In Capital Volume 1, Carl Marx defines "labor power" as the asset workers provide to the capitalistic economy which keeps it running. The workers power is their production of commodities. Without labor power, capitalism would inevitably collapse.  

Labor Power

Women are observed to put in an average of 26 hours of unpaid labor a week while men are observed to put in an average of 17. Unpaid labor typically refers to tasks such as cooking, gardening, odd-jobs, and others. In addition, women are more likely to take care of non-working and working individuals within a household while working themselves. 
Takeaway: Women provide the main support for capitalism through their unpaid labor 

Gender Oppression in Capitalism 

- Achievement Ideology
- Cultural Capital
- Linguistic Capital 
- Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Systems Theory 

Reproduction of Inequalities in the School System

Concept that capitalism is directly ingrained into productions of life. Race and gender oppression are found to be reproduced capitalistically.

Arizona State University

Georgetown University

- Structural Functionalism
- Conflict Theory
- Symbolic Interactionism
- Social Reproduction Theory
- Practice Theory


Sociological Theories

These disparities matter because higher education is often seen as a key pathway for social mobility—yet uneven access to cognitive enhancers can reinforce, rather than reduce, existing inequalities. When privileged students are more likely to obtain and benefit from PCEs, it contributes to the social reproduction of cultural capital, giving them yet another edge in already competitive environments. This undermines the ideal of a level academic playing field and risks deepening gaps in opportunity and achievement.

Why Do These Disparities Matter?

Bhattacharya, T. (2013, September 10). What is social reproduction theory? SocialistWorker.Org. https://socialistworker.org/2013/09/10/what-is-social-reproduction-theory

Social Reproduction Theory 

This theory views peoples’ reactions to a stimulus as a response to the meaning they give the stimulus, rather than as a reaction to the stimulus itself. The meaning that is given to a stimulus is not random, but based on previous interactions with the stimulus and other people in society. 

stimulus --> invokes socially derived meaning --> invokes reaction

Symbolic Interactionism

This theory looks at how the institutions in a society cooperate to meet the needs of that society. 

Structural Functionalism 

This theory looks at how individuals within a society must compete to fulfill their needs. 

Conflict Theory

Also called Praxeology and the Theory of Social Practices, this theory looks at repetitive practices in daily life to understand human social systems.

Practice Theory

Social Theory creates predictions about future actions, activities, or situations. This method focuses on society and the social forces that affect our lives. This sociological insight or "sociological imagination" looks beyond the assumption that social structures and patterns are random, and attempts to provide more understanding and meaning to human existence. 

Social Theory

Social Reproduction Theory

- cultural capital= "knowledge, skills and even aesthetic tastes"
- passed on and reproduced through generations 
- people who are born with cultural capital (ex. access to resources and elite schools/universities) use it further their own advantage
- accumulation of cultural capital can. be positive when it benefits greater society (ex. scientific discoveries)


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