Lie detection: historical, neuropsychiatric and legal dimensions

Lying and deception are behaviors that have been studied and discussed extensively in the scientific, philosophical and legal communities for centuries. The purpose of this article is to provide a general overview of the literature and thinking to date about deception, followed by an analysis of the efficacy and evolution of lie detection techniques. The first part explores the definitions of lying, from animal behaviorists' perspectives to philosophical theories, along with demographics and research about the prevalence of lying and characteristics of those who lie. This is followed by a discussion of possible motivations for lying, moral arguments about the legitimacy of or prohibition against lying, and developmental theorists' explanations for the growth of a human being's capacity to lie. The first section provides an introduction for the second part, a historical and critical review of lie detection techniques. Early methods, such as phrenology and truth serums are contrasted with more modern-day approaches, such as polygraphy and functional MRIs. Conclusions are drawn about whether technology has really advanced the art of detecting deception. Finally, the article enters a discussion about the law's response to lie detection methods and to deception in general. United States landmark cases, at both the state and federal level, are critiqued with regard to their impact on the admissibility into court of lie detection methods as evidence. Just as the scientific community has been wary of embracing many of these methods, so has the legal community. Through a review of the legal, scientific and pseudo-scientific issues surrounding deception, a greater understanding is reached of the complexity of this universal and morally loaded behavior.     

RESISTANCE,TRANSITION AND EXCLUSION: POLITICALLY MOTIVATED EX-PRISONERS AND CONFLICT TRANSFORMATION IN NORTHERN IRELAND

The landscape of political imprisonment in Northern Ireland was changed due to the general release and reintegration of politically motivated prisoners as part of the Belfast Agreement. This article reflects upon the post-prison experiences of former prisoners and their families, and in particular how the move from a resistant to a transitional framework has facilitated a greater openness and willingness amongs ex-prisoners to acknowledge the personal and familial problems related to incarceration. We also explore the ways in which ex-prisoners have attempted to deal with the continued social, political and civic exclusion which arises as a result of their conflict-related ‘criminal’ convictions. In the final section of the article, the authors further develop the move from a resistant to a transitional characterization of incarceration and its consequences.     

Dragon's Blood incense: misbranded as a drug of abuse?

An unknown red substance was being sold and used with other drugs of abuse in Virginia (often being used in conjunction with marihuana). The red substance was identified as Dragon's Blood incense from Daemonorops draco. In bioassays, Dragon's Blood incense exhibited a low, but measurable cytotoxicity in in vitro cell lines. Dragon's Blood incense or Volatilized Dragon's Blood had no adverse effect on mouse motor performance based on the inclined screen and rotorod tests. delta(9)-Tetrahydrocannibinol (THC) produced a dose-related decline in mouse performance on the rotorod test. The combination of Dragon's Blood incense or Volatilized Dragon's Blood with delta(9)-THC did not contribute further to the impairment of the mice on the rotorod. This data suggests that the abuse potential for Dragon's Blood incense alone or in combination with marihuana is minimal.     

The urban context: a place to eliminate health disparities and build organizational capacity

This study seeks to examine the process of building the capacity to address health disparities in several urban African American neighborhoods. An inter-organizational network consisting of a research university, community members, community organizations, media partners, and foundations was formed to develop a community-based intervention designed to provide health promotion and disease prevention strategies for type 2 diabetes and hypertension. In-depth qualitative interviews (n = 18) with foundation executives and project directors, civic organization leadership, community leaders, county epidemiologist, and university partners were conducted. Our study contextualizes a process to build a public health partnership using cultural, community, organizational, and societal factors necessary to address health disparities. Results showed 5 important factors to build organizational capacity: leadership, institutional commitment, trust, credibility, and inter-organizational networks. These factors reflected other important organizational and community capacity indicators such as: community context, organizational policies, practices and structures, and the establishment of new commitments and partnerships important to comprehensively address urban health disparities. Understanding these factors to address African American health disparities will provide lessons learned for health educators, researchers, practitioners, foundations, and communities interested in building and sustaining capacity efforts through the design, implementation, and maintenance of a community-based health promotion intervention.     

Governing concept or political buzzword? Contested perceptions of local control

This article uses a perceptions-based framework to study how local governing actors define local control, and, to identify the determinants of definition alignment among local officials. A mix of survey and administrative data from Wisconsin officials is used to test nine hypotheses. The results indicate there is wide variation in how local government leaders define local control, and that alignment on the concept's meaning is predicted by ideology, perceived erosion of local control, and positional characteristics. The study concludes that local governments should incorporate a working definition of local control in planning and on-boarding processes in order to provide governing relevance to the concept.