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A model of training future polygraph examiners taking into account modern conditions of society development

Sadekov Rustem Rafekovich

ORCID: 0000-0002-2739-5490

PhD in Pedagogy

Deputy Head of the Department of Psychological-Pedagogical and Medical Support of the Department of Internal Affairs Activities at the Russian Institute of Officials Training and Education

142007, Russia, Moscow Region, Domodedovo, Fir street, 3

vipk10kafedra@yandex.ru
Other publications by this author
 

 

DOI:

10.7256/2454-0668.2023.2.39894

EDN:

WMCTCE

Received:

04-03-2023


Published:

04-05-2023


Abstract: The author in the presented article discusses topical issues related to a number of organizational and pedagogical features of the training of polygraph examiners in modern conditions. The study draws attention to current problems and important aspects of the professional training of specialists in this field, provides opinions of practitioners and research scientists on this issue. The work of specialists in this profile is quite complex, requiring in-depth knowledge in the field of jurisprudence, psychology, physiology, pedagogy and medicine, and therefore one of the key issues requiring analysis remains the search and application of effective pedagogical technologies that allow in a short time to form a set of knowledge and skills from a trained specialist that will allow him later, when performing official duties, clearly and competently solve the strategic tasks assigned to him.   The author's contribution to the study of the topic lies in the fact that in the course of the work, the conclusion was formulated that the model of training professional polygraph examiners in modern conditions should include in-depth knowledge about the technical and tactical aspects of research, psychophysiological characteristics of a person, as well as take into account a wide range of tasks and their specifics, for the resolution of which studies are conducted using polygraph devices.The object of consideration in the article is conducting research using polygraph devices, and the subject of consideration is taking into account the challenges of modern society when compiling and designing a model for training polygraph specialists.


Keywords:

polygraph, training, specialist, researches, expertise, psychophysiology, psychology, professionalism, task, law enforcement activities

This article is automatically translated.

Research with the help of a polygraph has now become quite widespread. It is carried out mainly when establishing circumstances that are important for the investigation of a criminal case, in family disputes, as well as when hiring some government agencies (the IC of Russia, the FSB of Russia, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, etc.). In our article, modern features of the use of a polygraph and their consideration in the training of future specialists will be considered-polygraph examiners, whose orbit of professional interests includes organizational, legal, psychological and pedagogical support for the qualitative conduct of special psychophysiological studies using a polygraph..

The object of consideration is conducting research with the help of a polygraph, and in the subject of consideration, we focus on taking into account the existing challenges of modern society when compiling a model for training polygraph specialists.

The polygraph device is a device for objective fixation of physiological changes of the examined person. The hypothesis is based on the statement that a person's need to tell a lie should cause him mental stress, leading to changes in the vegetative-vascular system of the body, which the polygraph takes into account on the basis of skin-galvanic reactions, pressure, respiration and other indicators. All these measurements are certainly automated, which logically prevents outside interference. In this case, the subject does not become the object of the study, but is an active participant in it, can express a refusal to conduct such a study, or provide his own written consent to this procedure. The activity of a person distinguishes the procedure of passing a polygraph from medical experiments and medical research..

The Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation does not contain direct instructions on the use of a polygraph in a particular procedural situation, by analogy with the law "On Private Detective and Security Activities", which regulates a very limited and specific sphere of public functioning. In the CPC, the legislator provides an opportunity to apply special knowledge in various ways during the production of examinations, which is legitimate, since the issue of establishing the reliability of information is resolved not only by polygraph examination, but also by a number of special investigative and operational procedures and measures. The essence of psychophysiological research using a polygraph (the so-called "lie detector") is to control and analyze the psychophysiological indicators of the person under study using specialized technical devices.

Thus, there is no direct indication of the use of a polygraph in the law, however, there are a number of cases when conducting this study is logically justified. This is possible when:

- solving diagnostic and classification problems that are associated with establishing the reliability of indications;

- performance of prognostic tasks, which consists in establishing important data about a person that characterizes a person for the prosecution;

- solving diagnostic tasks, for example, establishing the fact of the commission of an act;

- the solution of the identification task, which consists in establishing other personal data, etc. [4; 67].

