During the Covid-19 pandemic, there was lack of medical supplies in India. However, it was found that some people due to their good social network were able to get the medical supplies. This example reflects which kind of capital?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → Social Capital
Option (1) Educational Capital — Incorrect. Educational qualifications are part of cultural capital. The people in the case did not get the supplies because of their degrees but because of the people they knew.
Option (2) Moral Capital — Incorrect. Social resources are divided into three forms of capital, economic, cultural and social, and moral standing is not one of them. The case turns on contacts, not on anyone’s good name.
Option (3) Economic Capital — Incorrect. Economic capital is material assets and income. When supplies were short, money alone could not get them; the network of contacts did.
Option (4) Social Capital — Correct. Social capital is capital in the form of networks of contacts and social associations. Just as someone with influential relatives and friends may, through access to good advice, recommendations or information, get a well-paid job, people with a good social network could get medical supplies when others could not.
Note: The concept in Option (2), ‘Moral Capital’, is not in NCERT (2025-26); explained here for the benefit of the students. It means the respect and trust a person or group earns by being seen as honest and principled.
NCERT (2025-26): “Social Inequality … 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.…” |