Ding dong the Alpha Male is Dead
Apr 1st, 2012 | By Dr. Michael Sosteric | Category: Classroom Controversy, Columnists, Editor's Desk, Featured Articles, Michael Sosteric, The Big LieIs our socialization process a process of ideological indoctrination? As part of our socialization we learn “how the world really works.” Our religions teach us of a cosmic “fight” between good and evil, science teaches us about the struggle for survival and “survival of the fittest,” and everybody talks about how its OK for the “winners” to dominate the “losers.” It is all part of the natural (or divine) social order! But is it really, or is it just indoctrination. You be the judge.
Alpha Male or common bully?
Growing up as a small boy in a rinky-dink Canadian town, I was tortured a lot. Part of the problem, I think, was I always small and undernourished for my age, weak, and an easy target. Not surprisingly, I was targeted a lot, bullied really, by students and teachers. In almost every year of my Catholic education past the grade of five, I have memories of shit and abuse heaped upon me by all those in my life who were stronger than I, which pretty much amounted to just about everybody.
But my small and timid stature was not the real cause of my abuse. Psychologically and sociologically, the people doing the bullying were probably victims themselves. It is common psychological wisdom–shit and abuse tends to travel downhill and settle on the weakest and since I was one of the weakest it only made sense that the horror that others had experienced, or were currently experiencing, should settle on my weak shoulders. Perpetrators, once victims themselves, often follow the path of reduced cost.
But again, that is not the whole story of course. I can certainly envision a society where victims are not left to “take it out” on those who are weakest. I can envision a social order where the weak are protected and nurtured so that they become strong and mighty, and not pummeled just to prove a point. When we added our most recent animal friend Frodo to our family (a rottweiler cross), he was the runt of the litter. But we heaped him with love, cuddling, and attention, fed him good food, and now he’s a friendly giant, much bigger, I imagine, than others in the litter he emerged from.
So why on this world do we beat the weak ones down?
Well, that’s ideological, archetypal really.
It is what we are taught, with words and by example.
“It is survival of the fittest,” don’t you know.
“The strong rise to the top and weak are pummeled into submission.”
Give the gold stars, the love, and top rewards to the “winners” and screw the losers into the ground!
It is true, it is true!
Just the other day I was talking to an individual who was telling me that it was cool for two guys to get together and pound each other out because, well, that’s what males do as they sort themselves into some imagined “natural” hierarchy. Life’s a struggle for survival and it is it in our genetic code don’t ya know. The strong “alphas” dominate the weak, we vie for our position in “the hierarchy,” and that’s just the way it is.
It is natural and inevitable, ordained and condoned!
Isn’t that true?
Aren’t we all familiar with these ideas?
This whole idea that “life is a struggle and only the strong shall thrive” is part of the common intellectual heritage of our planet and we find this ideology everywhere. We find it the social sciences where Herbert Spencer said “survival of the fittest” (Darwin of course never said that). We find it in science which teaches us about alpha males and the domination of the weak by the strong. We even find it in religions, spiritualities, and the esoteric”boys” clubs that dot the power grid of this planet where we learn that life is a struggle between good and evil (good being the stronger of the two).
Don’t ya see?
God dukes it out with Satan and we, poor imperfect little human stick pigs, are stuck in the middle, asked to choose a side, and told to prove ourselves worthy and strong else we should be subjected to eternal torture in the fires of damnation.
It was kinda like what I experienced as a child. Life as a struggle with winners and losers (winners being defined as “good and losers being thrown out in the trash). It is a fight sanctioned by Mother (Gaia) and approved of by Father (God).
But is it true?
Is it natural?
Is Papa God really all about the fight?
Does Mama earth really crush the weak ones out of genetic existence?
Do alpha males really dominate the weak?
Well no, it is not like that. We believe the nonsense because of our religious or scientific indoctrination; however, it is not, in fact, true. It is ideological, archetypal, and fallacious. Indeed, science is just beginning to unravel its own bullhit statements in this area.
