How can you know if someone is lying or not? As simple as the question may sound, the answer is so complicated that even machines created by psychologists and engineers could not answer this. Most people lie at all times, starting from major lies to minor ones which are used to make our lives easier. According to Phil Houston, who is a former CIA interrogator, a normal person says around 10 lies within 24 hours. Yet, despite that, the chances of the lies being discovered are only 54%.
Interrogation Bot
An interrogation bot was created for this purpose, as it can tell whether someone is lying or not. The 3 sensors present in this bot are all that is needed to determine if someone is lying. The first sensor is the infrared camera, which records the pupil dilation and eye movements, and this helps the private investigators know who is lying, as pupils dilate when a lie is told due to the stress that is caused by lying. It contains a video camera as well, which records the movements of a person, such as nodding, scratching, and shrugging, which are habits that increase when a lie is being told. And finally, it contains a microphone, which detects the change in pitch that occurs during a lie. In the future, other features will also be added to this machine, such as a platform for a weight sensor, and a 3D camera to track the person’s body movements.
Physiological And The Psychological Perspective
Despite the existence of such a sophisticated machine, very little is still known about deception, from both the physiological and the psychological perspective. However, that is something that government agencies aren’t willing to understand. What they want is a machine which will be able to extract the truth out of a person, and that is where the polygraph emerged from. The polygraph works the same way that it did back in 1921, when it was first built. It hasn’t changed at all and still measures the heart rate, perspiration, and blood pressure. That stated, the polygraph machine’s validity has been questioned since the very beginning.
Over 90% Accuracy
That said, it is still accurate over 90% of the time. However, Phil Houston, a private investigator that has worked with the CIA, has clearly pointed out that this device relies more on the expertise of the examiner and not the machine. An examiner needs to ask the right type of questions that will produce the desired outcome and can intimidate the suspect and make them tell the truth. Without the help of private investigators, a lie detector has no use.
Polygraph Testing In Court
And this is the reason why, although certain state courts have allowed the use of polygraph testing, federal courts rarely use the examinations of polygraph machines as evidence. The National Academy of Sciences, in 2003, has said that the evidence collected from polygraph testing is weak, and although it is effective in criminal investigations, it is useless when it is used like a screening tool. Other devices too, the ones that have been claimed could work as proper lie detectors, such as brain scans, voice stress analysis, and pupillometry, has also been proven almost useless.