Time and Encoding Effects in the Concealed Knowledge Test

Although the traditional “lie detector” test is used frequently in forensic contexts, it has (like most test of deception) some limitations. The concealed knowledge test (CKT) focuses on participants’ recognition of privileged knowledge rather than lying per-se and has been studied extensively using a variety of measures. A “guilty” suspect’s interaction with and memory of crimescene items may vary. Furthermore, memory for crimescene items may diminish over time. The interaction of encoding quality and test delay on CKT efficiency has been previously implied, but not yet demonstrated. We used a response-time based CKT to detect concealed knowledge from shallow and deep study procedures after 10-min, 24-h, and 1-week delays. Results show that more elaborately encoded information afforded higher detection accuracy than poorly encoded items. Although classification accuracy following deep study was unaffected by delay, detection of poorly elaborated information was initially high, but compromised after 1 week. Thus, choosing optimal test items requires considering both test delay and initial encoding level

The Sociophysiology of Caring in the Doctor-patient Relationship

The emotional investment required to construct a caring doctor-patient relationship can be justified on humane grounds. Can it also be justified as a direct physiologic intervention? Two lines of evidence point in this direction. People in an empathic relationship exhibit a correlation of indicators of autonomic activity. This occurs between speakers and responsive listeners, members of a coherent group, and bonded pairs of higher social animals. Furthermore, the experience of feeling cared about in a relationship reduces the secretion of stress hormones and shifts the neuroendocrine system toward homeostasis. Because the social engagement of emotions is simultaneously the social engagement of the physiologic substrate of those emotions, the process has been labeled sociophysiology. This process can influence the health of both parties in the doctor-patient relationship, and may be relevant to third parties