Passing the detector. How to fool a polygraph? Countermeasures

The idea of a polygraph originated many years ago. The impetus for its development was the research of the Italian physiologist A. Mosso. Such techniques made it possible for the first time in 1902 to prove the innocence of the defendant. Today, the polygraph is used to test applicants for positions, so you can often hear the question, how to deceive the polygraph?

What is a polygraph?

A polygraph is a sensor unit, which includes a set of sensors connected to a computer device. This is an inseparable complex of the apparatus and the psychologist. There are analog and digital types of devices on sale. The first of them have long occupied the niche of rare goods, and the second are popularly used when interrogating criminals, candidates for a position, or to find out.

How does a polygraph work, what does it react to?

A polygraph is a psychophysiological study. The device consists of:

sensors that monitor data on the psychophysiological state of the subject’s body;
A computer that records and processes data from sensors;
output device in the form of an oscilloscope, printer, monitor screen for displaying information received by sensors on a diagram.

The detector detects and records microstress in the subject. Sensors are attached to such places on the human body where the psychophysical state of the body and changes can be clearly identified:

breathing in the chest area;
breathing in the abdominal area;
electrical conductivity of the skin;
blood filling in peripheral vessels;
heart rate.

After the device is installed, the subject begins to ask questions. First, simple questions are asked to check the equipment. These could be questions about first name, last name, place of birth, marital status. The answer is given 15-20 seconds, which allows you to think before answering. Once the polygraph examiner begins to understand how the machine responds to “honest” answers, he is surprised to begin asking basic questions. During the procedure, the state of the body is recorded before the answer, during its utterance and after.

Why is a polygraph dangerous?

A polygraph is a medical-biological device capable of recording a psychophysiological surge and reaction of the human body. In order to successfully pass a lie detector test, you must not only master your emotions perfectly, but also control your heart rate and blood vessels. That is why the polygraph examiner, before conducting the test, always asks whether the subject has any health contraindications.

The device closely interacts with the subconscious: emotions, memories, experienced stress. This is the main danger of the device. Although it does not physically affect a person in any way, it can provoke the appearance of:

hysterics;
heart attack;
nervous attack;
epilepsy;
miscarriage;
asthmatic attack.

Who should not take a polygraph for health reasons?

According to the existing law on what diseases cannot be tested for a polygraph, citizens suffering from:

bronchial asthma;
colds with severe cough and runny nose;
cardiovascular diseases;
hypertension;
strong alcohol intoxication;
drug addiction;
deviations in mental activity;
damage to the central nervous system;
mental or physical exhaustion;
pain syndrome;
pregnancy (the fetus also experiences fear and anxiety, which is immediately recorded by the device);
epileptic seizures.

What should you not do before a polygraph?

An upcoming polygraph test causes stress and fear in many people, even if the person intends to tell only the truth. This condition occurs due to ignorance of the principles of operation of the device, fear of being caught in a lie. That's why many people ask how to prepare for a lie detector test, and what not to do before a polygraph:

Do not try to predict the test questions, this may cause self-judgment and unnecessary anxiety.
Relax, thanks to good health, physiological reactions will be as accurate as possible.
Don't treat test day as something special. Start your morning with a run and a cup of coffee.
Do not take any medications unless prescribed by your doctor, otherwise antidepressants will interfere with your test results.

Is it possible to fool a polygraph?

Is it possible to fool a polygraph? Yes, it's possible. When figuring out how to pass a polygraph without problems, this can be done, for example, by simply biting the tongue and causing tension in the legs, mentally counting sheep. Each of these actions will cause physiological reactions that will be immediately recorded by the device. Mental arithmetic will prevent the subject from fully comprehending the question asked, which will lead to an uncertain result.

History remembers the case of the unjustly convicted Fey Floyd. After failing a polygraph test, he was convicted of a murder he did not commit, and it was only several years later that the truth came out. Floyd decided to take revenge on his offenders and became a real expert in the field of polygraph testing. He taught prisoners who confessed to him that they had committed a crime how to deceive a polygraph, as a result of which most of the criminals were able to pass the lie detector and were found innocent.

