Tag: social mobility

Editorial illustration of two students working towards the same educational goal in different home circumstances, showing how unequal resources can shape opportunity despite similar effort.

Is Education Really a Meritocracy?

Posted on 21 October 202621 October 2026 by Andrew Wright

Is education really a meritocracy? This article explores how class, cultural capital, teacher expectations and unequal opportunities shape educational achievement.

Illustration of professionals leaving an office, a student studying outdoors and a manual worker sharing a town streetscape, with varied housing and connected pathways in the background.

What Do Sociologists Mean by Social Class?

Posted on 13 October 202613 October 2026 by Andrew Wright

Social class is about more than income. This article explores how Marx, Weber and Bourdieu help us understand class, life chances, cultural capital, social mobility and the unequal distribution of opportunity.

Young people working together in a community setting, illustrating skills, belonging and social capital.

Where Do Young People Belong Anymore? Skills for Life, Capital and the Social Spaces of Growing Up

Posted on 5 October 202627 September 2026 by Andrew Wright

We expect young people to reach adulthood with confidence, communication skills, resilience and leadership, but rarely ask where they were supposed to develop them. Drawing on Bourdieu, research on youth participation and the idea of opportunity structures, this article explores how skills, relationships and social capital are built, recognised and unequally distributed.

Young care worker supports an elderly resident, separated by a text-like barrier from an interview panel facing an empty chair.

The Hidden Curriculum of Soft Skills: Recognition, Capital, and Who Gets Left Out

Posted on 2 March 20261 March 2026 by Andrew Wright

Job adverts demand communication, leadership, and resilience. But who actually gets credit for them? Drawing on Bourdieu, Puwar, and Rivera, this article argues that soft skills are not recognised neutrally — they are filtered through class, race, and cultural capital. The result is a hiring system that mistakes social advantage for individual merit.

Beyond Weber, Marx, and Orwell: The Rise of Digital Neofeudalism

Posted on 14 March 202525 May 2025 by Andrew Wright

Has the modern world outgrown Weber’s iron cage, Marx’s alienation, and Orwell’s surveillance state—only to enter a new form of control? In an era where tech monopolies act as digital landlords, individuals no longer own but rent, their lives dictated by algorithmic oversight and data extraction. Is this progress, or have we simply traded one system of domination for another?

Meritocracy or Myth? The Truth About the ‘Self-Made’ Narrative

Posted on 18 February 202525 May 2025 by Andrew Wright

Is the self-made success story a reality or a myth? This article explores the sociological debate around meritocracy, examining both the arguments for and against the self-made narrative, and the structural barriers that shape social mobility.

Top articles

‘Explained’ articles

Phrase of the Day