Polygraph test examiners rely on physiological responses to determine whether you’re lying or telling the truth. However, these responses can be influenced by a variety of factors.
There are many ways to try and fool a lie detector test, but most of them don’t work. Biting your tongue hard or putting a tack in your shoe to induce pain won’t affect perspiration levels, for example.
- Practice
While it is true that certain medical conditions, including epilepsy, nerve damage, and heart disease, can prevent you from taking a polygraph test, many people who don’t meet these criteria can still beat the test. The key is changing your heart rate, blood pressure, and sweat level during the control questions that are asked to establish a baseline. By making these responses off the chart, your answers to the relevant questions, which may be lies, will seem like the truth.
Some websites suggest squeezing one foot extremely hard, biting your tongue, or poking your thumb in the sole of your shoe to drive up these reactions during the control question portion of the test. While these techniques work, they can also make you appear nervous and anxious, which might cause an examiner to assume that you are lying.
- Breathe
A lot of advice online suggests that you can beat a lie detector by biting your tongue or using a technique called box breathing. Essentially, you breathe in for 4 seconds, hold it for 4 seconds, and then breathe out for 4 seconds. This will slow your heart rate and blood pressure and can save you from having a strong reaction to questioning.
However, this isn’t foolproof. For example, if you’re applying antiperspirant before taking the test, it may reduce the effectiveness of sensors on your fingers that measure sweating. Also, the examiner may have a different perspective of what peaks or dips in physiological responses mean. So, you could still have a false positive. This is why it’s important to answer the questions honestly and stick with yes-or-no answers.
- Relax
The polygraph test is a stressful and confusing experience. Some people have found that trying to remain calm and not expressing too much emotion can help them pass the test. Other tips include daydreaming or imagining your favorite place to keep yourself calm and relaxed.
Some people have also tried to trick the polygraph machine by acting distraught. This can confuse the examiner and make your answers to relevant questions seem true. However, this is difficult to master and it can cause erratic responses. Additionally, the examiner will be able to see that there is a difference between your truth and lie answers, which can also affect the results of your exam. Polygraph experts are familiar with these methods and will easily catch them.
- Stay calm
While searching the internet can bring up conflicting information and advice, there are some tried-and-true methods to pass a lie detector test. One way is to use mental countermeasures, such as imagining calming scenes or repeating a mantra. Another is to physically squirm around while the examiner asks you questions, such as biting your tongue or poking your foot to artificially increase your stress levels.For more info, do visit this website Lie Detector Test.
Polygraphs monitor sweating with electrodes on your fingers; heart rate and blood pressure via cuffs around your arms; and breathing through chest straps. Changes in those variables cause needles to rise and fall on a chart, which the examiner analyzes to determine if you are telling the truth or lying. By manipulating your physiologic responses to the control and irrelevant questions, you can send them off the charts, making the relevant answers seem truthful by comparison.
- Stay positive
The best way to pass a polygraph test is to be honest throughout. You should say only what you need to and avoid admitting anything that isn’t relevant to the question at hand.
The examiner is observing your body language and non-verbal communication cues throughout the exam. If you look and sound nervous, he or she may suspect you’re lying.
Many blogs and articles suggest spontaneous countermeasures like biting your tongue or putting a tack in your shoe to induce pain, but these tricks aren’t very effective. They don’t change your heart, blood pressure and breathing rates enough to send your control lies off the charts. You can also psych yourself out by mentally reinterpreting the irrelevant questions. Then, when asked about a specific crime or issue, you can take your time to answer the questions.