Check this out, for example. Here is the scientist who coined the term “Alpha Male” admitting he was wrong!
Have a listen.
The concept of the alpha wolf is well ingrained in the popular wolf literature at least partly because of my book “The Wolf: Ecology and Behavior of an Endangered Species,” written in 1968, published in 1970, republished in paperback in 1981, and currently still in print, despite my numerous pleas to the publisher to stop publishing it. Although most of the book’s info is still accurate, much is outdated. We have learned more about wolves in the last 40 years then in all of previous history.
One of the outdated pieces of information is the concept of the alpha wolf. “Alpha” implies competing with others and becoming top dog by winning a contest or battle. However, most wolves who lead packs achieved their position simply by mating and producing pups, which then became their pack. In other words they are merely breeders, or parents, and that’s all we call them today, the “breeding male,” “breeding female,” or “male parent,” “female parent,” or the “adult male” or “adult female.” In the rare packs that include more than one breeding animal, the “dominant breeder” can be called that, and any breeding daughter can be called a “subordinate breeder.”
A Social Prison
Now isn’t that interesting. According to the guy who coined the term, there really is no such thing as an “alpha male.” There’s a successful mom, and a successful dad, and they both hang around looking after “the pack,” but that’s about as far as it goes. That whole alpha male thing, well that’s an aberration, really, a pathology that only emerges when we (and by “we” I mean male scientists) take the male wolves away from their families so that we can experiment on them at our convenience. When you “imprison” them in this fashion, then you get this unnatural behaviour. As one commentator notes, ”Apparently a fair amount of the original support for the alpha concept came from studying groups of captured, unrelated wolves. Mech allows that in such circumstances wolves will sort themselves into hierarchies, but that those circumstances hardly ever obtain outside captivity. What he doesn’t say, but that suggests itself, is how similar this is to what happens in a human prison.” (Ref)
The bottom line?
Alpha male behaviours are unnatural, at least according to Mech who says that you almost never find the physical conditions in the natural world that cause the aberrant, aggressive, and dominating behaviour of the “alpha male.”
Archetypes
Natural Male Behaviours
So what’s up with this whole idea of alpha male? Well despite’s Mech attempt to attribute the whole alpha male mistake to a methodological foofaraw, I’m not buying it. The problem is the “alpha male” idea, from a sociological perspective, is ideological (for a course based discussion of ideology, see the second part of my introductory course Sociology 288). That is, it is not an innocent idea. It is, in fact, a justification. It is an archetype (or rather part of an archetypal constellation) that justifies the abuse of others, typically for personal gain. If a boy pummels another boy in the school yard, well that’s just what young males do (I can’t count how many times have I heard that as a parent, from other parents, teachers, and even principles in schools). If a business man crushes some other business out of existence (perhaps throwing an entire family into poverty), he’s just doing what comes naturally. If a country invades another and takes their oil, well that’s just the way the world works. The strong pummel the weak, the alphas beat up on the betas, and the “cream” rises to the top and we should just stand aside and let it all happen because, well, that’s the way the world works. It is the alpha male thing and we’ve been doing it since our ape ancestors descended from the treetops. It is all part of a naturally evolving, divinely sanctioned, predatorial world order.
Ya right. Clearly, and as scientists and others begin to unravel their own indoctrination, the archetypal house of cards is beginning to crumble. There is nothing genetic, evolutionary, or divine about aggressively dominating another living being. It’s just an excuse the violent bullies use to justify “taking it out” on those who are weaker.
Discussion/Comment Questions
- What other examples of “ideological dogma passed off as scientific truth” can you come up with. What about the early work of anthropologists and archeologists (before females were allowed to enter universities), compared to the work now.
- What are implications of this, for gender stereotypes, for the capitalist system (which is all about the domination of the “alpha” male), and for those who justify bullying, brutish behaviour by reference to animal world?
