Stealing

[Guestman]

After reading the book numerous times, and reading past posts , I have but one question.  You talk about never admitting to stealing money and only making small admissions to stealing in general, but where does one drawe the line.  If I have stolen small things from an employer, when do these 'small things' become relevant.
For example, in a past post some one wrote,
"Other what I had told him did I ever steal anything over 10 dollars". Is this a control or relevant question?  I would assume this is a control question because the polygrapher would expect a reaction due to past admissions and me being uncertain.  Am I understanding this?  When does this move to a relevant question? $50? $100?

Thanks

[G Scalabr]

Guestman,

This is an excellent question. We are aware of this shortcoming and plan to be much more explicit in the 2nd edition.

But, since you probably need the info now..

In the context of a pre-employment polygraph, assume that any question worded to include a dollar amount is relevant. This includes limits as small as $5.00 (basically anything more serious than office supplies). Please note that small amount limits are relatively rare. Examiners almost always use amounts in excess of $50.00.

Furthermore, any question about stealing money from an employer is relevant--even without a dollar limit.

The only theft related control questions are worded to incriminate even thieves of minor items like paper clips. Remember, control questions are always expected to be answered with probable lies. I realize that it gets tricky with some of those middle amounts.