Thomas Faist

Thomas Faist is Professor of Transnational, Development & Migration Studies at Bielefeld University, Faculty of Sociology. His academic work examines the complex relationship between diversity, migration processes, and social inequalities within contemporary societies.

Professor Faist's research interests include:

• Transnational, Development & Migration Studies
• Social Inequalities and Heterogeneities
• Diversity Management and Policy Frameworks
• Integration of Immigrants in Western Societies
• Critical Social Structural Analysis
• Global Perspectives on Diversity

His conceptual framework distinguishes diversity as both a descriptive term capturing pluralization of lifestyles through globalization, and as a policy concept in diversity management. Through his involvement with Collaborative Research Centre 882 'From Heterogeneities to Inequalities', he investigates how patterns of inequality emerge along heterogeneities of gender, age, sexual orientation, income, and class, moving beyond traditional class-focused structural analysis.

Professor Faist emphasizes examining the dynamic processes of categorization rather than essentializing heterogeneities, analyzing social mechanisms like stereotyping, exploitation, opportunity hoarding, and hierarchization. His work connects research on immigration in Western societies with longstanding diversity in countries like Brazil, South Africa, India, and Indonesia, critiquing universal approaches to diversity management.