Women are far more likely to gossip about having an affair than men - who only tell strangers, a study reveals today。

　　Far from wanting to keep it secret, more than four in ten women who have cheated on their partner admitted they chatted about it with at least one friend。

　　In stark contrast, three quarters of men who cheat on their partner are far too scared of being found out to tell anyone at all。

　　But despite playing their cards so close to their chests when it comes to infidelity, it seems men are twice as likely to tell a stranger as confide in their best friend。

　　Just six per cent tell a friend of their affair, while 12 per cent admitted they would tell someone they had just met that they were playing around。

　　In contrast, the research found that 43 per cent of women who stray gossip about it to their closest friend and 15 per cent tell more than one。

　　A relationship expert said this is because men are far less trusting of their friends than women and are programmed not to reveal anything which could make them vulnerable。

　　Phillip Hodson, from the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy, said: 'In short, men don't tend to reveal things about themselves while women like storytelling and tend to have more confidence and trust in their friends。

　　'Men don't tend to bond in the same way and are loathe to share stuff which could make them vulnerable。

　　'They bond in terms of common experiences on stag weekends or in the pub but it's not the same as saying 'I'm sleeping with my wife's sister'。

　　'They fear that sort of information could be used against them. Men are used to being competitive and so they fear someone could blackmail them or betray them。

　　'Male relationships all contain a certain amount of banter and they may also fear that after a few beers it will all come out。

　　'In comparison women like to tell and share. They love the drama of soap operas and the like and they also trust their best friends not to tell。

　　今日发布的一项研究显示，女性把婚外情说出去的可能性比男性大得多，而男性只会将这种事告诉陌生人。

　　女性非但不想保守这个秘密，而且那些曾对伴侣不忠的女性中，超过四分之十的人承认她们跟至少一个朋友聊过此事。

　　与此形成鲜明对比的是，那些曾对伴侣不忠的男性中有四分之三的人由于太害怕被发现而不把此事告诉任何人。

　　尽管在出轨这件事上男性会尽量守口如瓶，但是男性似乎更愿意向陌生人吐露这一秘密，告诉陌生人的可能性是告诉好友的两倍。

　　仅有6%的男性会将婚外情告诉朋友，而12%的人承认他们会告诉刚刚认识的人自己在外厮混。

　　这一研究发现，相比之下，43%的出轨的女性会跟自己最亲近的朋友谈论此事，而15%的人会告诉不止一个朋友。

　　一位婚恋专家说，这是由于男性远没有女性那样信任自己的朋友，他们一般不会透露任何可能让自己陷于不利境地的事情。

　　英国心理咨询及心理治疗协会的菲利浦•霍德森说：“简而言之，男性一般不会透露自己的事情，而女性喜欢述说，而且一般更信任自己的朋友。”

　　“男性一般不会以这种方式和朋友交流，也不愿分享会让他们处于被动地位的事情。”

　　“他们会在只有男性参加的周末聚会上或酒吧里谈论相同的经历，不过这不等于他们会透露‘我正和我妻子的姐妹乱搞’。”

　　“他们担心这种信息可能会被用来威胁他们。男性习惯了在竞争中生存，因而他们害怕有人会借此敲诈或背叛他们。”

　　“男人之间的关系中都含有一些玩笑成分，他们也担心在几杯啤酒下肚后一切都暴露无遗。”

　　“相比之下，女性喜欢诉说和分享。她们喜欢戏剧化的肥皂剧这类东西，也相信自己的好友不会把秘密说出去。”