So i've got an upcoming polygraph, and I'm nervous. I can answer truthfully to every single question, except one: theft. Nothing big, but theft none the less.
Should I try to lie, or should I fess up? I really want the fire department job, am i risking it more lying, or telling the truth? There is absolutely nothing on my record to substantiate any theft, no one knows about it besides myself and 1 friend, so would it be best to lie since there is nothing to prove I actually did it?
Is a question on theft a control question, where they expect everyone to have stolen something in the past?
MontBell,
It has been suggested in this website that some organizations have a limit as to how much in value they are willing to accept. I personally think that if you admit stealing money or valuable merchandise from your employer, chances are that they will not hire you. It could be $100 or more. I don't think anyone here can answer that. Play it safe.
Opp
MontBell,
Your theft may or may not be disqualifying, depending on how serious the fire department considers it.
Pre-employment polygraph examinations often include a probable-lie "control" question about theft. For example, the DoDPI Law Enforcement Pre-Employment Test (http://antipolygraph.org/documents/dodpi-lepet.pdf) may include the probable-lie "control" question, "Prior to ____, did you ever cheat anyone out of anything?" But some exams also include a relevant question about theft. For example, the Los Angeles Police Department's pre-employment polygraph examination (https://antipolygraph.org/forum/index.php?topic=2632.msg18618#msg18618) includes the relevant question, "Have you stolen more than four hundred dollars in cash or property from an employer?"
As a general rule, it is never in an applicant's personal interest to volunteer negative information that would not be discovered in the course of a background investigation. However, those seeking positions of public trust have an ethical obligation to answer relevant questions truthfully. The fact that public agencies are themselves using a fraudulent procedure such as polygraphy that depends on the operator lying to and otherwise deceiving the applicant (see Chapter 3 of The Lie Behind the Lie Detector (http://antipolygraph.org/lie-behind-the-lie-detector.pdf)) muddies the ethical waters.