The numbers are more or less equal however when we look at those who have seriously considered cheating on their partner. 20% of Canadian women and 23% of Canadian men say it’s more than crossed their mind.”
“Most believe signing up for a dating website or service, like Plenty of Fish or OKCupid qualifies as cheating (77%), though Canadians are split on flirting and 72% say going to a strip club doesn’t count.”
Highlights
– 10% of Canadians say they have cheated on their spouse or partner (80% no, 10% refused to answer)
– 22% say they have seriously considered it (65% said no, 13% refused to answer)
– 13% say watching pornography counts as infidelity; Males 9%; Females 17%
– 40% say flirting counts as infidelity while 43% say it does not
– 86% agree that hiring a prostitute counts as infidelity
About Mainstreet Research
Mainstreet is a national public research firm. With 20 years of political experience at all three levels of government, President and CEO Quito Maggi is a respected commentator on Canadian public affairs.
Differentiated by its large sample sizes, Mainstreet has provided accurate snapshots of public opinion, having predicted a majority NDP government in Alberta (2015), a majority Liberal government in British Columbia, and a majority Liberal government in Ontario.
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