Did anyone watch this show last night?
The premise is they ask a person 50 questions while hooked up to a “Lie Detector” or polygraph machine.
They then pic k the 21 questions that will make your SO and family cringe.
Are you honest enough to play?
If I was on the show I think I’d fall apart like a 2 dollar suitcase.
callers?
It was awful. I couldn’t stop watching.
I wouldn’t go on that show for $500,000.
That first ‘contestant’, the personal trainer? Wow. His marriage probably has some serious cracks in it, and all for…
$0.00.
I was actually talking about it with my sister earlier today.
I figure it’d take somewhere in the neighborhood of 50 to 100 million to get me on that show. If I’m going to destroy my life, I better have something to cushion my fall. They can find 21 embarrassing things about anyone…
I enjoy watching it (somewhat) for that very reason. What type of person would risk ruining their life for 500 000 (or like 240 after taxes)? The dregs of humanity go on that show and I enjoy watching their lives crumble right before my eyes.
Yep, I’m an asshole.
I agree Savannah,
I have never taken a polygraph and am not sure if I believe in them.
If you were asked a question that made you uncomfortable ie." Have you ever had sexual thoughts about a co-worker (or animal or parent Or anything weird)"
I think I’d be so freaked out at the question that I might give a false reading.
Just being questioned with wires hooked up to your body would wig me out
I could see giving a false reading even if you were telling the truth.
As far as the show goes, how bad would it suck to know you are telling the truth but the machine said differently?
I watched, and I loved it. It was so awful that I couldn’t stop watching and loving every minute of it.
The only thing that irritated me to no end was that 10-15 second pause between every “That answer is … true.” Overdramatic. Especially since it looked like the player and the family members were all wondering “wtf, get on with it” after a few seconds, too.
That said, I’d be on that show in a heartbeat. I’m an honest person anyway, and there’s really not much I’d lie about if asked directly. Have I ever had a sexual fantasy about a co-worker? Sure. I honestly doubt there are that many people watching who can honestly answer no.
Have I ever inappropriately touched a co-worker? Nope. Well, I mean, not at work… and not without prior consent… 
The only part I found to be somewhat awkward was the guy who had the “have you ever gone through co-workers personal belongings?” question, with his boss sitting right there. His explanation was pretty good, though, and I’d have to answer yes, too. There are plenty of questions that have negative answers at face value, but are legit with explanation.
I know absolutely nothing about polygraph tests, but I think this is the reason they do the “50 questions beforehand, 21 of those randomly chosen” thing… you’re given the questions before the interview so that nothing comes as a big shock or surprise. Just tell the truth, and you should be comfortable with it – after all, that’s the point of the show, right?
I think they prey on the people who are SO confident that they can breeze through and just answer honestly without looking back… then get uncomfortable and walk after things get sticky.
I watched this show with my SO. The question “do you have a bank account your girlfriend doesn’t know about?” came up and I was like “haha, yes.” He looked at me like “what?” and I had to explain with “well, I do have another checking account from years ago that I never actually closed out… it has about 17 cents in it, if you’re interested.”
I was hoping the guy would pull a fast one and be like “hey, honey, I do have a second account. <back to host> No, I have no accounts my girlfriend doesn’t know about.”
Someone brought up a good point in another thread…Can’t the show just lie about whether your answer was true or false?
“I was telling the truth.”
“No, you weren’t. Can’t prove it. No, money for you.”
Assuming they had proficient polygraph readers and did it properly, they can tell the difference. They always ask control questions, things they know the answer to already. Some of those they will ask you to tell the truth on, and others they may ask you to lie, to set a “benchmark,” as it were.
I saw the previews. What kind of questions did they ask?
Never take a polygraph, ever…
Polygraphs are complete garbage and are only used to get people to confess. It’s 100 percent psychological. I’ve done loads of research about it because I was considering a career in the CIA at one point and this is the reason why I didn’t do it. The CIA polygraphers are a bunch of scary people. Here’s an example of some of the tricks they pull.