Ways to fool the polygraph

There are several ways to fool a lie detector:

Reduced sensitivity of sensory analyzers. To do this, drink some alcohol the day before the test. On the day of the test, your reactions will be somewhat slowed down, and the polygraph will not be able to give an accurate result.
Medications. Before using them, it is important to know and understand your body’s reaction to “chemistry”. So, if a subject has taken psychotropic substances for the first time, he may, out of habit, begin to behave inappropriately, which a polygraph examiner will immediately notice.
Non-chemical method. To do this, you need to not sleep for several days. But it is worth remembering that an experienced polygraph examiner will always notice such a condition.
Control of emotions. It is important not only to be able to give the desired reaction to a question, but also to control facial expressions.
Physiological reactions. For example, some, in an attempt to counteract the polygraph, came up with the idea of putting a button in the shoe under the big toe. When pressed, the pain causes a false reaction.

Some medicines can be more dangerous than the diseases themselves.
Seneca the Elder

Fifteen years ago, not everyone knew about the existence of a polygraph (in common parlance, a lie detector) in our country. This ingenious device was something infinitely distant and was associated more with spy romance. Today, the polygraph has become an everyday reality of the personnel business - the cause of mild panic among job seekers and constant headaches for employees of many companies.

Lie detector are increasingly used in screening candidates for employment, routine personnel checks and conducting internal investigations. Even small and medium-sized enterprises quite often resort to the services of polygraph examiners, and a significant number of large companies have long acquired their own equipment and staff specialists - polygraph operators.

What is behind this desire of the employer to control the employee at the physiological level? Perhaps an attempt to directly influence him as a psychophysiological automaton receiving a salary, sort of controlled by the springs of Buratino’s passions and reflexes. It may be recalled that the very invention of the lie detector is associated with the criminological concept of the “innate criminal.” The roots of the polygraph in general must be sought there, in Europe of the 19th century, the time of inborn criminals and “reasonable egoists.” Man by nature is an evil and selfish animal, says naturalistic anthropology. You can curb the rampant vicious passions not with convictions and good wishes, but with direct influence on the most powerful of emotions - fear. To some extent, the polygraph is the heir to the gloomy machinery of secret offices and inquisitorial basements. Despite all the external harmlessness of this small device, its main calling is the same uncontrollable, animal fear. Want to learn more about the modern fear machine? Then welcome to the brave new world of polygraphs and polygraph examiners.

What is this device?

Translated from Greek, “polygraph” means “many records.” A polygraph device (also called a “lie detector”, “variograph”, “plethysmograph”, “bark detector”) is a multi-channel oscilloscope designed for simultaneous recording of several (from 4 to 16) physiological processes associated with the occurrence of emotions: breathing , blood pressure, galvanic skin response, biocurrents (brain, heart, skeletal and smooth muscles, etc.). The device allows you to monitor the slightest changes in a person’s psychophysiological state, and on the basis of these data, the polygraph operator draws conclusions about the character and inclinations of the person being tested, as well as about the correspondence or non-conformity of the information presented by him with reality. This device costs $5-$8 thousand. The common name “lie detector” is incorrect. A lie does not have specific manifestations, but it causes increased psycho-emotional tension and stress due to a person’s desire to hide the truth. This voltage is recorded by the sensors of the device.

The first prototype of the polygraph - the hydrosphygometer - was first created and used back in 1895 by the famous Italian psychiatrist Cesare Lombroso, who proposed measuring changes in blood pressure to determine the veracity of the answers of crime suspects. The first polygraph suitable for crime investigation was created in the United States in 1921 by a police officer. John Larsen. This device recorded changes in heart rate, pressure and breathing rhythm.

The use of a polygraph in personnel practice of private entrepreneurship

In the 50s and 60s in the USA, polygraph tests began to be actively carried out in private enterprise, and by the mid-80s there were more than 5 thousand professional polygraph operators. Such widespread use of the device caused many conflicts, in which the state had to act as an arbiter. In June 1988, the United States passed the Employee Polygraph Protection Act (EPPA), designed to strictly regulate its use in private business. Laws in 21 states generally prohibit private employers from conducting polygraph tests on job applicants.

In general, the use of the polygraph in Western business is not limited to the personnel sector. For example, insurance companies in the UK use lie detectors to weed out malicious fraudulent clients. True, the version of the polygraph used by insurers is quite different from the classic box with wires and is simply a program that analyzes sound recordings, designed to detect lies by changes in a person’s intonation.

