FOUR (4) PHASES OF POLYGRAPH

EXAMINATION
PHASE I (PRELIMINARY PREPARATIONS) - Initial Interview with the investigator
handling the case or person requesting it. The group involve in this stage are the
Victim / Complaint, Suspects, Witnesses. This stage includes obtaining and evaluation
of facts, determining the areas the subjects needs to be asked and the investigator
must furnish the examiner of the following:
• Sworn statement of the suspect / witnesses/ victim/ complainant, Incident or spot
report, B.I. of the suspect, witnesses, and victim / complainants, rough sketch or
pictures of the crime scene and other facts such as Specific article and exact amount
of money stolen.
• Peculiar aspect of the offense or any strange set.
• Exact time the offense was committed.
• Known facts about the suspect’s action or movement.
• Facts indicating any connection between the suspects, victim and witnesses.
• Exact type of weapon, tool or firearms used.
• Result of laboratory test.
PHASE II - PRE-TEST INTERVIEW with the subject - The primary
purpose of the pre-test interview of to prepare or condition the
subject for the test The appraisal of subject’s constitutional right.
Obtain subject’s consent to undergo polygraph test by signing a
statement of consent.
The taking of personal data of the
subject. Determining his/her
suitability as a subject.
Evaluating the psychological preparation of the
subject. Informing the subject of his involvement
with the case.
The following rights of the subject must be informed clearly to
him/her:
• The right to remain silent
• Anything he/she say may be used in favor or against
him/her
• The right to have a lawyer of his/her own choice
• Right to refuse

As earlier noted, subjects will not be scheduled for

examination when they:
• are obviously fatigued or in ill health.
• are physically injured or in pain.
• their judgment is obviously influenced by or
impaired by drugs or alcohol.
• have just suffered emotional trauma.
PHASE III (THE EXAMINATION/INSTRUMENTAL TEST) – The
conduct of Instrumentation and Actual Test.
After the pre-test interview, the examiner should
proceed to place the attachment on the subject. The
first to be attached is Pneumograph, then the
Cardiosphymograph and the Galvanograph. Review
all the questions with the subject before the actual
examination is made. The examiner should
discourage any comments or statement by the
subjects. Test instrument must be given to the subject.
 PHASE IV – POST–TEST INTERVIEW/ INTERROGATION - This
includes
all consideration that bears on the examination. This is done just
after the instrument is turned off. If the Polygraph test result
indicates deception, the examiner will then proceed to conduct
short interrogation. The purpose of which is to obtain confession.
However, if the Polygraph indicates that the subject is innocent;
the examiner will just release the subject cordially and thanks
him/ her for his/her cooperation.

The purposes of further questioning after the test are:

• to clarify the findings;

• to learn if there are any other reasons for the subject’s
responding to a relevant question, other than the knowledge of
the crime; and
• to obtain additionalinformation and an admission
 An interview is conducted when the subject
indicates innocent response while interrogation
is undertaken if symptoms of deception are
indicated by the results of the actual polygraph
test.
 The interrogatory technique is applied
to secure admission or confession
using the ff. procedures:
• Inform the subject that he cannot be cleared from his
chart;
• Convince the subject that the responses were
result of his emotion & not by means of any
mechanical manipulations;
• Use sympathetic and persuasive attitude as
well as perseverance in eliciting confession or
admission;
• Point out recorded reactions with brief explanations
of their importance as objective, tangible & concrete
evidence to be used against the subject
• Rationalize the subject’s act by offering a way to
excuse his conduct or minimize the significance or
swing the blame to someone or to some situation.
• If confession is coming allow the subject to relate it in
his own version;
• Carefully listen to specific details & write it down firs
at instance; t
• Never make any promise as to immunity, reward or
leniency;
• Inform the investigator on case;
• If no confession was given, cordially release the
subject;
 FORMULATION OF TEST QUESTIONS
■ Questions must be simple and direct
General Rules in formulating Test Questions

■ They must not involve legal terminologies

■ They must be as simple and as short as possible
■ Answerable by Yes or No.
■ They must not be in a form of accusatorial.
■ Their meaning must be clear and they must be phrased in a
language that the
■ They must never contain inference which presupposes knowledge
subject can easily understand.

on the part

■ They must refer to one offense only

of the subject.

■ They must refer to one element of the offense.