Even the very fact of attracting a polygraph examiner affects the interrogated persons quite strongly: often people are afraid of a "lie detector" and give confessions, or begin to make attempts to destroy the evidence they have, which also confirms their guilt or involvement in the circumstances of the crime committed.

Despite the fact that polygraph research is based on the use of an instrumental method, it, like any examination, does not do without the participation of a competent person with special knowledge, who is an interpreter of data, selects them and gives them an assessment. So, for example, it is the competence of a polygraph examiner to exclude the materials of those tests that, in his opinion, do not confirm the general line to which he is inclined. This underlines the importance of long-term, thorough and in-depth comprehensive training of these specialists for professional activity.

In Yu. Neklyudov in one of his works notes the main problems of training polygraph examiners:

- lack of systematization of various training programs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, the Federal Security Service of Russia, the Ministry of Defense of Russia;

- lack of sufficient methodological and practical material for training specialists;

- difference in technical features of different software versions;

- lack of generalization of long-term practice experience due to the novelty of this specialty [5; 122].

A.V. Bychkova supplements this list with the following urgent problems:

- lack of uniform requirements for the assessment of the quality of retraining of experts;

- the emergence of numerous schools with express training, online platforms related to training, which in a very short time "train" specialists without proper practice, which leads to a decrease in the quality of research;

- insufficient elaboration of methods [2; 94].

Separately, it should be said about the existing distance courses for online training of polygraph examiners. Very often, such courses provide brief basic information without practicing it in practice, which leads to low-quality knowledge, which in turn can lead to the formulation of false conclusions when conducting research. An incorrect answer of a polygraph examiner to the question put to him may lead to the fact that the investigation will be misled, will make a total mistake. That is why, in our opinion, it is so important that all interested persons - managers and their subordinate employees who are sent for training, responsibly approach the choice of the training course and directly the process of learning the specialty itself, paying considerable attention to the practical development of skills.

The teaching staff of FGKU DPO "VIPK of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia", having a serious ten-year experience in training future polygraph examiners, note in their research work that modern realities require long and painstaking training of specialists planning to work on a polygraph afterwards: "Persons undergoing training under the professional retraining program of future polygraph examiners, of course, should to learn to navigate qualitatively and professionally, including in the use of psychological technologies in the process of pre-test conversation in the process of instrumental lie detection" [6; 42]. Considering the training model of these specialists, we note the fact that it becomes important to acquire such knowledge that can allow for a fairly short period of time, which the study itself takes place, to use them as effectively as possible to answer the questions posed.

The model of training a polygraph examiner in our opinion looks like this:

- obtaining knowledge about the history of the application of the method;

- determination of the scientific validity of revealing the hidden information;

- study of the adequacy of psychophysiological response;

- mastering the methods of pre-test conversation, control questions, neutral and verification questions, tests of special psychophysiological studies using a polygraph;

- study of the identification of types of counteraction to the conducted research;

- study of the polygraph device;

- understanding of the principle of operation of the technical device.

- training in the preparation of reports on the results of research, etc.

According to the researchers, one of the most important components of the survey is the pre-test conversation [6; 43]. In the process of training specialists, it becomes very important to train a polygraph examiner in a clear algorithm for its implementation, taking into account the following conditions:

- it is important for a specialist to understand that he is conducting a conversation, and not interrogating a person;

- the information volume of the examined person should be unchanged;

- the conversation should be conducted in a calm, neutral, humane manner;

- it is unacceptable to "cling to words".

The specialist must understand that his task is to prepare a person for testing psychologically, therefore, considerable time should be given to training in establishing psychological contact when preparing an expert for this type of research. The polygraph examiner is obliged to know and understand the mechanisms of psychological protection that people use, to be able to work with them. If a person has a negative emotional state, the specialist needs to be able to apply the technique of autogenic training, conversations, during which the subject must gain confidence in the professionalism of this specialist [6; 49].