Polygraph in the service of the HR department: pros and cons

The use of a polygraph in personnel practice is necessary mainly for those organizations that have an extensive sales network or branches located far from the central office, says Roman Ustyuzhanin, General Director of Omega Consulting. He tells such a curious incident. One of the clients of Omega Consulting lost $8-10 thousand worth of goods every month due to theft. After a total polygraph test of the staff, the disappearance of goods stopped completely, and not a single person was fired!
However, Timofey Nestik, a researcher at the Institute of Psychology of the Russian Academy of Sciences and a teacher at the Business School of the Academy of National Economy, gives the opposite example. The third theft occurred in one of the stores selling computer devices. To identify the culprits, all seven employees of the outlet were put through a lie detector. At the same time, it seems that no one was caught. It turned out that such a check is not so difficult to bypass. But the main problem is that after this incident the thefts became more frequent: after all, the management demonstrated that they did not trust anyone in this team.
Valery Oskin, chairman of the Personnel Territory club and director of the Association of Personnel Selection Consultants, believes that although a polygraph can help to understand conflict and criminal situations, many highly qualified employees and top managers refuse to go to companies that use lie detectors in personnel practice, because they believe such a test is humiliating. Regularly conducting such checks noticeably worsens the morale of the team. Dismissal of an employee for refusing to take a polygraph test will almost certainly be overturned in court if it becomes the subject of litigation. Due to such high costs, lie detectors are rarely used in personnel practice.

How is the verification process carried out?

A modern polygraph is a sensor unit connected to a computer and equipped with a set of sensors, which is a small box slightly larger than a pack of cigarettes.
The standard set of sensors is as follows: two breathing sensors, which are worn on the chest and abdomen, galvanic skin response (GSR) sensors, which are worn on the fingers, a sensor for measuring pulse rate and vascular blood flow - on the finger. More advanced polygraphs are also equipped with sensors for measuring blood pressure. Auxiliary tremor sensors can be used to record the respondent’s attempts to change his psychophysiological state by applying muscle effort.
He talks about his experience with the polygraph Alexey S., senior employee of the security department of the holding company: “When applying for employment in our company, applicants must undergo a polygraph test. At one time I did not escape this fate either. At the beginning of testing, the operator psychologist explained to me that I should not move my head, arms, legs or eyes, should not swallow saliva or strain my muscles. During testing, you need to look at one point. The check began with routine questions from the questionnaire: “Do you live there? Were you born then?” Very soon I began to feel like a real criminal against humanity, and far from the smallest one. The most harmless of the subsequent questions were: “Do you have connections with criminal organizations?”, “Do you abuse alcohol?” “Do you use drugs?” Sweat poured out in a continuous stream. And so on for three hours straight, with rare smoke breaks. My arms and legs became numb and numb, and there was a feeling of unreality of what was happening: as if I had become the hero of an old Soviet film about partisans during interrogation by the Gestapo. The final chord of the test was the operator’s request to answer 900 test questions after completing the polygraph examination. This was probably a kind of psychological move, designed to weed out weak-hearted candidates: it took me a lot of willpower to control myself and not start destroying expensive equipment. I left the office exhausted and completely dehydrated, as if I had been unloading cars with coal for the past 24 hours. And at the same time I felt like I was born again: I grew more confident that I had passed the polygraph test successfully... The ending of the story is happy - I was hired, although three-quarters of applicants, according to our statistics, do not pass such a professional selection.”

How to prepare for a polygraph test and pass it successfully?

Some advice regarding behavior during a polygraph examination is given by Elena Bespalova, polygraph examiner with many years of experience: “The most important thing is to get a good night’s sleep before the examination. During the pre-test conversation and during the test, I recommend answering honestly, if necessary, explaining in detail possible controversial issues. Under no circumstances should you use tranquilizers, psychotropic drugs or alcohol on the eve of the test. Even if you had any violations at previous places of work or some negative aspects in your biography, it is not at all necessary that they will be an obstacle to employment in a new place. The main thing is to be honest about this during the pre-test conversation, and not try to hide anything. It should be remembered that the average law-abiding person has nothing to fear from polygraph testing. The motto should be: openness, frankness, calm. An experienced polygraph examiner will be able to relieve stress from the person being tested and set up the equipment in such a way that the emotions of the person being tested do not affect the results of the examination.”

Is it good or bad?