■ They must not contain inference to one’s religion, race or belief.
 DIFFERENT TYPES OF TEST
QUESTIONS
Irrelevant Questions
These are questions that have no bearing to
the case under investigation. The question may refer to
the subject‘s age, educational attainment, marital
status, citizenship, occupation, etc. The examiner asks
these types of questions to ascertain the subject‘s
normal patter of response by eliminating the feeling of
apprehension.
Examples: Did you
eat today? Do you smoke?
Are you from
Baguio?
Relevant Questions
These are questions pertaining to the issue under
investigation. They must be unambiguous, unequivocal and
understandable to the subject. They must all be related to
one issue or one criminal act. Relevant questions must be
very specific to obtain an accurate result. It is further
classified according to its stimulation effect when applied,
namely:
A.STRONG RELEVANT. It has an intense and specific
relationship to the crime or problem being considered. This is
intended to produce strong emotional response in guilty
subjects.
Example: Did you steal Hazel‘s watch?
B.SECONDARY OR WEAK RELEVANT. Questions that
concern some secondary elements of the crime and deal
mostly on guilty knowledge and partial involvement.
Example: Do you know where the missing watch of Hazel‘s in
Control Questions
These questions compare the physiological
response to relevant questions about the crime
with the response to questions relating to possible
prior misdeeds. These are also questions designed to
produce a response in the innocent subject. ―This
question is often used to determine whether certain
criminal suspects should be prosecuted or classified as
uninvolved in the crime (American Psychological
Association)
 a.Primary Control Questions – it is based on a known
lie. E.g. subject denying having done something,
which is verified, or known to be true would be a good
basis for the construction of control questions.
Example: Before reaching the age of 25, have you
ever stolen anything?
b.Secondary Control Questions – is of a more
specified in nature and is based upon another set of
wrong doings, which will enhance the opportunity for
responsiveness. Its scope includes up to present period
of examination.
Example: Have you stolen anything from this
locality? In formulating the Secondary Control
Questions, the examiner, in case of theft, asks the
subject whether he had stolen anything from the place
of his employment but not related to the offense under
investigation.
Knowledge Questions
These are questions designed to prove whether the
subject possesses information regarding the identity of
the offender or location of evidence or facts of the case
under investigation.
Example: Do you who stole the watch of Hazel?
Evidence-Connecting Questions
This is designed to stimulate the guilty subject
and focus his attention on the probability of
incriminating proof that would tend to establish his
guilt. In formulating these questions, the examiner
must secure information from the investigator on the
availability of evidences collected from the crime scene.
Example: Were the found footprints outside of
Hazel‘s house yours?
Guilt-Complex Questions
This is specialized control question designed to
safeguard against mistaking relevant questions response
and is based on a fictitious crime under investigation.
The examiner, prior to approaching the subject,
must be certain that the fictitious crime was never
actually committed. The details of the question must be
specific enough that the guilty subject can be sure he
did not commit this particular offense.
Example: Did you steal the gold coin of Juan?
Symptomatic Questions
This is a question designed to detect and
evaluate the presence of outside issues, which may
suppose responses to relevant questions. As outside
issue factor is present in subject who fears that he
might be asked about another case in which he is
involved, but not the subject matter under investigation.
Example: "DO you understand that I'm not going to ask any
trick or surprise questions?"
Sacrifice or DYAT Question
This is intended to obtain responses usually
produced by the introduction of the first relevant
question in the sequence. These divulge the subject’s
norm plus and excitement stage.

DO
YOU
INTEND TO
ANSWER
TRUTHFULLY?
S-K-Y Question
These are three (3) questions grouped together by
Backster and used only on the third chart in the zone
comparison test. They are designed to confirm the
previous charts and detect indirect involvement or
guilty knowledge.

S stands for suspect

Do you suspect anyone in particular of
stealing any of that money?
K stands for know
Do you know for sure who stole any of the money?
Y stands for you
Did you steal any of the money?
 TEST TECHNIQUES
The polygraph test consists of asking the
subject/person though the transducer of the instrument, a
list of prepared questions in a planned sequence;
comprising of not more than twelve. At least 3 test charts
are taken, each lasting not more than four (4) minutes with
a rest interval of five (5) to ten (10) minutes between charts.

