Poor mental health at work 'widespread'

Re:Poor mental health at work 'widespread' by manmal on Tuesday September 11, 2018 @02:31AM (#17957570)

I agree that companies need more compassion for their coworkers, and a more constructive way of dealing with negative emotions. If people open up to each other, become a bit more vulnerable, and talk about what they feel vs argue that they are right and others are wrong—good things are bound to happen.

Maybe I misunderstood the notion about alphas, but personally I don’t like that phrase. It implies that there are betas (and possibly gammas), who evolutionarily had to yield to alphas whenever those demanded it.

Also, I perceive people who are labeled as alpha males mostly as fear-driven people who need to control other people so they themselves don’t get hurt or questioned. That seems not to be the case with alpha chimpanzees [1]—perhaps the alpha label is put on the wrong kind of character entirely.

1: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/alpha-male-a...

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Poor mental health at work 'widespread' by DoreenMichele on Tuesday September 11, 2018 @02:42AM (#17957612)

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frans_de_Waal

I read something by him. He's a primatologist.

One year, the "alpha" female of the group at the zoo died. For months, he couldn't figure out who took her place.

One day, there was an ugly conflict. He expected it to result in blood being spilled.

Then the quietest and meekest of the three older females began slowly walking towards the two fighting males. Behind her trailed a procession.

She sat down and began grooming one of the males. That was the end of the fight. No one dared start it back up and he finally knew who the new alpha female was.