I never found a clear answer. Obviously, the only conclusion that can be drawn comes down to the following rule: the polygraph is an effective tool for solving specific problems, but it is extremely dangerous as a regular measure to maintain a sense of corporate loyalty among employees. To create an atmosphere of trust in a company, obviously, completely different means must be used.
Polygraph testing of all employees, both during preliminary screening and during work, will do more harm than good. Firstly, the level of motivation to work and employee loyalty to management decreases, the moral and psychological climate in the team often worsens, and staff turnover increases. Secondly, the use of a polygraph scares off many promising applicants when applying for a job. In conditions of increasing competition for qualified personnel in the labor market, the systematic use of a lie detector during screening can negatively affect the competitiveness of the enterprise as a whole.
A separate problem is the lack of qualifications of many polygraph operators. This is largely due to the assembly line production of polygraph examiners for the commercial sector. According to Roman Ustyuzhanin, about 500 people work in this field in Russia, but no more than 50 of them are true masters of their craft. In any case, the management of an enterprise should think ten times before deciding to use a polygraph in their company: the use of this powerful weapon may turn out to be counterproductive.

Vladimir Makarov
www.hh.ru

Lyudmila Ivanovna Kuzmicheva, head of the Department of Consulting and Legal Protection of the Moscow City Legal Center “Zashchita”, and Natalya Petrovna Borodina, head of the Department of Legal Information and Codification of the Moscow State Legal Center “Zashchita”, talk about the legal aspects of polygraph checks by commercial companies:

The ban on the use of a polygraph by employers is not reflected in the norms of the current Labor Code of the Russian Federation.
However, the use of a polygraph in the work of personnel services is prohibited by the Code of Practice for the Protection of Personal Data about Employees, developed by experts of the International Labor Organization and officially approved by the Administrative Council in 1996. The Code, in particular, states that “polygraphs and other equipment for determining the veracity of answers are not must be applied" by the employer in relation to the employee.

- How justified is the use of polygraphs in the practice of commercial companies from an economic point of view?

In our opinion, this is unjustified. In modern conditions, one of the factors for the effective economic activity of an organization is the presence of mutual trust and social partnership between employees and the employer, this allows maintaining high motivation of employees to work. What kind of mutual trust and partnership can we talk about when using techniques such as polygraph testing? In this case, employees will sit and shake with fear waiting for an inspection instead of doing their job, and their motivation to work will disappear.
And when selecting job applicants, it is much more effective to use traditional methods, in particular, testing and interviews with a competent psychologist.

- What should an employee do if he is forced to undergo a polygraph test under threat of dismissal or if he was fired based on the results of this test?

The data obtained during polygraph testing cannot be used when making personnel decisions regarding an employee, and the results of polygraph testing cannot serve as a basis for refusing employment to a job applicant. In any case, written consent of the person being tested is required for testing.
If an employee was fired from work as a result of the fact that he refused to take a polygraph test or failed to pass it successfully, then he should file a lawsuit for reinstatement at work. It is extremely difficult to dismiss an employee legally; as practice shows, the vast majority of claims for reinstatement are won by dismissed employees. Alternative options are possible - contact the labor inspectorate or the prosecutor's office, the labor dispute commission, if the enterprise has one, or trade union organizations, if the employee is a member of a trade union.
A job candidate who has been denied employment has the right to demand from the employer a written justification for such a decision and to go to court with this paper. However, it is very difficult to win such claims.

From all that has been said, we can conclude that polygraph testing is not an insurmountable obstacle to employment and cannot serve as a basis for dismissal. Workers should firmly stand up for their rights and remember that forcing them to undergo a polygraph test under threat of dismissal is illegal.

Any person who receives an offer to take a lie detector begins to worry, look for information about what a polygraph is and how to pass it, what can await him as a result of such testing. Let's figure out why a polygraph test is carried out and how to properly prepare for it.

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What is a polygraph

Polygraph is a technical device used for recording psychophysiological reactions a person that arises in response to questions presented to him - stimuli.

Attention! In ordinary life, many people call the device a lie detector.

The procedure is carried out by a polygraph examiner - a specialist with special education in the field of conducting research using a polygraph.

The main objective of the examination is to establish the reliability of the information provided by the person being assessed to the polygraph examiner.

Polygraph

When is the inspection carried out?

The popularity of polygraph tests is growing, and the scope of their application is actively expanding. Businesses are beginning to increasingly use this tool, trying to reduce their risks when hiring employees who can cause significant damage to the employer.

