Question

Read the passage and choose the word that best fits blank ___1___. The polygraph does not detect lies directly. It records physiological ___1___ — changes in blood pressure, respiration, and skin conductance — while the examinee answers questions. The most widely used format, the comparison question test, ___2___ the subject's reactions to relevant questions with those to control questions, on the assumption that truthful examinees react more strongly to the controls. Critics argue that this assumption ___3___ adequate empirical support, citing laboratory studies in which innocent participants produced reactions indistinguishable from those of the guilty. Defenders ___4___ that field studies report accuracy above eighty-five percent, though these figures are ___5___ by the absence of independent ground truth in real cases. Despite the controversy, polygraph examinations ___6___ a standard part of pre-employment vetting in several countries.