This dissertation introduces new invariants for a large class of links in knot theory, called alternating links. It also analyzes the strength of these invariants, that we call writhe-like invariants, in comparison with a few general link invariants, and explores how these quantities can be used in solving other knot theory problems. A part of the dissertation is dedicated to describing the computer program that computes a few writhe-like invariants of alternating links of $n$ crossings, and to reporting the computed data of several alternating knots and links.