Lie Detector Tests for Disabled Persons

Individuals with disabilities can often be given polygraph exams, but the testing method will involve some procedural adjustments.
See the list of disabilities below for guidelines to test those individuals.
- Visually impaired – Very similar procedure to testing a sighted person, although the Examinee may need assistance reading and signing the consent forms.
- Hearing impaired – This may require the use of a signing interpreter, which must be approved by your Examiner. Also, since the Examinee does not face the Examiner during the data collection phase, the interpreter will prepare and hold up Flash Cards for the Examinee to read and respond to.
- Speech impaired – The Examinee must be able to answer questions, so his/her responses (during the interview) may have to be written. During the data collection phase, the Examinee may answer “yes” or “no” questions with a slight nod or shake of the head.
- Mobility impaired – If the Examinee is unable to walk, they may need assistance getting into the examination chair. If necessary, the person can be tested in a wheelchair, although this is not ideal.
- Severe burns – If the skin on the Examinee’s arms or hands is severely burned, the Examiner may have to attach sensors to other areas of the body (usually legs).
- Amputations – No polygraph sensors are attached to the legs. Sensors are typically attached to a person’s torso and arms, hands and fingers. If the Examinee does not have arms, hands or fingers available, the sensors can be placed in alternate locations (ie. blood pressure cuff on the calf).
- Cognitive (mental) impairments – If the Examinee is cognitively impaired, the Examiner will have to evaluate whether that person is a suitable candidate for testing. Polygraph results do rely on “normal” congnitive function for best results. Persons with significant mental impairment can not be tested.
- Memory impairments – The polygraph process does require the Examinee to have an adequate memory of the event or issue under investigation. If the person’s memory is impaired, either by illness or injury, the test results will be less than reliable.
- ADHD – If the condition is mild, or successfully medicated, testing individuals with ADHD is not a problem. The Examinee must be able to follow the Examiner’s instructions and to sit perfectly still for up to seven minutes at a time.
- Severe pain – Since the human pain response will override other Autonomic reactions, anyone experiencing significant pain at the time of the exam should not be tested. If the pain can be significantly reduced with medication, and the medications themselves do not impair normal thought processes, the exam may be considered.
This page addresses the following issues:
- Lie Detector (Polygraph) for disabled persons
- Lie Detector (Polygraph) for persons with disabilities
- Lie Detector (Polygraph) for visually impaired
- Lie Detector (Polygraph) for Hearing impaired
- Lie Detector (Polygraph) for Speech impaired
- Lie Detector (Polygraph) for Mobility impaired
- Lie Detector (Polygraph) for Mentally impaired
- Lie Detector (Polygraph) for persons with ADHD
- Lie Detector (Polygraph) for persons with pain