Polygraph testing: How accurate is the technology?

[deweyzeph]

It's not a lie if you believe it's true. That's the only difference between a lie and the truth.

By definition you cannot know how many people have successfully fooled a polygraph test. It's like asking how many illegal immigrants there are in a country. The very question itself contradicts the answer.

If a polygraph test or a drug test is a condition of employment at any company then your rights to privacy are being violated and you should object in the strongest terms.

 

[JustinB]

It's not a lie if you believe it's true. That's the only difference between a lie and the truth.

By definition you cannot know how many people have successfully fooled a polygraph test. It's like asking how many illegal immigrants there are in a country. The very question itself contradicts the answer.

If a polygraph test or a drug test is a condition of employment at any company then your rights to privacy are being violated and you should object in the strongest terms.

Dude... I don't really understand what you're saying.

I agree that lies/truth <> fact/fiction, and you may be talking nonsense but believe its the truth. but thats not really the question, the question is can polygraphs be used to identify dishonest people? And yes this you can know, take some people and tell them to answer some questions honestly, and some dishonestly.

And yes, you can know how many illegal immigrants there are - did you come through passport control and immigration? No? you're here illegally.

On a different note, was watching House, and saw they did a MRI on a psychopath who exhibited different brain workings than a normal person. I'd think neither a polygraph, nor a brain scan would be able to tell if a psycho is lying if they are wired to feel indifferent between right and wrong.

 

[deweyzeph]

Dude... I don't really understand what you're saying.

I agree that lies/truth <> fact/fiction, and you may be talking nonsense but believe its the truth. but thats not really the question, the question is can polygraphs be used to identify dishonest people? And yes this you can know, take some people and tell them to answer some questions honestly, and some dishonestly.

And yes, you can know how many illegal immigrants there are - did you come through passport control and immigration? No? you're here illegally.

On a different note, was watching House, and saw they did a MRI on a psychopath who exhibited different brain workings than a normal person. I'd think neither a polygraph, nor a brain scan would be able to tell if a psycho is lying if they are wired to feel indifferent between right and wrong.

I am simply saying that if you believe a lie to be the truth, then as far as a polygraph test is concerned, you are not lying.

You cannot know how many illegal immigrants there are in a country exactly because they do not pass through passport control. I would have thought that that is fairly obvious and didn't need an explanation.

 

[Roxyh]

Hi there I see you posted this quite a while ago, but I had to undergo a polygraph test this morning for a job I applied for, also in retail and I failed the test even though I was telling the truth. I was on the net to see how this could be possible and stumbled on this site and saw your quote. What drew my attention was the fact that you said that this interrogator was an ex-cop and I was wondering if it was the same guy who did my test. Did your wife describe him to you? The guy who did the test on me was also an ex-cop, a huge afrikaner dude who looks as though he should be working for the AWB. He scared me absolutely sh*tless. I apparently failed a question and he asked me what I had not told him and what I was lying about. The more I told him I was not lying and that I didn't know what he expected me to say, the more he told me the polygraph is never wrong and that I was lying to him and I should confess now. I was so scared I even considered making something up just to get him to stop going off at me. It was one the worst experiences of my life, I know exactly what your wife must have felt like. If it is the same guy I think he should be reported or something, this doesn't seem right to me. Did your wife get the job in the end?