ABSTRACT
Polygraph techniques for the detection of deception and verification of truthfulness have a long history of use and abuse within the public and private sectors. Polygraph testing has become the source and focus of much debate within the political, legal, and scientific communities. This chapter reviews the historical development of polygraphy and current scientific knowledge concerning the reliability and validity of various polygraph techniques. The relevant-irrelevant test was originally developed as an aid to law enforcement agencies and the courts. To overcome the weaknesses of the relevant-irrelevant technique, C. Reid devised the control question test. Control questions are intentionally vague, cover a long period of the subject’s life, and include acts that most individuals have committed but are too embarrassed or afraid to admit during a properly conducted polygraph examination. The accuracy of diagnoses made by polygraph examiners in actual criminal cases must be evaluated against an independent criterion of truth or deception.
