hey all,

from what I read in the lie behind the lie detector, scoring is done by numbers with plus signs and minus signs. a number with a plus sign indicates possible deception, the higher the number the worse, and a number with a minus sign indicates no deception.. is that correct?

I took a law enforcement poly recently and was given a failing mark. The chart printed out in front of me -- I didn't pay too much attention because I was very confident that I passed. However from what I saw of the numbers on the bottom, it looked something like this:

D+.....1-.......4-.......6-.......T+

etc.

the type of poly I took doesn't seem to have been a control question poly. I was asked relevant questions, every now and then he'd ask if my first name was mike, which I'd answer yes to. 

the test was also divided into sections. at the end of each section the polygrapher would say that this portion of the test has finished, and he'd shut off the blood pressure thing. we would continue when I told him I was ready. I believe that the letters with the plus signs were at the start and finish of each section, but I'm not positive. Each section was repeated twice.

since I didn't see any positive numbers on the graph, is it possible that a -1 was compared to a -6 and scored as deceptive? I know I saw at least one -6.

I'm not sure if he marked me deceptive based on my behavior, but I doubt it because I showed nothing but confidence and no doubt in my answers. Even when he told me after he analyzed the chart that some answers weren't clear, I felt confident that either A) he was bluffing or B) I was truthful so when he looked at it with his colleagues they would recognize this.

Can anyone give me info on what type of test I took, what the positive letters mean, and any other relevant stuff?

Thanks in advance..

Mike521 wrote on Aug 16^th, 2005 at 3:50am:



Mike,

If the scores you provided are accurate, then I am afraid you flunked (In most tests of that type a "-3" or lower is a deceptive score.)

I'm sorry.

Nonombre