Most often, this method of assessing the reliability of information applies in the following cases:

Screening candidates when hiring.
Regular assessment of the organization’s operating personnel in order to monitor compliance with requirements, concerning safety business.
Checking employees if the enterprise an incident occurred: material assets, information leakage to competitors, receiving kickbacks.
In the judicial system conducting investigations.
In personal relationships, when, for example, family members want to check how honest they are with each other.

Polygraph test

Is the inspection legal?

Russian legislation does not prohibit conducting polygraph examinations, so there is nothing illegal in the offer to undergo them. But anyone can refuse them. And everyone who agrees to undergo polygraph testing signs voluntary consent.

Whether to refuse or not depends on how interested the person is in this procedure. Having rejected an offer, for example, when applying for a job, the candidate may lose chance get the job you want because the employer can conclude that the applicant has something to hide. He cannot refuse a candidate on this basis, but choosing another is his right.

When verification is not carried out

There are cases when it is really better not to take a polygraph test and refuse it yourself. This is especially true for situations where there is an understanding that the results of the decision are unlikely to be positive, since there is a need to hide something.

Polygraph testing is not carried out in relation to a certain category of people regardless of whether they are ready to go through it themselves or not.

Testing will not be held, If:

age of the subject less than 14 years old;
have mental illnesses and disorders;
there are signs of physical and mental exhaustion: fatigue, chronic lack of sleep, prolonged stress;
the subject takes strong drugs;
the person is sick with cardiovascular diseases or has problems with the respiratory system;
alcohol or drug intoxication was detected;
a woman is expecting a child, especially in the second half of pregnancy.

The polygraph examiner will definitely clarify the questions regarding the existing restrictions, and therefore you need to respond to them absolutely calmly. He asks about this not because he wants to convict someone of something, but on the contrary, he strives not to do harm, since all the listed cases relate to the possible receipt of an unreliable examination result.

The polygraph examiner is obliged to clarify questions regarding existing restrictions on testing

The principle of operation of a lie detector

Polygraph is technical device, which does not evaluate anything, does not make a verdict. Its task is to record a person’s physiological reactions to questions and at the moment of providing an answer to them. Any emotion is always reflected on the physical level: sweating, changes in breathing or pulse. It is these indicators that detector will detect.

A polygraph is a complex consisting of several parts:

Sensors that measure blood pressure, pulse, respiration and sweating.
A device that registers signals coming from sensors and then transmits information to a computer.
Computer with specialized software m, evaluating the resulting reactions. As a result, the program generates a graph - a polygram, which shows all the changes occurring in a person.

At the end of the examination, the polygraph examiner will analyze the polygram and prepare a conclusion with the results of the assessment.

The questions asked are based on special questionnaires– tests necessary to verify the reliability of information provided to test takers on specific research topics.

How is testing carried out?

Polygraph testing consists of from several stages.

Meeting and getting acquainted with a polygraph examiner.
A preliminary conversation in which the purpose of the inspection will be explained and the procedure will be explained. It is important to know that all questions that will be asked will be discussed. Until the polygraph examiner is convinced that the test taker knows and understands all the test questions, he will not begin the procedure itself.
Human signs consent to pass the test or refuse.
If you agree, the testing phase begins. First, detailed instructions are given: how to behave, what not to do, sensors are put on, and questions are asked.
During the tests, the polygraph examiner may have additional questions in connection with the reactions of the test taker. In this case, a second conversation is conducted, the information is clarified and changes are made to the test questions, and the test continues.
At the end of the procedure, the polygraph examiner releases the person being tested and processes the results obtained, prepares a conclusion.

Is it possible to fool a lie detector?

For as long as the polygraph has existed, the question of whether it can be deceived has been discussed for so long. Experts believe that this can be done almost impossible, and among non-specialists there are a considerable number of people who believe that this is very easy to do.

Further more. On the Internet you can find advice on how to pass a lie detector and deceive it, and even describe ways in which this can be done. You can even find offers to take a lie detector test online.

When studying recommendations on how to pass a polygraph without problems and deceive the detector, it is important to remember that it does not pay any attention to words or facial expressions. It records reactions that occur in the human body and are a consequence of the work of the brain. Those who learn to control their own reflexes, then will be able to deceive polygraph.

Any method used by the test taker to bypass the polygraph is countered by polygraph examiners.