TEST I – GENERAL QUESTION TEST (GQT)

This test is about case under investigation. These are
sequence of relevant, irrelevant and control questions asked
in a designed order.
The questions are arranged in order to contrast the
subject’s responses between relevant and control questions.
The answer to the questions is restricted to YES or NO only.
A. REID AND INBAU RELEVANT – IRRELEVANT TECHNIQUE
Developed the reviewed control question
consisting of a known lie incorporated into
relevant/irrelevant test. Reid‘s control question
represents a major breakthrough in polygraph
technique.
 EXAMPLE
1. Irrelevant Question – Have you ever been called by the name
Pedro?
2. Irrelevant Question – Do you drink water?
3.Weak Relevant – Were you in the vicinity
of Jolina Walangdangal‘s house between 10:00 and 12:00 p.m. last
night?
4. Irrelevant Question – Do you finish college?
5. Strong RelevantQuestion- Did you steal the gold necklaceof
Jolina
Walangdangal?
6.Primary Control Question – Before reaching the
age 25 have you ever stolen anything?
7. Irrelevant Question – Are you married?
8. Evidence Connecting Question – Were the fingerprints in the
jewelry box
of Jolina Walangdangal yours?
9.Knowledge Question – Do you know for sure who stole the
gold necklace of Jolina Walangdangal?
 BACKSTER ZONE COMPARISON
Backster devised standardized technique
relevant/irrelevant
incorporating questions, to identify any outside issue factor
interferewith the test, conceivedthe psychological set theory
that might and the
anticlimax dampening concept, which form a basis of his zone
of comparision.
EXAMPLE
1. Irrelevant Question
2. Sacrifice Relevant Question
3. Symptomatic Question
4. Control Question
5. Strong Relevant Question
6. Control 7. Strong Relevant Question
8. Symptomatic Question
9. Guilt Question
10.Weak Relevant Question
11.S-K-Y Question
BACKSTER ZONE COLOR CODING
GREEN ZONE
For the control questions

RED ZONE
For the relevant question

BLACK ZONE
for the symptomatic
questions
 QUADRI-ZONE
COMPARISON
Provide mechanism for the identification of ―inside issue factors that
adversely affect the
control question, permitting timely corrective measures.
EXAMPLE
1. Irrelevant Question – neutral
2. Relevant Question – weak
3. Symptomatic Question –
4. Control Question – strong
5. Relevant Question – strong
6. Control Question – strong
7. Relevant Question – strong
8. Control Question – variable strength
9. Relevant Question – variable strength
10.Symptomatic Question
11.Relevant Question – weak
 QUINQUE-ZONE COMPARISON
A degradation of the Quadri-Zone Comparison
technique in that three relevant questions are included
in the test instead of the usual two relevant
questions; all of the control questions found in the
QZC technique plus one additional control question to
compare against the third relevant question.
 EXAMPLE
1. Irrelevant Question – neutral
2. Relevant Question – medium
strength
3. Symptomatic Question –
4. Control Question – strong
5. Relevant Question – strong
6. Control Question – strong
7. Relevant Question – strong
8. Control Question – strong
9. Relevant Question – strong
10.Relevant Question – medium
strength
11.Relevant Question – variable
strength
12.Symptomatic Question
TEST II – CARD OR NUMBER (STIMULATION OR VERIFICATION
TEST)
- Done while all the instruments are still attached to the body.
- Upon finishing of the 1st test, here is
another part of the test; the
examiner will show to the subject 7 variously numbered
cards, face
down. The numbers 7, 11, and 13 should not be used
because other
subjects are too superstitious and numbers 6
and 9 should not be included to avoid
confusion on the part of the subject.
- The subject is given an instruction to get a card,
look at it and
memorize the numberof the card that was chosen and
return it without showing it to the examiner or telling
the number.
- After the selection is finished, the examiner
shuffles the cards and
will instruct the subject to answer NO to each question
regarding the
TEST III – SPOT RESPONDER TEST
This test contains question previously asked in
GENERAL QUESTIONS TEST with the same number of the
same questions on the earlier test.

TEST IV – MIXED QUESTION TEST

The test is the same with Test III but the questions of
GQT is again mixed and the sequences of the question are
rearranged.
TEST V – SILENT ANSWER TEST (SAT)
In this test the subject is instructed by the examiner
to avoid from giving any verbal answer to the questions that
are to be asked of him during the test.
The subject is instructed to pay attention to each
question and answer the question only to himself, silently.
In short, the subject should sub vocalize his answer, in
addition he should think of truthful answer and give that
 SUPPLEMENTARY TEST
A. Peak of Tension Test
This type of test is only made possible when there is no
widespread
publicity about a crime where intimate details
as to the method of
commission of certain facts of the case is only know by
the
perpetrator, the victim and the investigator. It
is answerable by NO
only. resemble,in every general way, the card test, for it
consist
essentially of the asking of a series of question in which only
one has any bearing upon the matter under investigation.
= padding questions before and after the relevant
questions.

B. Guilt Complex Test

This test is applied when the response to relevant and