Social media feeds have grudgingly seen the typical ‘alpha’ men in the comment section belittling with ‘OF detected’ comments or flooding the chat with emojis, showing how ‘Chad’ they are. A study published in a personal relationships journal delved deep into the psychological mechanisms of these ‘alpha men’ and how they treat women in relationships.

Dark Triad and Red Pill

The researchers pointed out that their behaviour originates from a set of personality traits, called The Dark Triad. It involves a cluster of traits which are subclinical psychopathy, narcissism, and Machiavellianism. They are highly toxic, manipulative, vindictive, and exploitative of others.

Narcissism is an inflated sense of self-importance, a desire for admiration, and exaggerated feelings of entitlement. Meanwhile, Machiavellianism is a cunning, deceitful approach to social interactions to gain power by any means, including compulsive lying. Psychopathy involves high impulsivity, low empathy, and a lack of concern for others' feelings or well-being.

The Red Pill online community vehemently emphasises traditional gender roles, the Red Pill concept comes from the movie The Matrix, where the main character is offered a red and blue pill. The red pill would allow him to see the true reality and break free from the illusion, while the blue pill means continuing to stay wrapped up in the illusion. For the Red Pill community, this concept is likened to a similar ‘opening of the eyes,’ embracing the true nature of society and gender roles. The Red Pill society advocates interacting with women in relationships using Dark Triad traits as a way to assert the traditional role of ‘men.’

How they treat women in relationships

The researchers examined the experiences of women who dated Red Pill men. The women were often manipulated in these relationships. Red Pill men frequently prioritised their own interests and would go to any extent to attain them, hinting at the Machiavellianism characteristic of the Dark Triad. These men would show off their success and overtly present themselves as accomplished, disregarding their partners' emotional needs. But at the same time, they would appear ‘sweet’ and ‘loving’ for sex or social status, showing off the woman as a trophy. Dark triad personality and the red pill community go hand in hand. So think twice before you jump into a relationship with a morally-grey man with your ‘I can fix him’ attitude.

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