The Minneapolis-Saint Paul Tribune has published the following obituary: Quote:http://www.startribune.com/466/v-print/story/690907.html
David Lykken, U of M psychology professor
He helped to debunk the use of polygraph tests in court and show the inherited traits of twins raised apart.
Curt Brown, Star Tribune
In 50 years of scientific study, retired University of Minnesota Prof. David Lykken changed the way society views everything from lie-detector tests to adult twins, sociopathic criminals to happiness.
Lykken, 78, died Friday in his sleep from heart failure at his Minneapolis home.
Research by Lykken, a behavioral geneticist and professor of psychology and psychiatry, helped to debunk the use of polygraph tests in court and showed that twins separated at birth have, at times, astonishingly similar inherited traits.
"He was a brilliant guy, rigorous, always cheerful and open-minded about so many things," said Prof. Thomas Bouchard, who co-authored more than two dozen scholarly papers with Lykken.
Joe Lykken, an Illinois physicist and one of David's three sons, said: "His ambition when he went into psychology was to make it more respectable by grappling with the big issues of how to study human behavior in a more scientific, quantitative way -- and he succeeded to a large extent."
For his doctorate dissertation, Lykken (pronounced LICK-en) went into Minnesota prisons to study the impulsiveness and fearlessness of so-called "psychopaths," pioneering research that has mushroomed into a trove of scientific literature.
In the late 1950s, Lykken zeroed in on lie-detector tests and, before long, he was traveling around the country, testifying about the machines' flawed science before Congress and at countless trials. He helped several defendants find justice after being falsely accused through failed polygraph tests.
The first such case involved an Arizona man accused of rape. Lykken convinced jurors that his strong polygraph responses involved the charges against him and reference to the woman's name, not deception.
"Nature did not equip us with some sort of Pinocchio's nose, an involuntary reaction that accompanies lying but not truth-telling," Lykken wrote in his autobiography.
Instead of simply being a critic, Lykken devised a Guilty Knowledge Test that cleared innocent subjects and identified guilty people by studying physiological reactions to multiple-choice questions whose answers only the guilty party would know.
Lykken's work on the ongoing Minnesota Twin Study attracted the most attention, although he usually spurned TV or speech appearances. Lykken, Bouchard and their associates studied more than 130 sets of twins who had been raised separately.
Two named Jim wound up owning poodles with the same name. Two middle-aged sisters were not only afraid of water, but both also would walk into the water backward, turning around only after their knees were wet.
In his 1999 book "Happiness," Lykken theorized that everyone has a set point for happiness. While winning the lottery or losing a loved one will cause a short-term dip or spike, grumpy people will return to grumpiness and gleeful types will revert, as well.
"Find the small things that give you a little high -- a good meal, working in the garden, time with friends -- and sprinkle your life with them," he wrote.
When Harriet, his wife of 53 years, died last year, Lykken plastered his apartment with pictures of his favorite breed of dog -- bull terriers.
"He said it cheered him up whenever he looked up," said his son Joe.
Besides Joe, Lykken is survived by sons Jesse of Minneapolis and Matthew of Chicago.
A private family funeral is planned for Saturday.
Curt Brown • 651-298-1542 • curt.brown@startribune.com
©2006 Star Tribune. All rights reserved.
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