Cultural capital is a concept introduced by sociologist Pierre Bourdieu, with Jean-Claude Passeron, to explain how social advantage is transmitted through cultural resources, education, tastes, credentials and ways of speaking and comporting oneself, rather than through wealth alone. Bourdieu distinguished three forms: embodied cultural capital, the internalized dispositions and competencies acquired especially within the family; objectified cultural capital, cultural goods such as books and artworks; and institutionalized cultural capital, formally recognized credentials and qualifications. He argued that cultural and economic capital reinforce one another, so that the conversion of inherited cultural capital into educational credentials, and credentials into higher-paying occupations, is a central mechanism by which social classes reproduce themselves across generations.
Facts
Core ClaimSourced to the subject's own accountSocial advantage and disadvantage are transmitted not only through money and property but through non-financial assets, education, credentials, tastes, manners and ways of speaking, that function as a form of capital convertible into economic and social advantage and passed down within families. 1 Origin YearSourced to the subject's own account1977 marks Cultural Reproduction and Social Reproduction, the Bourdieu and Passeron essay that introduced the term; Bourdieu elaborated it further in The Forms of Capital (1985). Cross-Tradition Connections
Associated With
Both are Bourdieu concepts describing how social advantage becomes embodied and reproduced across generations.
Developed By
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Cultural Capital
WikipediaLead section, definitionQuote, Lead section, definition
Cultural capital refers to the social assets of an individual, such as education, knowledge, style of speech, aesthetic preferences, and credentials, that can promote social mobility within a stratified society.
1. Wikipedia: Cultural Capital
WikipediaOrigin section, Bourdieu and PasseronQuote, Origin section, Bourdieu and Passeron
In Cultural Reproduction and Social Reproduction (1977), Pierre Bourdieu and Jean-Claude Passeron introduced cultural capital.
Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.
Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.
View At A Past Year
The atlas records no dated fact of its own for this entry, so there is no other year to choose.