Educational qualifications and status are examples of which of the following?

Cultural Capital

The correct answer is Option 2: Cultural Capital.

Option 1: Social capital — This option is incorrect because social capital refers to networks of contacts, social associations and influential relationships that provide access to opportunities.

Option 2: Cultural Capital — This option is correct because cultural capital includes educational qualifications and status, which help individuals gain opportunities and improve their social position.

Option 3: Economic Capital — This option is incorrect because economic capital refers to material assets, wealth, property and income.

NCERT: In every society, some people have a greater share of valued resources – money, property, education, health, and power – than others. These social resources can be divided into three forms of capital – economic capital in the form of material assets and income; cultural capital such as educational qualifications and status; and social capital in the form of networks of contacts and social associations (Bourdieu 1986). Often, these three forms of capital overlap and one can be converted into the other. For example, a person from a well-off family (economic capital) can afford expensive higher education, and so can acquire cultural or educational capital. Someone with influential relatives and friends (social capital) may – through access to good advice, recommendations or information – manage to get a well-paid job.