Quote:With that said I am not saying you are necessarily 'lying' but for whatever reason you were reacting. If you were reacting consistently to all questions asked- or if your reacted to one question on the first test and different question on the second test they would not conclude you were being deceptive. An examiner would only label you as showing deception if you react, all three times, to the same question.
But the polygraph machine does not measure deception, it measures the F3 (fight, flight, freeze) response, which may or may not indicate deception. Or as a group of the nation's tops scientists have said:
Quote:Almost a century of research in scientific psychology and physiology provides little basis for the expectation that a polygraph test could have extremely high accuracy. The physiological responses measured by the polygraph are not uniquely related to deception. That is, the responses measured by the polygraph do not all reflect a single underlying process: a variety of psychological and physiological processes, including some that can be consciously controlled, can affect polygraph measures and test results. Moreover, most polygraph testing procedures allow for uncontrolled variation in test administration (e.g., creation of the emotional climate, selecting questions) that can be expected to result in variations in accuracy and that limit the level of accuracy that can be consistently achieved. NAS Report (p. 212-213)
For example, a person's "
FIGHT, flight, freeze" response might well react if the person is repeatedly answering a question truthfully, yet being repeatedly called a liar by the polygraph interrogator. Especially if his/her job is on the line. That he/she is CONSISTENTLY reacting doesn't necessarily show deception, it might just mean that they are consistently being defensive about the fact they are being falsely called a liar. Doesn't prove anything.
Quote:Not to mention a pre-employment polygraph for a local Police Department is very different from a polygraph that one would experience with a Federal Agency (such as FBI, CIA, etc). It’s also very different from a criminal polygraph. If anyone is attempting to compare the three they clearly need to do more research on 'Polygraphs' before an opinion about Polygraphs is made one way or another.
All three still operate on the same
scientifically unproven theory that reactions, or a pattern of reactions, as measured on a polygraph can detect deception.
All three are not really tests for truthfulness, but rather, cleverly disguised interrogation methods meant to extract information from a beguiled applicant or criminal suspect.
TC