Can follow recommendations: take pills, don’t get enough sleep, don’t think about anything while answering questions, concentrate your attention on the flower standing on the windowsill. However, an experienced specialist will immediately see this and will treat the test results very carefully.

Separately, it is necessary to note the proposals to test yourself by taking online lie detectors. Essentially, this is a psychological test that determines emotional stability. And on this basis, the probable possibility of deceiving the detector is calculated.

To trust such results or not, to use or refuse the proposed methods to deceive the polygraph is everyone’s personal choice.

How to pass a polygraph when applying for a job

The offer to undergo a screening test when applying for a job may come as a surprise to many. Almost everyone begins to get nervous about this topic, and many perceive such information as an insult to their honor and dignity. But if we assume that the candidate himself was an employer, and he had a chance to weed out those who could potentially threaten the business on which so much time and effort was spent, would he refuse such an opportunity? The question is rhetorical, and the employer can also be understood.

Important! Concealing the truth is the main reason why the result may clearly not be in favor of the person being tested.

There are several factors capable of influencing on the test result.

Nerves, excitement, anxiety with which the candidate goes to the procedure. An experienced polygraph examiner will note this, and if for some reason he is unable to relieve the applicant’s excessive anxiety, then he can refuse to carry out check.
Taking sedatives before testing will slow down the reactions, which will be noted by the specialist. It's better not to do this.
Illness or general poor health will affect the result. If the physical condition deviates from normal, or pain bothers you, then you need to warn about this, and the procedure will be rescheduled for another day.

Passing a polygraph test when applying for a job

How to behave during an inspection

The main thing is to know how to behave during the test. The first thing is to get your nerves in order. And then follow everyone polygraph examiner's recommendations. You shouldn’t be afraid of him, you need to answer questions, try to explain to him as accurately as possible your reactions to them during a conversation between tests.

The worst thing you can do is — this is to start interfere with the examination: spinning in a chair, pressing on sensors, answering test questions in a few words instead of an unambiguous “Yes” or “No,” showing negative reactions to questions, being indignant. It's better to refuse right away.

For those who need to go through the detector for the first time, we can recommend taking into account some tips how to behave:

Do not plan urgent matters on the day of the polygraph test. The procedure may take a long time for 2-3 hours.
Try to be honest. The more truthful answers are given, the better the results will be. Remember that there are no absolutely honest people. If you have nothing special to hide, then there is nothing to fear.
Do not try to disrupt the test by not following the polygraph examiner’s recommendations. It's better not to come to it at all.

Useful video: how is a lie detector test performed and is it possible to fool a polygraph?

Have you ever deceived your loved ones? Have you ever taken something without asking? If you answered “Yes” to these questions, then you have already taken the first correct step towards passing a lie detector test.

The infamous polygraph test, also known as the "lie detector", is often seen as a cause of anxiety and fear even among people who have not committed any offenses and who must take the test without cheating or manipulating the results. Either way, you've come to the right place if you need advice on taking a lie detector test.

Steps

Before checking

Understand how the polygraph works. The polygraph is not able to detect lies, as such, but it monitors the physiological changes that occur in the body when a person lies (blood pressure, pulse, breathing, sweating).

Familiarize yourself with the test equipment and procedures when you arrive at your designated location. It's also a good idea to learn the basics on your own, but avoid the lie detector horror stories that tend to be posted online and make people even more nervous.

Try not to overthink the test in advance. You risk distorting the test results if you spend too much time worrying and needlessly judging yourself before taking a polygraph test.
- In order to avoid unnecessary worries, do not ask those who have taken a lie detector test about the process itself, do not waste time on self-analysis and do not try to predict the questions that will be asked to you.
- Try not to spend too much time browsing anti-printing sites, as they often confuse reality with false “facts” and can cause unnecessary panic.
The day before the test, take care of your body. You must be comfortable during testing to ensure accurate physiological responses. To do this, you should make sure that you are well rested and physically feel comfortable.
- Follow your routine as closely as possible. Even if it includes caffeinated coffee or a run in the morning, which tend to affect your heart rate. It is necessary to adhere to a daily routine, since your body is accustomed to working in these physiological conditions.
- The night before testing, try to get seven or eight hours of sleep.
- Make sure you are not hungry and your clothes are loose and comfortable.
Fill out all the forms given to you. Depending on the reason you are taking the polygraph test, you may be given forms to fill out, such as a personal information release form or a regular form that requires your permission. Take your time filling out the forms. Read them carefully and sign only when you are ready.