The need to know the psychological characteristics of a person is also very important due to the fact that at present the scope of research of circumstances in which a polygraph can be used is significantly expanding. A.A. Daricheva notes that if earlier the polygraph was an instrument exclusively of the law, with its help information relevant to the disclosure of a criminal case was clarified, now the use of a polygraph also occurs in disputes in civil cases related, for example, to intra-family relations [3; 22].

V.F. Saimanova, talking about the professionalism and ethics of an expert polygraph examiner, notes that the use of a polygraph causes a negative attitude among ignorant people, since it is widely believed that this procedure is a kind of medical experiments or torture with the use of psychological means [7; 339]. However, as the researcher rightly notes, this study cannot be considered torture from the point of view of the law, since the interviewee expresses his voluntary consent to a polygraph test, and the procedure itself does not involve any physical impact or any moral suffering.

It should not be assumed that this device reads thoughts or forcibly invades someone else's consciousness. His work is based on the assessment of objective physiological indicators, so there can be no violations of ethics here a priori.

In addition, the Constitution of the Russian Federation establishes broad guarantees for testifying against oneself and prohibits forcing to testify against one's spouse and close relatives, whose circle is determined by federal law [1]. "To testify" is not only to have the procedural status of a witness during interrogation, but also to simply report important information indicating its source. When conducting research with the help of a polygraph, this issue causes a lot of controversy, since in the process of research a person cannot predict what information can subsequently be used against himself or his loved ones. If this person has doubts about this, he always has the right to refuse to study using a polygraph, guided by this reason.

There is also a list of circumstances in which the conduct of this study is prohibited:

- the subject is younger than 14 years old;

- the subject is older than 14 years, but younger than 16 years, however, legal representatives or parents do not consent to his examination;

- physical, mental exhaustion, drowsiness and overexcitation of the examined person;

- the presence of a mental illness;

- the presence of diseases of the cardiovascular system and respiratory tract;

- the use of psychoactive substances by the subject;

- finding the subject in a state of alcoholic or narcotic intoxication;

- pregnancy of the subject;

- personal interest of the polygraph examiner in the results of the study [7; 340].

It should also be noted that in the course of the study, personal information that is not relevant to the circumstances under investigation is not clarified.

Thus, we can note that the modern development of society undoubtedly places quite high demands on the level of training of future polygraph examiners.

Since this type of research involves working on high-tech equipment, the training model in modern conditions should assume a detailed acquaintance with the principle of operation of the polygraph and its device. The list of issues that are solved by conducting a survey is currently much wider, which meets the needs of modern society. That is why the features of the psychological component of the training program of specialists should reflect the variety of conditions of the target tasks solved during the study.

The ability to measure the level of truthfulness and identify lies using various technical devices, and subsequently obtain sufficiently objective data, undoubtedly contribute to reducing subjectivity in the investigation of the case and the evaluation of evidence. Persons undergoing training under the professional retraining program for future polygraph examiners, of course, should learn to navigate qualitatively and professionally, including in the use of psychological technologies in the process of pre-test conversation in the process of instrumental lie detection.

A candidate for training, who will receive admission to conduct such research upon completion of the training course, must have emotional balance, a tendency to painstaking research, and a rationalistic mindset. Therefore, the teaching staff of the educational organization, training future polygraph examiners, has an important task – to teach the candidate not only to use specialized equipment, but also to apply the knowledge gained so that during the time allotted for the examination of the person, as effectively as possible to answer the questions posed to him by the authorized person who appointed the study.

The prospects for optimizing the model of training polygraph examiners in modern conditions should include:

- creation of a unified methodological training base;

- unification of requirements for training, advanced training and professional retraining of personnel;

- expansion of knowledge about the methods of psychological establishment of contact with the examined person;

- deepening of the psychophysiological component of training related to the study of individual reactions of the body;

- identification and consideration of the specifics of conducting research using a polygraph in criminal and civil cases.

