Alpha Dominance

This post is the first in a series to lay out the basic explanatory framework assumed in my work, in order to address topics raised in a comment by reader Anette on this post. I am not doing this to pick on her and I will not tolerate uncharitable comments toward her.  In calling attention to her I am also giving her admin moderated immunity from comments not on topic or personal attacks in this forum, a rare exception to my normal policy of allowing all non-spam comments through.  Like her, I think many readers would benefit from a big-picture view of the subject of Ev. Psych. as it applies to game and social interaction.

Moreover this post is my attempt to aggregate critical information derived from several scientific disciplines relating to ev. psych. theories and to present them in the context of social dynamics and game.  I will be adding much of this first post to my philosophy page to enlighten new initiates to Alpha game  the necessary background.  My impression is that Anette, like many others, is genuine and interested in debating these topics, but lacks the experience with ev. psych. to see the context for and validity of some of the principles such as hypergamy which while we may wish to deny them for sundry reasons, are strongly, perhaps irrefutably supported by both scientific research and anecdotal observation.  Clearly what I assume as fundamental is predicated on the scientific method, which while not infallible, theorizes and accepts as fact the consensus views of the experts in the field as the accepted explanation for a problem.  These would be theories, which in hard sciences are based on repeatable observations.  I assume you accept the scientific method and its conclusions as fact, even where the conclusions may be uncomfortable or distasteful.  I assume we can understand that generalizations are not absolute and should be understood as being comprised of a spectrum of individuals distributed around the mean.  I presume you accept the theory of evolution and that we are beings evolved from animals and possessing the biological legacies that arise from this. In reading posts addressing one principle of ev. psych. in isolation, it is obviously more difficult to see the validity and importance of our biology and inherited drives and behaviors in influencing our actions.  Here I will flesh out much of the background necessary to view the more targeted posts in the correct context.  The ev. psych. perspective provides one philosophical framework for the interpretation of human behavior and interaction and it is scientifically derived which lends validity to its conclusions.  Hereafter I will make the case for this interpretive framework as a lens through which to view human interaction, and a matrix into which other posts fit.  Students of game and social dynamics will recognize the validity and utility of ev. psych. principles, but many readers struggle with viewing human behavior in these terms because the objective and reductionist viewpoint often challenges our cherished beliefs about ourselves, and forces us to face some uncomfortable truths about human nature.   Read more…

6 Comments

Happy New Year Alpha-Acolytes.  After an extended Holiday break I am back in the saddle in Seattle.  I trust you all had as wild and exciting new year as I spent with family in the frozen midwest city of Minneapolis, aka little Somalia.  Traveler’s tip: There is a treasure trove of exotic girls of East African descent there ripe for the game.  If you ever touchdown in flyover country don’t miss this gem.

As a student of ev psych and of the game this article on the increased value of beauty in population centers caught my attention.  While the findings should come as a surprise to few of us it’s always interesting to add mortar to the foundation of the worldview fostered by studying pickup.  I am convinced the tenets of this worldview are well substantiated as I have attempted to show here on AD.  The findings state that particularly in population centers happiness and psychological well-being are correlated with attractiveness or desirability for women.  This is correctly stated to be because of increased social and reproductive opportunity and emphasizes that in larger groups of people individuals will engage in greater socioeconomic segregation by degree of desirability.  Kudos to the authors for recognizing what is one of the prime tenets of game.  On the other hand they fall short in giving the salutary nod to the PC mythos in stating that were a study to be performed of men we would likely see the same outcome.  This is of course myopic in that male attractiveness while relevant, ranks far down the scale of priorities from the degree of attractiveness of his wallet.  Size matters gents, but it’s the bulge in the back pocket of your jeans that wins the day since women seek a provider of equal or better yet greater income to that she herself possesses.  Since both incomes and the range of the 1-10 scale are wider in large populations, we should expect to see couples matching up therein according to these rankings and anecdotally I would suggest that we do (just look at Jim Carey’s first and second wives alongside one another).  Read more…

13 Comments

I’m sure nobody has missed the brouhaha surrounding Tiger Woods’ alleged infidelity.  Not being a celebrity fanboy sycophant, I generally despise the celebrity worship Americans insist on engaging in and all the rabid gasping and moralizing when one of them is suddenly revealed as a mere mortal like the rest of us.  Unfortunately unless I bury my head in the sand I cannot avoid hearing about this one.

A friend forwarded this article to me on the topic of why Tiger or men in general cheat.  As in so much conventionally held psych wisdom (a near universally female dominated field) it moronically misses the point and tries to draw parallels between Tiger’s situation and generic plebeian middle class cheating which is of course on the rise with the emancipation of women and destruction of the last vestiges of the traditional family.

Read more…

11 Comments

Recently I stumbled across this article on mama drama spoiling kid’s “playgroups.”

Playgroups, the phenomenon of over-privileged suburban soccer mom helicopter parents have apparently become par for the course among the over-involved idle housewife set.  Like so many of the oh-so crucial activities we foist upon our offspring in lieu of actual parental emotional involvement these have apparently become an expression of status.  Consequently these coddled mommies who need not work, yet have a regiment of maids, cooks, nannies and housekeepers to take on the actual role of housewife and mother, seek these groups out to fill the void left by a life of utter lack of utility, ostensibly in the name of their precious junior’s early development.

Read more…

3 Comments

September 2008, the credit markets freeze up and the world economy enters a tailspin.  Here in the states we are stricken with the sharpest economic decline since the great depression.  Job creation dries up as companies simultaneously engage in vigorous cost cutting (read headcount reduction).  A year later the Fed speaks of green shoots and a jobless recovery (is this an oxymoron or what?).  Our present official unemployment rate hovers around 10% but this figure excludes those who no longer qualify for unemployment benefits, those who have given up the job search, and those who never broke into the job market in the first place.  Enter Generation G, the Lost Generation.  This article shows how youth are disproportionately suffering the effects of the decline in the job market and highlights the lasting effects this can have on their professional lives.

Read More…

Go to G School at G-Manifesto

7 Comments