Researchers Say People Use Revenge Sex to Get Over Break-Ups

Revenge is a dish best served buck naked. At least that is the consensus of a new study that finds individuals use revenge sex as a way to get over a break-up.

According to findings published in the latest edition of the journal Archives of Sexual Behavior, it is not uncommon for people to engage in revenge, or rebound sex following a break-up because it can help them forget about an old love interest and give them a much needed ego boost.

Researchers say that engaging in a meaningless one-night stand has a way of alleviating feelings associated with a break-up, and it appears to be heavy artillery in the arsenal of “getting back” at an ex-lover. In fact, during the study, researchers found that one-third of students going through a break-up jumped into bed with another partner as a way of getting over a previous relationship.

An astounding 35-percent reported they had sex as a means for getting over an ex-partner, while 25-percent claimed to have had sex as a way to get even. Researchers say that those that were dumped were more likely to engage in revenge sex than those that did the dumping.

Lead researcher Lynne Cooper recently told Live Science that the study indicates “people who are using these strategies are, in fact, more likely to take sexual risks, and that they may be having greater difficulty in moving on and establishing a new relationship.”

The study concludes that “individuals who reported to having sex to cope with negative feelings or to get over their ex-partner at the beginning of the study were more likely to have sex with a stranger and to continue having sex with new partners over time.”