Could lie detectors improve recruitment process?

More HR teams and managers are turning to lie detectors as part of their recruitment process in order to determine if suitable candidates have been lying on their CVs, it has been reported.

According to the BBC, Andrew Armstrong and Patrick Mulligan, two former detectives from West Midlands Police, have set up a business conducting lie detections and claim that they are being approached more and more by employers.

Mr Mulligan explained that while lie detectors could not tell a manager whether or not to hire a candidate, it could help to identify if they have not been completely truthful on their CV.

However, occupational psychologist, Dr Steve Woods, of the Aston Business School, told the BBC he was doubtful of how effective the technology could be in terms of recruitment.

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“There’s no evidence whatsoever that polygraph tests tell you anything about a person’s performance at work and desirable behaviour at work,” he stated.

Lisette Howlett, managing director of HireScores.com, recently stated that recruitment agencies need to go the extra mile in order to attract clients during the recession, although it remains to be seen if they will consider using lie detectors.