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er preparation, a subject has no fear of detection and, without fear
44 the lie behind the lie detector
of detection, the subject will not necessarily demonstrate the proper
physiological response. (U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intel-
ligence, 1994) But fear of being falsely accused may also entail phys-
iological responses measurable by the polygraph and result in truthful
persons being accused of deception.
The  Stim Test
Your polygrapher will next conduct what in the polygraph trade is
commonly known as a  stimulation test or  stim test, though
DoDPI calls it an  acquaintance test. Your polygrapher will tell
you that the purpose of this little demonstration is to allow him to
 adjust the instrument and to make certain that you are  capable
of physiologically responding if you were to intentionally tell a lie.
But this explanation is itself a lie. The true purpose of the  stim test
is to dupe you into believing that your polygrapher can read your
mind and that the slightest deception will be detected.
In earlier times, the  stim test was usually done with a deck of
cards. Your polygrapher would ask you to pick a card and not show
it to him. Then, while you are connected to the polygraph, he
would ask you to answer  no to each question he asked. Suppose
you draw the jack of diamonds. Your  stim test might go like this:
Did you pick a face card? (No.)
Did you pick a number card? (No.)
Your polygrapher nonchalantly tells you,  It s obvious you picked a
face card. He then proceeds to ask:
Did you pick a king? (No.)
Did you pick a queen? (No.)
Did you pick a jack? (No.)
He then informs you,  You ve clearly drawn a jack. He continues:
Did you pick a spade? (No.)
Did you pick a club? (No.)
polygraphy exposed 45
Did you pick a diamond? (No.)
Did you pick a heart? (No.)
Your polygrapher gazes into his charts and earnestly tells you,  It s
clear you picked the jack of diamonds. No doubt about it. You re a
 screamer. You can t tell a lie without your body giving you away.
But what your polygrapher wouldn t tell you is that you drew
your card from a trick deck, in which every card is a jack of diamonds.
In another version of this card trick, an assortment of genuinely
different cards is used, but the polygrapher has memorized their
order.
But nowadays, the card trick has largely given way to the  numbers
test. In a known-solution numbers  test, your polygrapher will
ask you to pick a number, say, from one to six, and to write it on a
sheet of paper. The number will be known to both of you. Let s say
you pick  4. You write it on the slip of paper. Your polygrapher
will then write in the other numbers, 1, 2, 3 and 5, 6 in a list above
and below or to the left and right of the  4 that you wrote, then he
will affix the paper to the wall in front of you. Your polygrapher
will next instruct you to answer  no each time as he asks,  Did
you write 1? Did you write 2?, etc. And he will tell you that when
you answer  no to the number that you wrote, you are to look at
that number on the wall and to consciously think about having
chosen it and written it down, and then to deliberately lie and say
 no.
Did you write 1? (No.)
Did you write 2? (No.)
Did you write 3? (No.)
Did you write 4? (No.)
Did you write 5? (No.)
Did you write 6? (No.)
Whether you showed any discernible reaction while  lying or not,
your polygrapher will attempt to convince you that you are not
46 the lie behind the lie detector
capable of lying without the polygraph instrument detecting it. This
is how DoDPI instructed examiners to explain the  stim test to
volunteers in a recent research project (Dollins, 1997):
Administer a standard known solution numbers test-- using the
rationale below. DO NOT show the test to the examinee, but
convince the examinee that deception was indicated. NOTE: be
sure to use the word acquaintance or demonstration test when
discussing this with the examinee.
I m now going to demonstrate the physiological responses
we have been discussing. This test is intended to give you
the opportunity to become accustomed to the recording
components and to give me the opportunity to adjust the
instrument to you before proceeding to the actual test. In
addition, this test will demonstrate to me that you are
capable of responding and that your body reacts when
you knowingly and willfully lie.
The standard four components (two pneumograph tubes, electro-
dermal plates, and cardiovascular cuff) are attached at this time,
followed by the acquaintance test. The acquaintance test should
be conducted in the manner taught at DoDPI.& The results will
be discussed with the examinee as follows:
That was excellent. It is obvious that you know lying is
wrong. You re not capable of lying without your body
reacting. You reacted strongly when you lied about that
number. Even though I asked you to lie and it was an
insignificant lie, you still responded. That will make this
examination very easy to complete as long as you follow
my directions.
Don t be your polygrapher s fool. The lie detector cannot detect lies
(it only records physiological data), and your polygrapher cannot
read your mind. The most  prestigious polygraph school, the De-
partment of Defense Polygraph Institute, churns out polygraphers
after a mere 520-hour (14-week) course of instruction. Mind reading
is not on the DoDPI curriculum.
polygraphy exposed 47
Reviewing the  Test Questions
Next, your polygrapher will review with you all the questions that
he will be asking you while you are hooked up to the machine. The
polygrapher will ask you if there is anything that is bothering you
that you think you should mention before the polygraph  test
begins, and any admissions will be duly noted.
As a rule (not always strictly followed), polygraphers are prohibited
from asking questions about religious and political beliefs and sexual
matters. However&
CIA Applicants Beware!
Both cia and nsa use a broader  life-style polygraph screening
 test. cia polygraphers in particular seem to have a prurient interest
in the private lives of those they interrogate. In 1997, one cia applicant,
whose wife had recently left him, was asked the following mix of
questions during the  pre-test phase of his pre-employment poly-
graph screening:
" Have you ever participated in groups advocating the over-
throw of the U.S. Government?
" Have you ever performed services for another intelligence
service?
" Do you masturbate?
" What do you think about while masturbating?
" Have you ever had sex with another man?
" Have you ever thought about having sex with another man?
" Have you ever killed another person?
" Have you ever thought about killing another person?
" Have you ever thought about killing yourself?
" Do you lie?
" How much do you lie? Daily? Weekly?
" Would you lie to make yourself look better, if you knew you
wouldn t get caught?
48 the lie behind the lie detector
" Why did your wife leave you?
" Couldn t you satisfy your wife sexually?
" Has she or any other woman accused you of being unable
to satisfy them?
" Have you ever cheated on your wife?
" Have you ever thought about cheating on your wife?
" Do you daydream?
" Would you consent to us medicating you for continued
examination?
" Have you ever thought about having sex with your mother?
" Have you ever bounced a check?
" Have you ever been arrested for DUI?
" Should you have been?
In an article about the cia s polygraph program published in the [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]