The timed antagonistic response alethiometer, or TARA, is a type of
lie detection
Lie detection is an assessment of a verbal statement with the goal to reveal a possible intentional deceit. Lie detection may refer to a cognitive process of detecting deception by evaluating message content as well as non-verbal cues. It also ma ...
technique that relies upon
cognitive chronometry
Mental chronometry is the scientific study of processing speed or reaction time on cognitive tasks to infer the content, duration, and temporal sequencing of mental operations. Reaction time (RT; sometimes referred to as "response time") is meas ...
.
The TARA is a
computer-based
technique
Technique or techniques may refer to:
Music
* The Techniques, a Jamaican rocksteady vocal group of the 1960s
*Technique (band), a British female synth pop band in the 1990s
* ''Technique'' (album), by New Order, 1989
* ''Techniques'' (album), by M ...
. It requires respondents to classify a succession of mixed statements as true or false, as
quickly
Quickly () is a tapioca milk tea franchise, with over 2000 locations in Africa, Asia, Europe and North America. Quickly is the brand name of Kuai Ke Li Enterprise Co. Ltd., which was founded by Nancy Yang in Taiwan and started franchising.
Q ...
and
accurately as they can, by pressing one of two keys. The faster they do so, the more likely they are to be telling the
truth
Truth is the property of being in accord with fact or reality.Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionarytruth 2005 In everyday language, truth is typically ascribed to things that aim to represent reality or otherwise correspond to it, such as beliefs ...
; the slower they do so, the more likely they are to be
lying
A lie is an assertion that is believed to be false, typically used with the purpose of deceiving or misleading someone. The practice of communicating lies is called lying. A person who communicates a lie may be termed a liar. Lies can be inter ...
.
The TARA works by manufacturing an
artificial
Artificiality (the state of being artificial or manmade) is the state of being the product of intentional human manufacture, rather than occurring nature, naturally through processes not involving or requiring human activity.
Connotations
Artific ...
situation in which lying is more challenging than truth-telling. Specifically, it permits truth-tellers to complete two alternating tasks using the same strategy, but requires liars to complete them using contradictory strategies. Hence, if both truth-tellers and liars complete the TARA accurately as stipulated, then the former will complete it more quickly than the latter, all else being equal.
Structurally, the TARA bears some affinities with the
implicit association test
The implicit-association test (IAT) is a controversial assessment intended to detect subconscious associations between mental representations of objects (concepts) in memory. Its best-known application is the assessment of implicit stereotypes held ...
, or IAT, because it generates differences in
average
In ordinary language, an average is a single number taken as representative of a list of numbers, usually the sum of the numbers divided by how many numbers are in the list (the arithmetic mean). For example, the average of the numbers 2, 3, 4, 7, ...
reaction
time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, t ...
on the basis of differences in response
compatibility
Compatibility may refer to:
Computing
* Backward compatibility, in which newer devices can understand data generated by older devices
* Compatibility card, an expansion card for hardware emulation of another device
* Compatibility layer, compon ...
.
The TARA remains to be field-tested. However, initial laboratory studies obtained accuracy rates in the region of 85%, suggesting that the technique holds promise.
References
* {{cite journal , doi = 10.1002/acp.1298 , last1 = Gregg , first1 = A. P. , year = 2007 , title = When vying reveals lying: The Timed Antagonistic Response Alethiometer , journal = Applied Cognitive Psychology , volume = 21 , issue = 5, pages = 621–647
External links
Link to the abstract of the first published scientific paper. Retrieved 2007-07-15.
Forensic techniques