Ewout Meijer

Memory detection: theory and application of the concealed information test

Part I. Introduction: Introduction. Science on the rise: birth and development of the Concealed Information Test Christopher J. Patrick 1. Encouraging the use of the Guilty Knowledge Test (GKT): what the GKT has to offer law enforcement William G. Iacono Part II. The Laboratory: Theoretical and Empirical Foundations of the Concealed Information Test: 2. Detecting concealed information using autonomic measures Matthias Gamer 3. Detecting concealed information in less than a second: response latency-based measures Bruno Verschuere and Jan De Houwer 4. P300 in detecting concealed information J. Peter Rosenfeld 5. Detecting of deception and concealed information using neuroimaging techniques Matthias Gamer 6. New and old covert measures in the Concealed Information Test Eitan Elaad 7. Theory of the Concealed Information Test Bruno Verschuere and Gershon Ben-Shakhar Part III. Field Applications of Concealed Information Detection: Promises and Perils: 8. Limitations of the Concealed Information Test in criminal cases Donald J. Kraphol 9. Validity of the Concealed Information Test in realistic contexts Eitan Elaad 10. Leakage of information to innocent suspects M. T. Bradley, Clair A. Barefoot and Andrea M. Arsenault 11. Countermeasures Gershon Ben-Shakhar 12. Psychopathy and the detection of concealed information Bruno Verschuere 13. Clinical applications of the Concealed Information Test John J. B. Allen 14. Daily application of the Concealed Information Test: Japan Akemi Osugi 15. The Concealed Information Test in the courtroom: legal aspects Gershon Ben-Shakhar and Mordechai Kremnitzer Part IV. Conclusions: 16. Practical guidelines for developing a Concealed Information Test Ewout Meijer, Bruno Verschuere and Gershon Ben-Shakhar Epilogue Gershon Ben-Shakhar, Bruno Verschuere and Ewout Meijer.

Memory detection with the Concealed Information Test: A meta analysis of skin conductance, respiration, heart rate, and P300 data

The Concealed Information Test (CIT) uses psychophysiological measures to determine the presence or absence of crime-related information in a suspects memory. We conducted a meta-analysis on the validity of the CIT based on four physiological measures-skin conductance response (SCR), respiration line length (RLL), changes in heart rate (HR), and enhanced amplitudes of the P300 component of the event-related potential (P300). This meta-analysis relied on laboratory studies that used either the mock-crime or the personal-item paradigm. Results showed a mean effect size (d*) of 1.55 for SCR, 1.11 for RLL, 0.89 for HR, and 1.89 for P300. However, P300 outperformed SCR only in the personal-item paradigm, but not in the mock-crime paradigm. Motivation level, number of questions, publication year, and the inclusion of innocent participants emerged as significant moderators for the SCR, while only the type of paradigm used moderated the P300 effect.

The ease of lying

Brain imaging studies suggest that truth telling constitutes the default of the human brain and that lying involves intentional suppression of the predominant truth response. By manipulating the truth proportion in the Sheffield lie test, we investigated whether the dominance of the truth response is malleable. Results showed that frequent truth telling made lying more difficult, and that frequent lying made lying easier. These results implicate that (1) the accuracy of lie detection tests may be improved by increasing the dominance of the truth response and that (2) habitual lying makes the lie response more dominant.

Detecting concealed information from groups using a dynamic questioning approach: simultaneous skin conductance measurement and immediate feedback

Lie detection procedures typically aim at determining the guilt or innocence of a single suspect. The Concealed Information Test (CIT), for example, has been shown to be highly successful in detecting the presence or absence of crime-related information in a suspect’s memory. Many of today’s security threats, however, do not come from individuals, but from organized groups such as criminal organizations or terrorist networks. In this study, we tested whether a plan of an upcoming mock terrorist attack could be extracted from a group of suspects using a dynamic questioning approach. One-hundred participants were tested in 20 groups of 5. Each group was asked to plan a mock terrorist attack based on a list of potential countries, cities, and streets. Next, three questions referring to the country, city, and street were presented, each with five options. Skin conductance in all five members of the group was measured simultaneously during this presentation. The dynamic questioning approach entailed direct analysis of the data, and if the average skin conductance of the group to a certain option exceeded a threshold, this option was followed up, e.g., if the reaction to the option “Italy” exceeded the threshold, this was followed up by presenting five cities in Italy. Results showed that in 19 of the 20 groups the country was correctly detected using this procedure. In 13 of these remaining 19 groups the city was correctly detected. In 7 of these 13, the street was also correctly detected. The question about the country resulted in no false positives (out of 20), the question about the city resulted in two false positives (out of 19), while the question about the streets resulted in two false positives (out of 13). Furthermore, the two false positives at the city level also yielded a false positive at the street level. Even though effect sizes were only moderate, these results indicate that our dynamic questioning approach can help to unveil plans about a mock terrorist attack.

The Malevolent Side of Human Nature: A Meta-Analysis and Critical Review of the Literature on the Dark Triad (Narcissism, Machiavellianism, and Psychopathy)

The term dark triad refers to the constellation of narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy. Over the past few years, the concept has gained momentum, with many researchers assuming that the dark triad is a prominent antecedent of transgressive and norm-violating behavior. Our purpose in this meta-analytic review was to evaluate (a) interrelations among narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy; (b) gender differences in these traits; (c) how these traits are linked to normal personality factors; and (d) the psychosocial correlates of the dark triad. Our findings show that dark triad traits are substantially intercorrelated, somewhat more prevalent among men than women, predominantly related to the Big Five personality factor of agreeableness and the HEXACO factor of honesty-humility, and generally associated with various types of negative psychosocial outcomes. We question whether dark triad traits are sufficiently distinct and argue that the way they are currently measured is too simple to capture the malevolent sides of personality. Because most research in this domain is cross-sectional and based on self-reports, we recommend using a cross-informant approach and prospective, longitudinal research designs for studying the predictive value of dark triad features.

