Through interviews, observation of refugee hearings, the analysis of negative decisions rendered by the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB), and the application of communication, and social work theories, as well as discourse analysis, this study explores the effects of intercultural communication on the outcome of the refugee determination hearing. It is argued that a gap exists between the principle of cultural receptiveness at the IRB, and that which occurs in the hearing. This paradox is testimony to the difficulties of applying the international definition of a Convention Refugee to a socially and culturally-constructed refugee determination process. The political, social, and cultural context in which the IRB functions, the Board's institutional culture, which mirrors the social discourse on refugees, and the way individuals ascribe meaning to information in a culturally-defined manner, all have an impact on the outcome of the hearing, and in turn on refugee protection in Canada.

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