Alphasphere’s Promise: The Construction of Alpha Masculinity on Turkish TikTok

This study examines how representations of alpha masculinity are produced and constructed in Turkish-language content on TikTok. The study is significant in demonstrating how global discourses of masculinity are reproduced within local linguistic and cultural contexts. Using qualitative content analysis, 380 TikTok posts containing the expression “alpha male” in Turkish-language content were examined and coded into four thematic categories. The findings show that alpha masculinity is constructed primarily through power, status, and bodily construction, as well as emotional and relational construction, hegemonic and manosphere masculinities, and performance and self-presentation. Alpha masculinity is associated with dominance, status, physical attractiveness, emotional control, relational autonomy, and self-discipline. By focusing on Turkish-language TikTok content, the study demonstrates how alpha masculinity and manosphere discourses are reproduced and interpreted within a local digital culture. The findings further reveal that alpha masculinity discourses are not circulated exclusively by male users but are also produced and disseminated by female content creators.