References
1. The Constitution of the Russian Federation (adopted by popular vote on 12.12.1993 with amendments approved during the all-Russian vote on 01.07.2020). Electronic resource. Access code: https://www.consultant.ru/document/cons_doc_LAW_28399 / Access date: 03.03.2023.
2. Bychkova, A.V. The use of the results of special psychophysiological studies in the process of proving criminal cases / A.V. Bychkova // Young scientist, 2023. — № 5 (452). — Pp. 93-95.
3. Daricheva, A. A. Some questions of the emergence and development of the polygraph / A. A. Daricheva, P. A. Afinogenov // Young scientist, 2020. — № 9 (39). — Pp. 19-22.
4. Ivanov, L.N. Topical issues of the use of a polygraph in the investigation of crimes/ L.N. Ivanov// Informational regional security, 2008.-№ 2 (3). – Pp. 65-69.
5. Neklyudov, V.Yu. Problems of training polygraph specialists/ V.Yu. Neklyudov// Applied Legal Psychology, 2012.-No. 1.-pp. 118-124.
6. Sadekov R.R., Senatorova O.Yu., Klochko Yu.V. — Features of training polygraph specialists in the effective use of psychological technologies in the process of pre-test conversation in the process of instrumental lie detection // Policing. – 2022. – No. 5. – p. 40-53. DOI: 10.7256/2454-0692.2022.5.35569 EDN: LUPOIV URL: https://nbpublish.com/library_read_article.php?id=35569
7. Saimanova, V.F. Ethical issues of the use of polygraph devices in pre-trial proceedings in Russia/ V.F. Saimanova// Legal science and practice: Bulletin of the Nizhny Novgorod Academy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, 2016. – pp. 337-341

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The review of the article "The model of training future polygraph examiners taking into account modern conditions of development of society" The relevance of the research topic and its compliance with the specialization of the journal "National Security" is not in doubt in connection with modern trends in social development, which determine the priorities of professional training of a modern specialist. The subject of the research is the specifics of the development and justification of the model of professional training of future polygraph examiners. The analysis of such categories as "polygraphological research", "polygraph device", "instrumental method", "model of training of polygraph examiners", "optimization of training of polygraph examiners", "technology of pre-test conversation", etc. is presented as a problem field of research. The issues of the organization of professional training and, in general, the strategic readiness of polygraph examiners in modern realities of life are identified and analyzed in detail. The results of the analysis of techniques and methods of training polygraph examiners have shown the effectiveness of performing professional tasks in the aspect of conducting polygraph research in modern society. A developed and scientifically based model of professional training of a polygraph examiner is proposed. The advantage of the work is the key, end-to-end leading ideas about the interest of all persons (managers and their subordinate employees sent for training) in a responsible approach to choosing a training course and directly to the process of learning a specialty, paying considerable attention to practical skills development. The research is aimed at improving the effectiveness of training employees to perform tasks in special professional conditions in the modern world. Of interest are the organizational conditions for teaching a polygraph examiner a clear algorithm for conducting a pre-test conversation. A description of the risks and a list of circumstances under which conducting this study is prohibited are presented. The methodology of the reviewed work is based on the analysis of various theoretical positions and literary sources on the above problem, as well as the application of an instrumental research method. The article implements in sufficient detail the systematization and generalization of data related to the experience of training future polygraph examiners. The article has a scientific novelty associated with the establishment of the need to improve the quality of professional training of polygraph examiners: the development of a model, organizational conditions and risks of the implementation of the process under study, as well as optimization prospects. The structure of the article meets the requirements for scientific publications. A detailed qualitative analysis of the obtained results of the studied model and the implementation of its prospects is presented. The content of the article, which examines the need to enhance the professional training of specialists in the studied profile, generally corresponds to its title. The style of presentation of the material meets the requirements for scientific publications. The bibliography corresponds to the content of the article and is presented by domestic literary sources. The results of the study substantiate the importance of theoretical and empirical research on the organization of training of polygraph examiners in modern conditions. The article arouses the reader's interest and can be recommended for publication.