Related posts:
An extremely interesting piece of work. You are right,this unnatural behaviour is the real animalistic behaviour,which even in the ‘animals’ shows up once they are kept isolated and away from their families.Its all this socialization and stereotypifying,which ‘gives the characteristic features’ to individuals in the vague hope of trying to bring in a semblance of order and discipline.Bullying and being brute thus become synonymous with being the ‘alpha male’……
Wow! So capitalism stands on nothing but an oops-theory? Ha! Amazing!
I will be definitely be looking into this in my papers next semester. Thank you so much for bringing a bit of light in this dark world of dominant/dominated beings – wether it be in the animal kingdom or the urban jungle.
Dear Dr. Sosteric,
I came across your article the other day in some of my reading up on sociology. I agree that the majority of what you say is fact and an ugly part of our society. But I don’t agree the Alpha Male is dead or some of your view points of the role of the alpha male. Growing up I wasn’t the biggest kid around, but i stayed fit and active and had a temper no one wanted to mess with when it came out. I was the kid who got into fights with the bullies beating up the classmates that i had band with or was a lab partner with etc. etc. I always took it very personally the strong picking on the weak.
seeing.
As far as your view point of strong over powering the weak in our society, try looking at it as the weak controlling the weak. I myself choose to live my own life the way i see fit, with in the constraints of the law of course. In my own personal experience in life, i believe there are two types of week people. First, those who become controlled by what society tells them is the right life to live, and second, those who play the victim the majority of their lives. The first type would be those people you have discussed who rise to the top and are rewarded with money and high ranking in society, but are they truely happy or have they become a machine for those really in control? the majority of the individuals i have come across who have choose this path tend to be miserable and hate their fellow man. The second type believe they will never amount to anything because society holds them back and because of this try just hard enough to get by in life or to not be noticed.
Now this is what i believe to be the role of the Alpha Male. Yes he is stronger than everyone else, but that does not mean he is to dominate the weak. His role is to maintain the balance and order. He knows his dominance and doesnt allow is to go to his head. His true purpose is that of a servant to his people, to guide and help them when theyre bodies and minds and become to morally weak.
The real question is, how can the alpha male succeed when the number of weak minded people increases day by day. The alpha male is still out the Doctor, he just doesnt have the strength to fight for everyone.
I disagree. All you are doing here is coming up with yet another justification for power and privilege over others. I presume it makes you feel good and powerful and “oh so cool” to think you’re the alpha male right and everybody else around you is “weak.” But this isn’t Sociology, this is pure fantasy and ideology used to justify power and control over others. People are bullies because their parents beat them or they are unhappy at home, not because they are weak. People who are “controlled” by what society tells them are not weak, they are victims of indoctrination and propaganda. You are blaming the victim.
What society needs is less power and domination over others, and more participation and control. We need less media and school indoctrination, and more authentic education. We need to teach people to think. Our current system doesn’t do that. In fact, it does the opposite. But don’t blame the victims and don’t put yourself on a pedestal. This is a sociology journal so be a sociologist. Don’t buy into the ideology, look for the causes behind it.
Anyway, in case you weren’t listening, the man who coined the term Alpha Male has retracted that and said “no, there is no such thing as an alpha male.” In the natural wolf world there are moms and dads and they look after the pack. Alpha males are not a functional part of the natural world, they are the product of social pathology.
Having said that I do get what you are saying about your paternal and protective instincts, and that’s great. But that doesn’t make you special and everybody else weak. It just makes you a more healthy and natural product of an unhealthy society. If everybody did the “natural’ think and look out for others, defend them, and protect the physical weak, not only would we be more in tune with “nature” but we’d have a much better world.
Anyway, the term alpha male is ideologically loaded and therefore basically useless as a concept in the academy. We need a different term to describe what you are talking about!
Dr.,
First of all, it has nothing to do with being cool. It has everything to do with being sick of society and not being a by stander any longer. I follow what I believe to be right. I am not trying to find another justification for power, if anything I shy from conflict.
