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As we saw in the movie Forrest Gump, technological capabilities already allow editors to insert pictures into previously recorded film. Given the Internet's ever-increasing capabilities, it might soon be possible to insert two individual's avatars, or actual pictures, into historic films and have cyber-sex. Will Neil Armstrong still be the first to step on the Moon's surface, or will an intimate couple already be there to steal the glory?

Ray Kurzweil, author of The Age of Spiritual Machines, reports the likely development of "sexbots", computer software and hardware developed for sexual stimulation. Artificial intelligence has progressed to where it is difficult to tell the real from the purely digital. Intelligent software is already being used to fool other cyber-romantics into believing they are contacting a flesh person. They can be so effective that those engaged often cannot tell whether they are flirting with a real person or just software. Combining sex dolls and intelligent software is the next step in creating lifelike sexual devices. When taken into the future, sexual robots could be programmed to respond to each person's individual taste and carry out his or her fantasies. Software companies have begun developing interactive dialogue, voice responsive commands, and virtual reality programs to augment existing interactive experiences with a virtual lover. According to Kurzweil, neural implants offer the next wave of promise. The brain is stimulated in specific areas when someone is sexually and emotionally aroused. A computer chip implanted into those areas could significantly increase the level of sexual and emotional pleasure.

Kurzweil predicts a future when a man could have a chip implanted into his brain that will allow him to have the sexual experience of a female. He describes a neural implant that could simulate the sexual experience of a male and female at the same time. These technologies will force us to answer questions that have plagued the dissatisfied for centuries. Why bother with a lifelong partner? What can human relationships bring that technology cannot adequately simulate? These technologies are sowing the fields for cyber-infidelity of a nature than has been unprecedented, unimagined, for many, unimaginable. Yet technology marches on, whether we think of it or not.

The capacity for computers to duplicate the human experience of love and devotion is complex, and scientists are taking stands on whether or not it can be done. Dr. Dertouzos, in his book, What Will Be, explains why he thinks the essence of human contact will never be duplicated by technology. He describes the essential need for at least occasional physical contact. "We know that if the long-distance relationships of pen pals are not nourished by some form of physical closeness, they will wither…" While virtual reality can apparently add new dimensions to romance, we cannot imagine how it will entirely replace the magic that has propagated our species for millions of years.

Whether or not technology can replace the magic of real relationships, it is clear that when such sexually stimulating technologies are used and not discussed with an offline partner, deceit and betrayal of fidelity agreements is likely. Infidelity then, can happen with software and any future type of technology. Infidelity involves the breaking of a promise of sexual exclusivity. Only you and your partner can define that sexual exclusivity to the degree that makes you comfortable. Given the diversity of the global population, that cannot be defined for you by any professional, although some may try.

As the Internet evolves to providing increasingly life-like erotica, users of cyber-sex are proportionately at risk for committing infidelity. For these people, it will become ever more important that discussions of relationship agreements be clarified to include all forms of technology-based sex, even when it starts as educational exploration. It is strongly recommended that you have such a discussion with your partner and negotiate your respective needs from the perspective of the many technologies that can now bring strangers into close emotional and sensory contact.

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* Much gratitude is extended to those who helped clarify, amplify and
edit the material used in this article:
Michael Erickson, Ph.D.; Les Posen, Ph.D.; Rona Subotnik, MFT; and John Suler, Ph.D.

References
Dertouzos, M. (1997). What will be: how the new world of information will change our lives. New York: HarperCollins.
Kurzweil, R. (1999). The age of spiritual machines. New York: Viking.

Dr. Maheu is an author, speaker, and researcher. She is the lead author of E-Health, Telehealth & Telemedicine: A Guide to Program Startup and Success co-written with Pamela Whitten and Ace Allen, published by Jossey-Bass: San Francisco. Infidelity on the Internet is Dr. Maheu's second book and she's currently working her third, tentatively titled "The Mental Health Professional Online: New Questions and Answers." For more information about her speaking schedule, see this page: http://telehealth.net/speak.html