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Online dating agency Ashley Madison recently conducted research into the inner workings of people who have affairs.

The alternative relationship site surveyed 1,600 members to find out when cheaters think about their affair partner, when they talk them and when they carry out their secret rendezvous.

According to the study, cheaters start thinking about their mister or mistress as soon as they wake and contact their clandestine partner most frequently during work hours.

More than two-thirds of cheaters have been married for over 10 years, while 44 per cent said they have been having an affair for a year or less.
 
The majority of those having a secret tryst said they contact their affair partner via text message.

Interestingly, when it comes to the frequency of contacting, 47 per cent said they are in touch with the person they are cheating with one or two times a day, while 42 per cent contact their spouse once or twice daily also.

Data from Ashley Madison showed that more than half of cheaters stop a work meeting or other activity to answer calls or message from their spouse, while 73 per cent said they would not do the same for their affair partner.

Isabella Wise, Director of Communications for Ashley Madison, said this most likely comes down to the reason behind affairs in the first place.

'A lot of our members say they stray to stay in their marriage,' she said. 'They live an otherwise happy life with their spouse and family, yet are missing something that completes the picture.

'For some, that's sex, and for others it may simply be the feeling of being desired.'

After dark is the preferred time slot for Ashley Madison members, with 21 per cent of those surveyed reporting they don't see their affair partner until after 9pm.