Tell the expert if you have any medical conditions or medications you are taking. If you are currently sick, the examiner may change your test date. Some medications, such as blood pressure medications, may interfere with lie detector results. So you are obliged to inform the expert if there are any.
- If you have a disease, you will feel uncomfortable, which will distort the results.
- If you are using prescription medications, continue to take them as directed by your doctor before starting the test.
- Contrary to popular belief, most antidepressants cannot change printing results and allow you to "not mention their use." But despite this, you need to inform the expert about their use (if this is the case), as antidepressants can lead to abnormal results.
Review the questions and take as much time as possible to understand them. In some cases, polygraph examiners provide questions in advance. Take your time while studying them, and also do not hesitate to ask an expert to clarify vague or confusing questions.
- You should ask the expert to clarify all questions immediately before starting the test. Your answers will be limited to "yes" and "no", and therefore any discussion during the test is prohibited, so all questions must be asked before the test begins.
Know what questions will be used. The following types of questions are used in the tests: neutral, significant and control.
- Neutral questions are not intended to provoke any reaction. As a rule, they are used to understand how attentive the examinee is. It doesn't matter how you react to them - these results will not be taken into account. Examples of questions: “Your name is Igor?”, “Do you live in Russia?”
- The purpose of meaningful questions is to identify possible wrongdoing. It is assumed that the person who committed the unlawful act will be significantly nervous, which will be reflected in the indicators of the device. Otherwise, all indicators should not deviate from the norm. Of course, reactions to these questions will be taken into account when summing up the results.
- Control questions do not indicate any illegal action, but are more general in nature. Their goal is to cause nervous excitement in the test taker. During the test, the polygraph examiner will evaluate your physiological reactions to questions that, in the opinion of the expert, you definitely lied about.
Standard polygraphic test
1. Allow yourself to be nervous. During polygraph testing, no one remains calm, even if the person in question is innocent of anything and has nothing to hide. By allowing yourself to be nervous, you will give the polygraph examiner the opportunity to determine accurate physiological statistics while you are telling the truth or lying.
  
  Tell the truth. Answer the truth to every question asked, unless you have something that you want to hide or that you are ashamed of. As a rule, people are most likely to lie when answering security questions. The more often you tell the truth, the more accurate the results will be, which will help determine your innocence.
  - People are often afraid of trap questions, but experts in many countries are now increasingly inclined to use more direct questions.
  - Listen carefully to the entire question and answer it as accurately as possible. Don't answer after listening to only half the question, and also learn to understand what is being asked In fact they ask you.
2. Take your time. Depending on who is testing you, you may have the examiner repeat the question two to six times. Find out how often you can repeat a question before starting the test. Take your time when answering questions, as feeling rushed may skew the test results.
  - The survey usually takes five to ten minutes, but depending on how often the questions are repeated to you, how long it takes you to make a decision, and the nature and reason for the test, it may take longer.
Manipulation of test results
1. Create a stressful state for yourself by answering security questions. If, while answering a security question, there is a need to deceive the polygraph, most people recommend inducing mental or physical stress on their own. Your baseline will rise, so when you lie, the line on the polygraph will be smaller than the line produced during the control test.

According to the well-known portal SuperJob, only 9% of employers actively use a polygraph when hiring employees or for further certification. And more than 50% of respondents, who were people actively looking for work, were ready to pass the test. So, why this device is needed and how not to fail when applying for a position that requires such verification, we will consider further in our article.

The use of a polygraph during employment

The polygraph was originally developed, like many modern devices in our lives, for military purposes. It was and is used to obtain secret information from various spies, to check honesty and responsibility when applying for work in departmental organizations, for example, the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Today, the area of its use for testing potential employees is rapidly developing.

Fact! The lie detector records such manifestations of microstress as rapid breathing, changes in blood pressure and pulse rate.

Only large companies can afford the apparatus and the maintenance of a specially trained employee, so many did not have to participate in this kind of experiment.

Often, this kind of check is arranged unexpectedly for the candidate, that is, they are informed about it after passing through two or three stages of selection. This is done so as not to scare off a valuable candidate. If you categorically do not accept such checks, then no one can force you and you should check with the employer at the very first interview whether the selection involves polygraph testing. If you ask a direct question, no one will lie and you can save time and effort.

