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What is an alpha male and where did the term come from?

The Endless Thread team looks at the history of the concept of the alpha male and talks with the author credited with popularizing the idea about whether it really has any application when talking about people.

Ben Brock Johnson and Amory Sivertson report.

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.

Copyright 2026 WBUR

Amory Sivertson
Ben Brock Johnson

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