The truth about “Sigma Males"

Alpha — The Head of the Pack

In wolf packs, there are different roles played by the different parts of it. An ‘alpha’ is the head of the wolf pack, and is the one who is the most commanding. They lead the pack on a hunt, they get the first meal, they are not to be challenged by those in lower ranks. Then, you have the ‘betas’, who are subordinate to the higher ranking alphas. They have to wait to eat, they also are less attractive to mates and follow the word of the alpha. Finally, there are the ‘omegas’, who are considered the weakest of the group. They are usually the fool, the one that likes to play and be the entertainment, and they are below even the betas when it comes to feeding.

Whilst these terms are used in ethology to describe rankings in a typical animal grouping, it has now also been taken to describe behaviours of people, particularly in males. In 1982, dutch ethologist Frans de Waal described how these terms used to describe his chimp colonies could be applied to human social interaction. Following this, media companies began to use this term to describe “manly men”, or successful business men. It was used to describe Al Gore, the former US presidential candidate, in 1999, with him displaying ‘beta’ traits when he ought to have been more of an ‘alpha’.

In the early 2000s, this trend began to skyrocket. Everybody, from magazines to self help books to “pick-up artists”, began to use the coined term for the “ideal man”, typically somebody who is confident and dominant. Along the way, the term moved from simply being self-assured to arrogant, with the links to this mindset coming back to misogyny, that women want a man who displays acts of dominance and bullying. However, this is often not the case, as it would be the status of a person, and their actions, rather than their cocky-ness or bloated ego which would attract a partner.

On the other hand, the rise of the ‘alpha male’ led to the rise in usage (but fall in respect) of the ‘beta male’. These tend to be considered nerds or weak individuals, who are shy or low in confidence. They may also have a mental condition, such as autism, which makes them “non-desirable”. Other terms, such as “soy boys” or “cucks”, are also often used, implying that they are happy to let the alphas go for their partners. It is a word used to insult, whereas alphas tend to be called that in a positive manner.

Whilst people’s perceptions may be that an alpha is a bully and arrogant, and that a beta is kind and shy, this is not always the case. Alpha males can be confident individuals with status, who do not look to intimidate other males. Whereas beta males can be rather scheming and manipulative, pretending to be the way they are. They can also be misogynistic, believing being a “white knight” or showing a female basic decency means they should be grateful or be with them.