Asking someone to wash their hands so the skin sensors can work properly. At this point they watch through a camera to determine if the subject is trying to be deceptive.
Asking someone to not tamper with the machine while the tester leaves the room. At which point they will monitor the person and watch for similar shenanigans.
No other western country believes the polygraph has any value.
Polygraphy never stands up to any kind of objective test. It’s simply not a useful too. All it does is give the examiner “super powers” to force the subject to believe he knows when he is lying or not and with much coercion from the examiner will eventually tell the truth. So the truth is that it only works because people believe that it does.
The whole idea of control questions are completely ridiculous. It’s all a joke.
For more info please check this site out:
It’s set up by a bunch of folks who want to rid the polygraph from the law-enforcement and government vetting process because it is essentially rolling the dice and has ruined a lot of careers.
No kidding. That hour-long show could have been cut down to 38 minutes without that unnecessary delay. Suspense? I get it. Enough.
Get rid of the long pauses.
Offer more money.
Make the questions more personal.
I want to see Bob Contestant squirm to questions like “Did you ever torture your dog Skippy?”
“Did you ever experiment sexually with your cousin Lou?”
Can anyone give examples as to what kind of questions they gave?
I don’t know if I’m the odd one out…but hell, I’d go on that show. I’ve got nothing to hide, and would totally answer truthfully to the “Have you ever had sexual thoughts about x” kinds of questions. Everyone’s had sexual thoughts about x at one point or another, you can’t judge me!!! 
How about, “Have you ever had sexual thoughts about your wife’s younger sister?” And you wife is sitting there and both of you are being watched by millions of people including you friends, neighbors and relatives.
Now, of course, the answer is, “Yes” (unless you want to lie, which means you lose all the money), but is this something you want to admit to in front of all these people?
Like I said in the other thread about this, I suspect that the polygraph on this show is likely just a prop. Polygraphs are a joke and if all the show called for was beating a polygraph, they’d be giving away free money.
The prospective contestants on this show have to answer a questionaire containing all the questions (and more) that they will be asked on the show. The contestants are then chosen from that pool. All the show has to do is match the answers they give on the show to the answers they gave on the questionaire. A changed answer results in a “deceptive” reading on the fake polygraph.
If you only give choir boy answers on the questionaire, you don’t get selected to play on the show. They only select people who give a few embarrassing answers on the questionaire. The producers know beforehand what the contestant will have to confess to and script the “polygraph” readings accordingly. The polygrapher on this show is as fictional as the “banker” on “Deal or No Deal.”
If all you had to do was beat a polygraph I’d apply today.
You know, that’s the only thing that (in my view) could possibly explain why the guy took so long to spit out his answer. I looked in on Michaela watching the DVR’d program, and after a while, the commercials weren’t the only thing I was skipping through.
Even polygraph proponents claim 70-80 percent accuracy. Who would risk taking that?
What is the real risk? All you have to do is say the polygraph was wrong. They can’t prove anything and there is a ton of literature you could summon to show your wife what B.S. polygraphs are and to reassure her that the thought of doing her sister has never crossed your mind.
ETA, I think beating the polygraph isn’t really an option anyway. You have to be willing to actually admit to something to get the money. Boy Scouts won’t get on the show. I would bet that the show offers no opportunity to cruise to the end with only angelic answers (even if you could theoretically beat a real polygraph). You only get slected to play if you’va already admitted to something embarrassing in the application process and then you’re married to those answers.
I think you misunderstood Gonzomax. His point was that, assuming proponents are right, a polygraph is at most 80% accurate. So, even if you answer truthfully to all questions, 20% of your answers will show up as lies.
This show is a murder-suicide waiting to happen.
But that’s my point. It’s an easy statistic to show people after the fact. All you have to do is brazen it out and say the polygraph was wrong. “False postives happen all the time. See, look, I would NEVER think about your sister that way. She’s like MY sister…” etc. etc.
It would probably be a good idea to lay the groundwork for denials before you even go on.
Having said all that, I still strongly expect that you have to cop to something embarrassing in the questionaire to even get on the show.