Why are lie detectors used if they don’t work?, with Leonard Saxe

A talk with psychologist Leonard Saxe, who is known for, amongst other things, his research into lie detectors (also known as polygraphs). Topics discussed include: why polygraphs and other forms of deception detection are unreliable; the use of polygraphs as a tool to extract information and confessions; the Richard Ames case, which involved a high-level CIA employee spying for the Soviet Union and beating a polygraph when questioned; a story where someone’s life was ruined due to cops trusting polygraph evidence far too much; and more.

Episode links:

• YouTube (includes video of talk)
• Apple Podcasts
• Spotify

Resources related to this talk:

• Leonard Saxe’s papers
• Saxe’s 1985 paper The Validity of Polygraph Testing
• Previous talk for this podcast about the unreliability of using behavior to detect deception
• Previous talk about using machine learning to detect deception