What questions will you have to answer?

A specialist polygraph examiner will discuss a set of questions with you in advance. He will find out which topics cannot be discussed and assess the degree of reaction. After all, some people are worried even at the thought of this kind of test, although they are absolutely honest and responsible.

Don't worry! If you fall into this emotional category, then don't worry. An experienced specialist will always be able to correctly interpret certain reactions and draw the right conclusions.

There are standard blocks of questions, here are some of them:

personal information reflected in the questionnaire and additional (for example, about the profession of the common-law husband, etc.);
questions about theft at previous places of work;
causing material damage to previous employers;
whether you or your family have a criminal record;
withholding information when applying for a job;
presence of connections with competing companies;
issues related to gaming, alcohol, nicotine and other types of addictions;
questions about unfulfilled obligations to credit institutions;
additional questions regarding satisfaction with the chosen profession;
test block for specialized knowledge and competencies;
checking references, etc.

Remember. You are not required to answer all questions. If any question seems inappropriate to you, tell the polygraph examiner directly.

Before testing, you can take a sedative; it will not affect the results in any way, but will help you feel more confident and calm.

Lie detectors test from 4 to 16 parameters of a person’s physiological state and determine them with a high degree of accuracy. But the result must be processed by specially trained professionals, otherwise it is worthless.

If you decide to take part in the bark detector test procedure, then carefully consider the following tips.

Get a good night's sleep and rest. The testing procedure often takes about three hours. You cannot move, swallow saliva or even blink while taking the test, so the person must be focused and collected.
Take sedatives such as motherwort or valerian. They will help you be calmer and not rush to destroy expensive equipment after a long interrogation.
Be honest and do not try to suppress psychophysiological reactions with muscular efforts. Good equipment will immediately determine this, but a polygraph examiner may perceive the information as false.

They have no right to fire you or refuse to hire you based on a polygraph test. If you go to court, such a decision will be appealed, and a fine may be imposed on the employer, so make a decision carefully, without fear or doom.

How to bypass a polygraph?

Bypassing a lie detector is difficult, but possible. It’s worth noting right away that you won’t be able to do this without special preparation, but trying is not torture.

With the help of psychological trainings and techniques, try to abstract yourself from the polygraph and polygraph examiner. So, you can either not react at all to the questions asked, even the most inconvenient ones, or give a reaction that is beneficial to you, and not the one that should be. Think about the weather outside the window, nature, problems of global significance, that is, about things that really don’t interest you at all.

Do not give in to the suggestions of employees who tell you that it is impossible to deceive the equipment, it sees everything and hears everything. This is a complete lie. The reliability of lie detectors is still controversial; they often produce false results and miss objective facts.

You can fool the detector if you get rid of inner fear. You can imagine yourself during the test as a new, completely stranger, a person who has never made mistakes.

You need to rehearse the deception in advance; ask a friend or relative to help. You can test primitive reactions at home, for example, by measuring your pulse before and after the survey.

Important! The more complex the device, the more focused and calm you should be. Remember, you can stop the test at any time. No one has the right to hold you back and force you to answer personal questions.

Ethical side of the issue

From a legal point of view, a polygraph test is permissible only on a voluntary basis (Article 2 and Part 3 of Article 17 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation). But there is also an ethical side to the issue. Many people find it unpleasant to feel like lab rats and fulfill all the whims of their employers. After all, cooperation should be based on mutual trust and respect.

Surely the employer is not considering options in which the future specialist will require the manager to take a bark test to verify his honesty and find out how often and for what reasons he delayed wages for his employees and other inconvenient questions.

Think carefully about what is more important to you: a new position or inner peace and self-esteem. If you are a truly valuable candidate, then it is quite possible to negotiate the abolition of the polygraph test procedure or its modification, which involves careful filtering of questions, as well as the time and order of the procedure.

Interesting fact! Only 25% of Russians consider the polygraph to be evil and will never agree to undergo this kind of procedure.

If you nevertheless agree, then remember that the information obtained during testing is completely confidential and cannot be passed on to third parties. The corresponding point must be stated in the document on consent to inspection by the detector.

Bark detection testing is becoming a fashionable procedure today and is often just a whim of employers who, like many of us, love Hollywood blockbusters about spies and special agents.

Video about the use of a polygraph in employment