The Heart Never Forgets

American Demographics, July 1, 2003

Byline: SIMONA COVEL

It may be better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all, but many Americans still pine over old flames, according to a survey by Arlington, Texas-based research firm American Consumer Opinion. The nationally representative online poll of 744 adults found that 29 percent of Americans think about former lovers at least once a week, and 16 percent think about the one that got away almost every single day. Only 24 percent of adults say they never think about their ex. Though gender has little to do with how often people think about their lost loves (17 percent of men think about a past fling daily, compared with 14 percent of women), age exercises considerable influence over affairs of the heart. Twenty percent of young adults (ages 18 to 24) say they think about their former flames almost daily, whereas just 13 percent of older respondents (ages 55 and older) dwell on the past that often.

FINDING LOVE

Almost 1 in 4 men (24 percent) say that they have been in love five or more times in their adult life, compared with 1 in 10 women (11 percent) who say the same.

IN YOUR ADULT LIFE (SINCE YOU TURNED 18), HOW MANY TIMES HAVE YOU BEEN IN LOVE?