If you took your head out of your books and actually talked to people in our current society you would see none of them are victims. Time and time again I have had the victim standing in front if me. I show them the choice of being the victim it the choice to finally stand up for themselves. They always choose to be the victim. It’s always Simone else’s fault. When are the people going to stop becoming the victim and start standing up for themselves.
You say there is no alpha male, but you yourself have just defined it in your statement ” you are a more bntural and healthier product in an unhealthy society”…
Maybe if you had a friend like me growing up you’d think differently. It sounds like to me you are just using your own personal experience from your tragic past instead of seeing the truth. If you are able to be controlled you are weak.
Another note…
basically all you are describing is the vicious cycle of one person becoming a victim, then they cause another or numerous people to become victims. You give no advice what so ever. Your definition, relating to wolves, and mindset of what an alpha male symbolizes is incorrect. Your viewing him just like any other bully. Furthermore, your cutting off the One group of males choosing to act for others because you believe them to be a figment in society. You think some book or paper us really going to change people?
Justin, like I said, the term “alpha male” is ideologically loaded and therefore useless in any kind of reasoned debate. Besides that, the scientists who coined the term has retracted it as his understanding of wolf behaviour has evolved. So what makes you so damn smart that you think you can retain the term even after the person who coined it said it’s full of shit? Don’t you think you should pause and reconsider your position?
Anyway, while the behaviours you describing are real, a better word for them might be paternal. You are acting in a paternal role towards others around you, not in an alpha male role, because alpha males don’t exist. The term was a “mistake.”
As for being a victim, let me give you some statistics. By the time women are 20 years old, 2 out of 3 of them will have experienced some form of sexual assault. The figure for men is 1 in 4 I think but I believe that is a huge underestimate. The point, many will have experienced sexual assault as infants and young children. Now Justin, are you trying to tell all of us that a 3 year old child “chooses” to be a victim of sexual abuse? Or what about the innocent victims that are bombed by a terrorist, or the children displaced by American occupation of Iraq?
Do these people “choose” their fate?
Of course not.
To say that is ABSURD and a real sign of reality disconnect. An infant doesn’t choose to be sexually abused, an infant is VICTIMIZED by some individual (usually a dad or an uncle) with MORE POWER. If you ask me, that’s what’s missing from your analysis, son. You have no awareness of differentials of power in our society and assume action is a simple act of will. It’s not that easy bub. POWER FIGURES INTO IT. The sad reality is people with more POWER than you can make you do things you do not want to do, whether you like it or not. You may be luckier than most (let me guess, young white male right?), but just because have been able to avoid victimization doesn’t mean you can generalize your experience to everybody else.
As for getting my head out of my books, come on. You don’t know me at all so how does that comment make any sense at all? You wanna compare life experience? Here’s who I am. I’m 48 years old, have four children, one of whom is handicapped and in a wheelchair. I’ve worked in the service industry, in the trades, as a bartender, and now as a university professor and therapist.
And that’s just a start but before going into detail about all my “non -book” experience, let’s here from you. How old are you?
You know, in a way, your argument is very insulting, demeaning, and psychologically damaging. As a therapist, I can’t imagine sitting in front of a 18 year old girl and telling her that she “chosen” her victimization. That would be ridiculous and very unprofessional.
Still, I do get what you are saying. People do tend to accept the status quo too much, and I agree. But if you’re frustrated by that and you want to understand why that is you need to go a little deeper than you currently are. Your understanding of the issue right now is unsophisticated.
You give no advice what so ever. Your definition, relating to wolves, and mindset of what an alpha male symbolizes is incorrect. Your viewing him just like any other bully. Furthermore, your cutting off the One group of males choosing to act for others because you believe them to be a figment in society. You think some book or paper us really going to change people?
I’m not cutting off anything here. I’m just saying, find another term to describe what you are describing. Perhaps “warrior” would be a better term because what you are describing is warrior behavior. As for advice, you can’t fault me for that. You didn’t ask. This conversation has been about the term “alpha male” and not about “how to change things.” But if you want I do have lots to say about that.
