comparison/control question validation test

What Is a Comparison/Control Question Validation Test?

A comparison/control question validation test is a procedure used to verify that the comparison questions developed for a specific polygraph examination are functioning as intended — that is, producing genuine physiological responses that can serve as valid comparison points for scoring against the relevant questions. The validation test ensures that the comparison questions have been properly formulated and reviewed with the examinee before diagnostic chart collection begins.

Why Comparison Question Validation Matters

The entire Comparison Question Technique framework depends on comparison questions that produce meaningful physiological responses. If a comparison question fails to generate concern in the examinee — because it is too specific, too narrow, too obviously unrelated to the test topic, or because the examinee has already been "relieved" of concern about it during the pre-test — the comparison mechanism breaks down. Without a valid comparison baseline, the differential responsivity pattern cannot be reliably established, and scoring may produce misleading results.

Process

The validation typically occurs during the pre-test interview phase. The examiner reviews each comparison question with the examinee, ensures the examinee understands and accepts the question, and confirms that the question addresses a topic that has genuine psychological relevance. The stimulation test and initial chart data can also serve a validation function by revealing whether comparison questions are producing adequate physiological responses for comparison with relevant question responses.

Relationship to Question Formulation

Comparison question validation is closely related to question formulation — the process of developing all test questions. Properly formulated comparison questions should be broad enough to concern most examinees, time-separated from the relevant issue (to avoid functional overlap), and developed in a way that does not "neutralise" them by allowing the examinee to dismiss them as unimportant. The APA Standards of Practice address comparison question requirements as part of the overall test protocol.