Women more likely to send sexts than men

Researchers studying sex and cheating in cyberspace questioned 5,187 men and women who belonged to a website where married people look for extra-marital flings.

They found that women were far more likely than men to engage in a bit of sexting, the Daily Mail reported.

Two-thirds of them had cheated online, while three-quarters admitted having an affair having had an affair in real life.

Researcher Diane Kholos Wysocki, from the University of Nebraska and Cheryl Childers, from Washburn University in Kansas, highlighted how the Internet has made it much easier for people to cheat on their partners.

However, they concluded that despite the popularity of `sexting`, most people do not view the Internet as a substitute for real-life physical contact.

And while people may initially use the Internet to find potential sexual partners, the survey also indicated that most were ultimately interested in bringing online encounters into the real world.

"Our research suggests that as technology changes, the way people find each other and the way they attract a potential partner also changes," the authors said.

"While social networking sites are increasingly being used for social contact, people continue to be more interested in real-life partners, rather than online partners.

"It seems that, at some point in a relationship, we need the physical, face-to-face contact. Part of the reason for this may be that, ultimately, humans are social creatures."

The findings were published in Springer`s journal Sexuality and Culture.