Polygraph and repressed memories

[mooeypoo]

Okay, you guys are going to laugh at me (go ahead) but I have a question about a Dr. Phil episode I just watched. Forget for a moment whether or not the show is representing psychology or not (I certainly don't watch it for that) or whether or not you approve of it, my question is strictly about some psychological effects that I am wondering about. The show was just a trigger for the question.

 

However, in order to give some context, I am talking about this episode from earlier today: http://community.drphil.com/boards/?EntryID=32102&SubCategoryID=84&CommentID=0#CommentID_0

 

"MOM UNDER SUSPICION"

 

Sarah took her two young boys, ages 2 and 4, to the gas station and ended up missing for 13 hours. Claiming no memory of what happened during that time, Sarah says she came to at an area hospital miles away. The boys were found alone in the car at the gas station by a convenience store clerk who called the police. Authorities were able to get in touch with Sarah’s husband because her phone and wallet were found in the car. She has been arrested on child abandonment charges and is awaiting trial in June. Did she really lose her memory, or is she making the whole story up? While at Dr. Phil, Sarah undergoes a polygraph examination regarding her memory of what occurred during those 13 hours. Don’t miss the shocking results!

 

Okay, so my concern is mainly about the use of the polygraph in this particular case in specific. I dislike polygraphs in general just for the relatively large amount of evidence showing they are not too reliable, but in this particular case I think it's more than just "show", it's grossly negligent, and here's why:

 

It is my understanding that if a person suffers from some repressed trauma, he or she may not consciously rememeber the events of that trauma, but they may react physically to mentions of the event, to things that raise the issue, or to attempts to help them remember. So while a person may have a physical reaction to some question, they may not necessarily *remember* the event, and sometimes even not quite understand why they feel stress or feel shame or whatever it is the body "reacts" to.

 

Well, polygraphs are not testing truths, they're testing physical reactions. Supposedly, they're testing minute physical changes like pulse change, trembling, etc etc. Even *if* the polygraph was the most reliable tool on earth to test the physical reactions, isn't this type of case (if it is indeed some repressed trauma) the absolute last case we should be surprised about polygraph failure?!

 

If there was some repressed memory, I would expect that woman to have a physical reaction during the polygraph interview. Her surprise when she was told she failed it, and her confusion about this result, just emphasize the point it may well be an involuntary reaction to something she actually does NOT remember.

 

Could this be the case? Could someone really lose 13 hours of their lives due to some trauma? And if so, am I wrong in assuming it's actually logical that the first thing they'd fail is a polygraph? Is the fact that she did have a reaction (of whatever kind) to these questions about those 13 hours mean that she might actually remember, or can we still assume innocence and she may actually be telling us the truth, and not remember a thing?

 

(As a side note, I am not entirely sure why she would lie at all, unless she went off to kill someone in those 13 hours; what she did was reckless and silly if it was on purpose or as a mistake, but it was a one-time thing that is usually solved fairly decently... why would she make this such a deal if it's false is beyond me. But that's just an observation on my part, and has nothing to do with the above question.)

 

Any thoughts on this?

 

~mooey

[Ringer]

Well the polygraph in this case is pretty much useless. The types of things polygraphs look for in lies are stress signals, the problem is that someone questioning you about if you tried to murder your two children you are probably going to stress out. The baseline questions they ask wont give a true reading of if someone is telling the truth in that situation.

 

The possibility of having no memory is possible. She may have had an episode where she underwent a fugue state, but who knows.