Howard Fienberg, a research analyst with the Statistical Assessment Service (STATS), a non-profit, non-partisan think tank in Washington, DC writes for The Providence Journal. Excerpt:
The parents of missing Federal Bureau of Prisons intern Chandra Levy do not believe that U.S. Rep. Gary Condit, D-Calif., has revealed all he knows of her whereabouts. Although police investigators are satisfied with Condit’s answers, the Levys want him to take a polygraph (popularly known as a lie-detector) test.
Polygraphs are such familiar instruments, whether in criminal investigations or job-background checks, that few question the reliability or validity of polygraph testing. But how well do these devices really detect lies?