• Potatos_are_not_friends@lemmy.world
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    9 months ago

    My 27yo incel nephew during the holidays had a hissy fit and called me a beta and really put himself in the alpha seat.

    Which was weird, because I picked him up from my sister’s house, drove him here, and also had to drop him back off as a favor to my sister.

    I dunno what internet or what he thinks alphas are but oooof.

    • HappycamperNZ@lemmy.world
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      9 months ago

      Apparently the concept of alpha male in wolves came from those observed in captivity.

      Sure there’s a link there

      • maniclucky@lemmy.world
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        9 months ago

        I’m not sure about the captivity thing, but I do know that what were originally asserted to be ‘alphas’ were the breeding pairs. They were parents leading their children.

        • seaweedsheep@literature.cafe
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          9 months ago

          There was a very flawed study years ago where a biologist observed wolves in captivity and determined that they fight for dominance within the pack. Later, he realized that in a natural setting, a pack is a breeding pair and their pups, as you stated. A natural pack is much more cohesive and doesn’t have a strict hierarchy, but the ridiculous myth of “alpha wolves” won’t go away completely, despite the same biologist’s efforts.

          • schmorp@slrpnk.net
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            9 months ago

            Because we’ve caged ourselves and behave like the captured wolves of the study, including the Alpha male shit.