Orienting versus inhibition in the Concealed Information Test: Different cognitive processes drive different physiological measures

The Concealed Information Test (CIT) provides a valid tool for psychophysiological detection of concealed knowledge. However, its precise theoretical underpinnings remain a matter of debate. The differential physiological responses elicited by concealed, relevant items, relative to control items, were traditionally explained as reflecting an orienting response (OR). According to an alternative account, these responses reflect attempts to inhibit arousal. The present study examined whether and to what extent CIT detection efficiency is affected by instructions aimed at manipulating arousal inhibition (AI). One hundred and forty-eight undergraduate students completed a CIT, while electrodermal, cardiac, and respiratory measures were recorded. Half of the participants were requested to imagine that they are suspected of committing a crime and were motivated to avoid detection (presumably eliciting both OR and AI), while the other half were requested to imagine that they are witnesses of a crime and were motivated to be detected (presumably eliciting OR only). All participants were further requested to remain silent throughout the test. In both conditions, concealed items led to a similar increase in skin conductance as compared to the control items. However, the typically observed heart rate deceleration and respiratory suppression were found in suspects, but not in witnesses. These data imply that different mechanisms drive the responding of different psychophysiological measures used in the CIT, with skin conductance reflecting OR, and heart rate and respiration primarily reflecting AI.

Extracting Concealed Information from Groups

Abstract:  Lie detection procedures are typically aimed at determining guilt or innocence of a single suspect. Serious security threats, however, often involve groups, such as terrorist networks or criminal organizations. In this report, we describe a variant of the skin conductance‐based Concealed Information Test (CIT) that allows for the extraction of critical information from such groups. Twelve participants were given information about an upcoming (mock) terrorist attack, with specific instructions not to reveal this information to anyone. Next, each subject was subjected to a CIT, with questions pertaining to the details of the attack. Results showed that for every question, the average skin conductance response to the correct answer option differed significantly (p < 0.05) from those to all other options. These results show that the information about the upcoming attack could be extracted from the group of terror suspects as a whole.

The role of frontal EEG asymmetry in post-traumatic stress disorder

Frontal alpha asymmetry, a biomarker derived from electroencephalography (EEG) recordings, has often been associated with psychological adjustment, with more left-sided frontal activity predicting approach motivation and lower levels of depression and anxiety. This suggests high relevance to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a disorder comprising anxiety and dysphoria symptoms. We review this relationship and show that frontal asymmetry can be plausibly linked to neuropsychological abnormalities seen in PTSD. However, surprisingly few studies (k = 8) have directly addressed frontal asymmetry in PTSD, mostly reporting that trait frontal asymmetry has little (if any) predictive value. Meanwhile, preliminary evidence suggest that state-dependent asymmetry during trauma-relevant stimulation distinguishes PTSD patients from resilient individuals. Thus, exploring links between provocation-induced EEG asymmetry and PTSD appears particularly promising. Additionally, we recommend more fine-grained analyses into PTSD symptom clusters in relation to frontal asymmetry. Finally, we highlight hypotheses that may guide future research and help to fully apprehend the practical and theoretical relevance of this biological marker.

Frontal EEG asymmetry as predictor of physiological responses to aversive memories

Evidence suggests that asymmetry in frontal electrical activity predicts responses to aversive experiences, such that higher left-sided activity might dampen responses to trauma reminders. We measured frontal asymmetry at rest and during viewing of a trauma film, and assessed startle responses to film-reminder images. To explore potential moderators, we compared two films (Study 1; N = 64) and modulated reappraisal (Study 2; N = 72). As expected, left frontal activation during film viewing predicted dampened responses in individuals who viewed a staged road accident. However, this effect tended to be reversed when a genocide documentary was used. In Study 2, all participants viewed the genocide film. Left frontal activity at rest again predicted higher startle responses, while reappraisal did not moderate the effects. Thus, the type of trauma film plays a crucial role in the effects of frontal asymmetry, which warrants further critical investigation.

Deception detection with behavioral, autonomic, and neural measures: Conceptual and methodological considerations that warrant modesty.

The detection of deception has attracted increased attention among psychological researchers, legal scholars, and ethicists during the last decade. Much of this has been driven by the possibility of using neuroimaging techniques for lie detection. Yet, neuroimaging studies addressing deception detection are clouded by lack of conceptual clarity and a host of methodological problems that are not unique to neuroimaging. We review the various research paradigms and the dependent measures that have been adopted to study deception and its detection. In doing so, we differentiate between basic research designed to shed light on the neurocognitive mechanisms underlying deceptive behavior and applied research aimed at detecting lies. We also stress the distinction between paradigms attempting to detect deception directly and those attempting to establish involvement by detecting crime-related knowledge, and discuss the methodological difficulties and threats to validity associated with each paradigm. Our conclusion is that the main challenge of future research is to find paradigms that can isolate cognitive factors associated with deception, rather than the discovery of a unique (brain) correlate of lying. We argue that the Comparison Question Test currently applied in many countries has weak scientific validity, which cannot be remedied by using neuroimaging measures. Other paradigms are promising, but the absence of data from ecologically valid studies poses a challenge for legal admissibility of their outcomes.