<p>This study presents a critical re-examination of psychological capital (PsyCap), a construct rooted in positive psychology and composed of hope, self-efficacy, optimism, and resilience. While traditionally framed as a universally measurable and developable psychological resource aimed at enhancing individual performance and organizational commitment, this paper argues that PsyCap is deeply embedded within neoliberal discourses of subjectivity and productivity. Drawing on Bourdieu’s theory of capital, habitus, and field, the paper reconceptualizes PsyCap not as an isolated set of inner traits, but as a culturally and structurally mediated form of symbolic capital. The study critiques the epistemological assumptions underlying mainstream psychological science, particularly its tendency to universalize Western, individualistic models of the self. It highlights how PsyCap reproduces normative ideals of emotional self-regulation and perpetual self-optimization, aligning individual affective capacities with market-based imperatives. Through Bourdieusian analysis, the paper demonstrates that access to psychological resources is unevenly distributed along lines of class, institutional habitus, and cultural capital, thus reinforcing existing social inequalities. Furthermore, this paper contends that PsyCap operates as a mechanism of symbolic power, compelling individuals to internalize performance-driven norms under the guise of empowerment and well-being. The paper concludes by calling for a more reflexive, culturally sensitive, and socially grounded framework that situates psychological constructs within broader ideological and structural contexts. This rethinking of PsyCap opens the door to interdisciplinary critique and decolonizing psychological knowledge by challenging Western epistemic dominance and centering culturally grounded approaches such as indigenous psychologies, community well-being, and relational views of the self.</p>