Failed polygraph

I'm applying for a bunch of jobs and I just did a polygraph test for a law enforcement administration position. I failed one question, which means I failed the polygraph. The weird part is that I didn't lie, I was just having a lot of anxiety the entire time I was in that chair. They hooked up my fingers, hooked up my chest, my stomach!, put a blood pressure cuff so tightly on my arm it made my hand numb, my buttox (the chair has a buttox reader that measures fine movements by your buttox!), a voice stress analyzer, they positioned a webcam in front of me and told me it would all be recorded. Mind you, I have an anxiety disorder.

I passed all the questions except one because the way he asked it was very accusatory and he asked it over and over again, each time causing my blood pressure to rise higher and higher, the fact that he thought I was lying triggered my anxiety. I felt like I was in an electrocution chair or something. I noticed my stomach muscles kept twitching, I think that's what was causing it to seem like I was showing signs of lying on the computer.

He said I really seemed to be lying on that question so I failed it. I got a call the next day to come in and retake the test for that particular question. I don't know how I'm going to get through this. I'm feeling even more anxious about it now than I did the first time. I feel like I did something wrong even though I didn't. It's terrible. And this is just for an administrative position!

Take a deep breath when you go in there and try and keep calm. My brother in law is a retired police officer and so is my uncle. My sister in law was a police dispatcher for well over 15 years. They are trying to make sure that when a bad situation comes up you will think clearly.

So go in calmly and before answering take a deep breath let it out slowly then answer and answer with confidence. You can do this.

Good luck - sending you good vibes and hugs

Sometimes when you are taking the polygraph the examiner may claim that you are lying to rattle you.

Is that what happened or were you notified after you had left?

And this is why polygraphs are unreliable and a waste of time IMO. The same way polygraph tests aren't admissible in court, they shouldn't be required to obtain a job.

Just because somebody fails a polygraph doesn't mean somebody is lying. It could mean the presence of an anxiety disorder or somebody can simply feel nervous for having a bunch of hardware hooked up to them and a person asking a bunch of questions, not to mention, polygraphs can be fooled.

Maybe explain to them that you have anxiety issues? Don't state that you have a mental health disorder because that could cost you the job in most cases but simply state that you have anxiety issues and they might cut you some slack.

He told me I failed the question immediately after unhooking me from all the wires. He even showed me my "jumps" in blood pressure from that question. I explained to him that my heart rate is often very fast, I have a high metabolism. And I even told him I was very anxious. He said, "Anxiety?" I said yeah I have anxiety about this. He was a little taken back by that word by the way he acted. He acted like he's never heard of that before, like it was alien to him. When I left the office, he said "If there's any medication you need to be on, be sure to take it before coming in." I don't have any medication, and the instructions said you cannot be sick, cannot be on any medication, cannot even have a sip of alcohol 48 hrs prior to the test. So I'm not sure what he meant by that comment.

Idk - i watch a lot of talk shows where they give polys, and i dont think theyre supposed to grill you like that! I think it distorts the outcome of the test. If i were you, i would just go back, confident that i was telling the truth. If you have to explain something about it - like yes i smoked but i didnt inhale - hey if it works for the presidents it should work for you

My word, I have never ever heard of a job, much less administrative, requiring something like a polygraph test. This shocked me. It kind of feels abusive to me. I would never take a job that had such an invasion of privacy as a requisite.

I'm sorry you had to go through this, and might have to go through it again. Terrible.

Thank you Sabrina, it seems really silly to me too. The background check should have been enough. One of the questions was, "Do you really want to be an office assistant? Yes or no?" Lol omg.

Oh my word! Just can't believe it!

Don't you hate it when those in charge are less intelligent than you? lol

In any case, nobody should have to go through that much hassle just to get a job. I would say if you can't get them to understand you and they insist on making you take more pointless polygraph tests, to simply move on and find another place of employment.

Polygraths are not even scientifically reliable or verifiable. The National Resource Council has found no evidence that they are effective even though the people who advocate them try to say they work 90% of the time, truth is they aren't any more effective than someone guessing.

Admit everything, throw yourself on their mercy.

This happened to me when I was interviewing for a corrections officer job. I passed the polygraph but he said that towards the end my heart rate was starting to speed up.

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I agree to not mention this. Even though they aren't supposed to discriminate, they do and make up another reason to not hire you.

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Went back for the retake. They said my heart rate was normal this time but my "Fingers were sweating and breathing was suppressed" on that question. Omg. So I said "I failed that question again?" and she said yes. So upsetting. Now I have to wait for the phone call to see if I'm dropped from the entire process, which is very likely. Incredible. I've gotten this far, which hasn't been easy, and now this one little question is going to ruin it for me. I almost started crying in her office but I held it together until I got to my car.

That sucks. Leave it to such a pointless test to screw somebody over

You have my sympathies. Nothing sucks more than being held back by a pointless and stupid thing that's completely outside of your control.

I would consider a different career path. Law enforcement in the US is stuck in the dark ages haha

Me neither. This actually sounds like something illegal, like requiring female workers to get pregnancy tests.

Someone I know had to take a polygraph when applying to be a deputy sheriff. This person said he failed a question that he absolutely did not lie on. He also said he "out and out lied" on one question, and he passed it! That should tell you that polygraphs cannot be trusted to be accurate. There are so many variables too. If a person has a headache it can make a difference! (The person I know had one that day) and also the examiner is a biggie. They are all different, and they say some are better than others. I more or less "believed" in polygraphs before this person told me about their experience. No longer the case now.