In a recent survey, conducted by Redfield & Wilton Strategies, more than 1,500 participants were asked whether, in their opinion, there must be physical contact between two people for it to be considered infidelity with a third person. The responses revealed a first positive for die-hard monogamists: 55% of adults of all ages agreed that, in some cases, infidelity can also be considered a relationship without physical contact.

And here’s where the differences between how each generation perceives relationships and the “rules” that govern them start to get interesting: From people who belong to Gen Z – that is, those born since the late 1990s by early 2010 – only 48% believed that a non-physical contact could be considered infidelity. The same percentage climbed to 55% in the answers given by millennials – born from 1981 to 1996 – and to 58% in regards to Gen X, i.e. those born between 1964 and 1980.

In conclusion, the younger a person is, the more likely he is to accept behaviors that for older people constitute infidelity as normal, such as a look, an innocent flirtation or an online communication.

What is behind the change in mindset?

The internet’s entry into every aspect of our lives has undoubtedly played its part in changing attitudes about the “rules” governing romantic relationships. Growing up in a digital landscape, Gen Z’s perception is very different from that of millennials or Gen Xers. These two generations welcomed the internet with social relationships already formed in the real world and a less malleable sense of self already in place. Instead, Gen Z has largely built both their self-image and their relationships through the online world.

Thus, it is justified, at least to some extent, that each generation treats human relationships in a different way, what constitutes flirtation, commitment, betrayal. According to therapist Kari Rusnak, what’s important for all ages is for people in a relationship to agree on the “rules” that govern their bond, what they’re “allowed” to do and what they’re not. what would bother the other person and what is okay.