In the current study, there is an interesting new connection. Researchers at the State University of New York have found that in genetic analysis of 181 college students, differences in their dopamine receptors in the brain predicted rates of infidelity.

Now, given that this study is based on young people, in college, there is always a question about the validity of this information for other age and social groups. Given the intense impact of economics and social values on female infidelity, it would be very interesting to see how these genetic variables play out in the environmental context with people of different social classes and ages.

The dopamine connection raises fascinating connections to impulsivity and sensation-seeking behaviors. We know that other research with this same gene governing dopamine functioning has been implicated in behaviors such as gambling and drug use. I'm troubled by this, in that I reject the notion of sex and infidelity being "addictive," as we characterize drug use to be. However, if the genes governing these dopamine sites make certain people more sensitive to the rush that comes from certain activities triggering dopamine, then it makes sense that these people would, from learning theory, and basic human behavior, seek out these experiences more than other people.

You can already use genetics and forensic tests to check your partners' clothes and underwear for physical evidence of illicit sex. I guarantee you that genetics tests for cheating risk are going to be on the market soon, if they're not already.  

But, do genetics govern people's behavior? Certainly not. Just because someone might have this genetic predisposition, it doesn't mean that they are going to cheat. People's moral beliefs, their history of relationships, the social context and simple environmental availability around them all impact peoples' choices. You might be predisposed to cheat, but if you and your partner are stuck on a deserted island, it ain't gonna happen, is it? 

Remember the clever movie Gattaca? Where society is governed by genetics, and the internal flaws revealed by gene testing? Are we headed for a society where folks with these dopamine receptors can't get married, get jobs, or health insurance, because of their risk for infidelity, and wild partying behavior? I imagine if it happens, those folks will all get shipped to an island, like the British shipped convicts to Australia. We already have at least one island resort that seems a good place to start, if this ever comes to pass.