Is virtual infidelity a ground for divorce in Singapore?
It is important to note that virtual infidelity does not equate to adultery. Adultery involves sexual intercourse between a married person and a third party, while virtual infidelity does not.
Some Statistics
According to the American Sociological Association, married people who start watching pornography are twice (11%) as likely to be divorced in the following years as compared to those who do not (6%). In fact, women who indulge in pornography are 3 times more likely to get a divorce as those who do not. Further, the impact of pornography is the strongest among young and less religious people.
However, there is less negative impact if couples watch pornography together.
There appears to be 2 sides to this. For some respondents, watching porn had a positive effect as partners are able to talk more freely about sex. Some women even mentioned that their partners’ use of pornographic materials took some sexual burden off them.
See: Belinda Luscombe, “People More Likely to Divorce After They Start Watching Porn, Says Study”, TIME, 23 August 2016
Over the years, I have had clients who filed for divorce because of their partner’s use of pornographic materials.
Is virtual infidelity a ground for divorce in Singapore? Yes, it may be. Particularly if the said virtual infidelity has resulted in other consequences- for instance, one party’s neglect of the other and one party’s addiction to the materials.
In such cases, virtual infidelity is a ground for divorce in Singapore as the spouse who indulges in pornography materials may be deemed to have been unreasonable in his/ her behaviour.
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