As for as papers and books changing people, of course they can change people. Take me as an example, I’m an excellent writer and I can change people just by using words on a page. Not always of course. Some people are stubborn and defensive and will dig their heals in rather than consider what I have to say, but what can you do about that?
Something for your consideration, Justin
https://sociology.org/columnists/michael-sosteric/abuse-syndrome-learned-helplessness-face-global-oppression
This has been an excellent article, and I’m glad there were comments regarding “alpha” behavior so that your point could be made more clear for anyone who’d still hold on misconceptions about it (not sure it worked on that paricular person though!)
I have been trying to look into the term and how it evolved into such a big part of a specific community (American+online mostly, I’m from Greece and I don’t think anyone has ever used this term here)..My starting point was Huxley’s Brave New World, and I don’t think I should go into further detail about what “alpha” meant there, and the world in which it was used.. And then I came across this video.. And apparently this guy coined the term in 1970 whereas BNW was written in 1931..As far as I know right now, this was the first time “alpha” was used, even though Huxley ripped off a bunch of books that had been written before then, so I’m not sure if he saw it somewhere or came up with it himself..
I’d love to hear your thoughts on this situation, meaning: currently a percentage of the male population defining themselves as something that derived from a novel about a dystopic future where there is no reproduction, casual sex is considered a fun hobby, drugs are handed freely, people are conditioned to believe whatever the media dictate etc etc..All the characteristics of BNW..And at the same time considering THAT to be the “natural” order (!), even when conflicting evidence from the person who ever used it in the natural sciences emerges! AND at the same time considering themselves NOT victims! This situation (in my eyes at least) looks so distorted that I hope I’ve explained it in a way that makes sense!
Once again, I am grateful I read this article, and the way you replied to the comments by Adams provided us with further relevant info..
[...] by Dr. Michael Sosteric, Dec. 1st, 2010: https://sociology.org/columnists/michael-sosteric/ding-dong-the-alpha-male-dead [...]
“all the characteristics of a Brave New World” you say.
You’re right about that. I have a lot I could say about that but maybe I could just say that the whole “alpha male” shtick is an incredible violence not only to the people who become victims of these self-justified bullies, but the bullies themselves. Its crazy enough that people would have agreed to “act like animals” in the first place, its even more bizarre when you consider the fact that they are not acting like animals at all, but acting in regards to an ideological construction. As a sociologist I might ask “where did that come from?” As a psychologist I wonder what does adopting an archetypal fiction mean for their psychological and emotional health? Personally I think it means total alienation from their essential essence which is as a compassionate, emotional, loving, and expressive being. It is a total mind fuck if you ask me.
Thank you for responding!
I agree with you..And I find it particularly strange why would anyone want to define/associate themselves with a term that (if so) derives from an ironic novel about a dystopic future that looks too much like present day America, therefore confirming/perpetuating it!
Learned helplessness in terms of a nation’s people (as mentioned in the other article you linked to) seems to be applied to anyone using the alpha term as well..While at the same time, as defined, being totally clueless about it..
BUT, as a woman in western society, after having read these 2 articles, I’m left with a feeling of despair, in terms of both relationships and humanity, affecting my future decisions regarding family, children, etc, therefore potentially complying to the Brave New World as means of surviving!..:/ I find it very hard to come up with any sort of appropriate reaction/behavior that would lead to anything else given the circumstances!
Maybe you’d also be interested in David Smail’s work http://www.davidsmail.info/intpub.htm if you haven’t come across it already.. (as a social psychologist I agree with his views, which means that I’m not expecting my feelings of despair to be “treated” by psych. therapy, so you don’t have to answer to that either! but I’d love to hear your opinion about it!)
Thanks for your time and insight, both in your responses and in this journal!
[...] it sounds outrageous, improbable, even impossible, but lo and behold it’s already happening. View the video in this article and watch the author of a 1970 book RECANT the dubious science that led him to coin the term [...]