Othering am Beispiel von Migration: Wie aus sozialen Kategorien die Anderen entstehen

‘Migrants’ and ‘refugees’ are often categorized as Other, in a process called Othering. Using the example of forced migration, we develop a definition of Othering to make it useful for the analysis of health inequalities. We consider Othering as a social process that constructs and classifies differences in such a way that certain groups become socially visible as essential Others. On one hand, the process of Othering operates through a discursive practice that constructs differences, thereby transforming individuals into visible Others. On the other hand, it is based on a power asymmetry that enables the categorization of people, thereby marking them as different. Othering is not solely based on negative attitudes of individuals or groups. Rather, Othering is the result of a broad and historically evolved system of beliefs that gain credibility through power relations. Thus, we understand Othering as a powerful process that goes substantially beyond concepts of discrimination based on mere categorization processes. The concept of Othering stands out from other concepts of inequality by including the epistemic level as a key factor for inequality. Othering not only produces the Other epistemologically, but at the same time establishes a discursive legitimation for the unequal treatment of the Other. Drawing upon our understanding of Othering, we present practice-related findings on the consequences of Othering for the healthcare of ‘migrants’ and ‘refugees’.