In a spread spectrum digital radio communication receiver, a propagation profile of a propagation channel between a sender and the receiver, including at least one propagation path associated with a reception energy, is determined, data relating to an energy distribution in the propagation profile are measured, and information symbols carried by a signal received originating from the sender over the propagation channel are estimated, by applying to the signal a processing taking into account a predetermined maximum number of propagation paths, the propagation paths taken into account being chosen according to a criterion selected from several criteria as a function of the measured data relating to the energy distribution in the propagation profile.