(De)Constructing Credibility: Examining the Power of Childhood in Unaccompanied Refugee Decision-Making

Abstract

Our study examines how factors associated with normative conceptions of childhood shape Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Board adjudicators’ interpretations of evidence and justifications for decisions. We examine Canadian case file transcripts to highlight the factors that shape IRB members’ decisions to accept or reject children’s claims. Through analyzing IRB members’ language, discourses, and rationales for their decisions, we show that their operating childhood knowledges play a key role in their decisions. We demonstrate the power of childhood discourses and how they illustrate what we call “governing with childhood.” Our analysis highlights the importance of social, cultural, and political knowledges in immigration and refugee hearings; through examining the discretionary power of administrative decision-makers, we argue that normative conceptions of childhood are operationalized to justify the (de)construction of credibility.