Do you and your significant other pay for separate Amazon Prime accounts in fear that your partner will judge your purchases?
That may be for the best as researchers from the University of Connecticut, Indiana University and Duke University found that making secret purchases can actually strengthen relationships.
Some clandestine buys make people feel a little guilty, leading them to spend more time with their partner to make up for their secret spending, according to the findings published in the “Journal of Consumer Psychology.”
In fact, 90% of people admit they haven’t been totally honest about their recent shopping habits — even though they don’t think their partner would mind.
“One of my favorite findings is that partners often keep the same secrets from each other,” co-author Danielle Brick, an assistant marketing professor at the University of Connecticut, told the Daily Mail.
Some of the subterfuge can be especially eyebrow-raising.
“In one couple, both partners reported secretly eating meat when they were both supposed to be vegetarian,” Brick said.
The most common secret purchase was a product (65%), while 40% said they privately indulged in food or drinks.
At the same time, 10% of people secretly selected clothes and jewelry while 6.3% added health, beauty, or wellness products to their carts.
Others — 12% — invested in a secret experience and 10% admitted to putting the money into a secret hobby.
‘In one couple, both partners reported secretly eating meat when they were both supposed to be vegetarian.’
Finally, 10% of participants said they hired a service unknowingly to their spouse — such as someone to clean their house — and 8% put their funds toward a gift or donation.
“I think what makes this research important and fun is how relatable it is,” Brick continued before providing a key anecdote that served as the impetus for the research.
“The project started because of an experience I had with a co-worker. She was at work and had to rush home because her husband was sick and leaving work early,” she said.
“I was concerned that he was quite sick. But instead, she told me she had to get home before him to ‘mess up’ the house,” Brick continued. “She had hired a cleaning person and hadn’t told her husband.”
But this study doesn’t mean that it’s good to keep all kinds of secrets from your partner.
In June, an expert told Fox News Digital that the secret to a healthy marriage is the 2-2-2 rule — which means to try and swing a date night every two weeks, a weekend away every two months and a week away every two years.