Do you consider an Alpha male or a Beta male?

[BTBrian]

I almost think it depends on how one defines "alpha male" to begin with.

Very true.

[Koh]

If anything, if I were to even put a label on something such as an alpha male, he would be one who: doesn't break down immensely or become outraged when his viewpoint is wrong, has opinions for himself in general, is comfortable in his own skin, and is more invested in the thoughts of himself, rather than worry how other people view him.

[MrBigDick]

If anything, if I were to even put a label on something such as an alpha male, he would be one who: doesn't break down immensely or become outraged when his viewpoint is wrong, has opinions for himself in general, is comfortable in his own skin, and is more invested in the thoughts of himself, rather than worry how other people view him.

And I would TOTALLY buy that definition too.........

[DarkSide]

I don't think there is any man in this World who is inherently "alpha". If there is I have never met him. I have some of the traits described above, but they are mostly situational. I have never in my Life met a Man that I would call Magnetic. I have never met a man in my Life that I would choose to follow, solely based on his social attributes and abilities. I do not live in a Wolfpack... And Liam Neeson isn't duct taping broken bottles to his hands to fight my "Alpha".

There are leaders, and there are followers, and they both play a needed role in order for society to function. And any "beta" has the ability to become an "alpha" once he reaches a certain point in his life. This is not something passed down through our Genes. Assume a 19 year old "Janitor" Alpha male walks into a room full of Beta Rocket Scientist, he will not be able to take control based on his Social Magnetism, they will laugh him out of the room.

Alpha does not exist in Humanity, it is only a projection. It can be positive, or negative. Based on the "alphas" experiences, is what will determine the perception of the alphas projections.

The pick up artist crap is whole different story altogether. It does not apply to daily life, and will get a man nowhere when challenged by another Man.

Regards,

[Influence]

Why complicate things? In a social setting an alpha is simply the leader of the pack.

There are social differences between cultures, sexes, species, (w/e you can imagine)... But it all blows back to that premise.

[Influence]

I think guys desire to be an alpha more than females desire to be with an alpha.
I prefer Beta males.

You prefer betas because you like to take on the masculine role

I don't really know which one I am. I'm decisive and confident, but not to the point of being aggressive or arrogant. Most people I know enjoy hanging out with me. I value the opinions of others, and ask for their advice or view all the time. If that makes me beta, then oh well, still beats being a douche.

Arrogance is a trait of beta males. Aggression is not necessarily a trait of alphas. Valuing the opinions of others is important in our culture, even if you are an alpha - as long as you do not value them above your own.

I don't really buy into the whole wolf pack structure of alphas and betas. It's just another bullshit excuse to classify people and size them up.

just because you choose to ignore it does not mean it does not exist.

I think this post has miscontrued the entire issue at hand. I am even confused on the matter now. The assertive alpa male might become a CEO or President, he might also end up working in bake shop, or homeless. Success in life requires alot more than character traits. This sort of classification should be beneath humans as it really all has to do with instincts, therefore, it is very important to human mating rites. Look at nature for a guide. Witin any social animal group dominated by an alpha male (wolves, lions, gorillas, etc) the females mostly mate with the alpha and not the other males in the group. That most singles bars opperate on some twisted animal mating dance I do not like myself but reality bites. And trying to convince anyone that a strong assertive man is not more attractive to women is a misguided effort. Women are generally drawn to alpha types and want to sleep with them. The ones they preceive as beta males they will be nice to and friends with. But this is very general and I would recomend looking beyond this post for more information--the web is full of all sorts of crap so whatever you think, you are right!

good post

I think the whole thing is stupid. There is no such thing, don't worry about it.

I get the impression that people who consider themselves to be "alpha" are simply extroverts. It doesn't make them better leaders, and definitely not all leaders are extroverts. Extroverts tend to be talkative and like to socialise a lot. This can make them confident and attractive to some women. These same traits can also be a turn-off to other women though, because it can make a person look cocky.

You are living a lie. There are plenty of introverts that are alpha, and plenty of extroverts are beta.

I think those terms are dumb and pointless to try and put people in 2 categories like that..
If someone is shy with their new girlfriend are they considered a beta male, then later when they are comfortable and takes charge etc do they become alpha now? http://www.pegym.com/forums/images/smilies/bad.gif

From tinks list, I guess I dated a lot of betafemales http://www.pegym.com/forums/images/smilies/biggrin.png

Possibly. Comfort is an important trait to be an alpha... The question is: will you be alpha in a situation that involves a third party?

[someone_like_u]

You prefer betas because you like to take on the masculine role

Haha, couldn't be further from the truth. You haven't a clue who Tinkerbell is. Just because some of us women prefer betas doesn't mean we want to wear the pants in the relationship.

[XitemeM]

I found a page worth having a look at, The Alpha Male Syndrome - Synopsis. It also has a version of those strengths and risks that Tink posted. The page talks about harnessing their drive and managing their liabilities. I thought it was an interesting idea that there can be different Alpha types:


THE FOUR ALPHA TYPES

All alpha males are aggressive, competitive, and driven to achieve. They think big, aim high, and attack their goals with courage, confidence, and tenacity. But each of the four types expresses these common qualities in different ways....

Here is a brief summary of each type's primary behavior traits:

• Commanders: Intense, magnetic leaders who set the tone, mobilize the troops and energize action with authoritative strength and passionate motivation without necessarily digging into the details.
• Visionaries: Curious, expansive, intuitive, proactive and future-oriented, they see possibilities and opportunities that others sometimes dismiss as impractical or unlikely and inspire others with their vision.
• Strategists: Methodical, systematic, often brilliant thinkers who are oriented toward data and facts, they have excellent analytic judgment and a sharp eye for patterns and problems.
• Executors: Tireless, goal-oriented doers who push plans forward with an eye for detail, relentless discipline and keen oversight, surmounting all obstacles and holding everyone accountable for their commitments.

....here's how the four types might look at a particular task:

• Commander: This job needs someone to take charge and lead the way.
• Visionary: I see a great possibility waiting to be unveiled and seized.
• Strategist: The potential opportunities and risks need to be analyzed and solved.
• Executor: Getting this done requires structure and control.

[XitemeM]

Concerning wolves and dogs, have a search for "The Myth of Alpha". I regret training my dog a few years ago with that Alpha dog mentality. I read this a year or so after and it rang true for me. I was imposing an Alpha dog training technique on my little girl because I thought that's what she needed, but it wasn't natural for her to understand.

See below for a plethora of articles written by some of the worlds foremost behavioral experts, and see for yourself why the alpha/dominance mind-set in dog training, doesn't stand up to scientific scrutiny, and is nothing more than myth!

THe alpha role in dogs

[Gspot]

Watch the Dog Whiperer for dog training. It is not a myth. Those experts do not know what they are talking about or else just trying to improve their grant money. I had a professor in grad school tell us about an article he read that said stretching before exercise did not really prevent injury. Tell that to any professional athelete, I think they will go stretch. I laughed out loud at that idea. I proposed we have an experiment sprinting in the parking lot, some stretching some not, first group with a pulled muscle lost. No one was game--big suprise! Any nature show on wolves makes it very clear that wolves, thus dogs, operate with an alpha leader in the wild and this can be transfered to the family pet and even in the simpilist way to children--but I would not recommend the latter at all! Dogs will look to the stronger to lead or else try to lead themselves, no matter how bad they are at it. Scientific studies are often impractical and do not hold up to common sense application. Sounds like you just had a bad dog training program is all. And training your daughter based on it--really!