Brain Scans as Lie Detectors

Some time ago when Dr. Melissa Clouthier was just Dr. Melissa, I posted about using Functional MRI for Lie Detector tests. The thinking goes that physiological changes occur when someone lies rather than tells the truth--parts of the brain light up like a Christmas Tree when we lie. It takes far more effort to lie than tell the truth. (Just like it takes far more facial muscles to frown than it does to smile--some people I know enjoy exercising their mouths by frowning as much as possible.)

I am going to review for everyone what the shortcomings are to ALL lie detectors, why they should never be used in court--even these new fancy, schmancy ones and what it has to do with how we practice.

All Lie Detectors are based on a FALSE premise: that a person knows the absolute truth. A lie detector can only pick up on what the person believes is true. Or, more specifically what facts the body is congruent with conscious mind. A person can believe he saw the whole crime committed and completely pass a lie detector test but that doesn't mean what he believes is true is true. The problem with Psychopaths is that they BELIEVE their own lies. They will pass lie detectors very easily. That will remain true on a brain scan--it will cause them no more physiological effort to lie than to tell the truth. This proclivity is what makes them so dangerous.

(For smooth liars, watch Andrew Fastow when he gets started during his testimony at Jeff Skilling and Ken Lay's trials. The man is pathological. My interpretation might be all wrong, but Fastow strikes me as completely psychopathic and able to lie with absolutely no effort. In fact, I think it is probably easier for him to lie. Bill Clinton also had this trait. He seemed far more believable when he told a lie than when he told the truth. Now, if you watched his body language, he would give himself away. But his words....wow was he good.)

Conversely, people who are very nervous will cause "artifact" and fail a Lie Detector because of the stress of the situation. Their brains are firing everywhere. Very few people, when accused of a heinous crime can sit with comfort and calmly answer questions. Words like rape, murder, knife, strangle, molest, etc. will cause huge emotionally stressed responses even if they are totally innocent.

Then you get to the interpretation. A good Lie Detector Test examination relies on the proficiency of the examiner. Some examiners are very, very good and can catch even the most sophisticated recipient in a falsehood which will cause a reaction indicative of lying. Likewise, Functional MRI is a delicate, new technology. Not everyone knows what they are looking at. It should alarm you that Chiropractors have far more radiology than a Medical Doctor. Only Radiologists rival Chiropractors and Chiropractic Radiologists and Medical Radiologists fare about the same when tested for diagnostic accuracy. Who will be administering and then interpretting these tests?

Functional MRI is very expensive. Will tax payers be paying for this? I hope not.

Now, in our practice Mr. Dr. and I use a technique called Muscle Testing in conjunction with some Emotional Release Techniques. That is, when a person vocalizes a statement, the physiology of the body interferes with the strength of the muscle for just a moment if the statement is INCONGRUENT. A novice at this technique would call it a "false statement". That would not be true.

A patient could say "The sky is orange" when it is clearly blue and be utterly congruent with it and be totally strong in the muscle test. Some people would say that the person is "psychotic". Not necessarily. There are many false statements that some people are congruent with.

For generations, people were congruent with a flat earth. Mothers are notoriously congruent with the statement "My child would never harm another person." Does not make it true.

I have worked with people who have not been congruent with their own name. The muscle tested weak. Once the emotional problem associated with the weakness is removed, the muscle tests strong. Was their name a lie?

Be wary of doctors, scientists and experts who claim to be able to uncover the "truth". More factors come into play than what the physiology reveals.