VoxTalks Economics S9 Ep13: The alpha political male
Feb 20, 2026
Mario Carrillo, researcher at Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona studying political economy and leadership psychology. He explores what makes a leader 'alpha' and why such traits attract voters. He discusses how alpha traits show up in business and politics, methods for measuring them from faces, global trends in strongman leaders, and how alpha pairs can heighten trade frictions and tensions.
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Psychological Traits Matter In Leaders
- Political leaders are selected for measurable traits like education and ideology, but psychological traits matter too.
- Mario Carrillo highlights dominance traits (competitiveness, aggressiveness, assertiveness) as a distinct predictor of political outcomes.
Risk-Taking Creates A Vicious Cycle
- Alpha leaders display higher risk-taking, which can increase economic volatility.
- Voter preference for alphas in risky times can create a feedback loop that amplifies instability and international tensions.
Face Shape As A Proxy For Alpha Traits
- Facial morphology, especially facial width-to-height ratio, proxies adolescent testosterone and alpha traits.
- Carrillo argues this measurable trait lets researchers classify leaders without using their actions as the metric.