Programs and Courses

This advanced continuing education course provides practical and legally defensible approaches to investigative interviewing and interrogation in criminal, administrative, intelligence, public safety, and personnel-security environments. Participants examine the psychology of communication, behavioral analysis, rapport-building strategies, cognitive interviewing methods, deception-related behavior, statement analysis, and structured interrogation approaches designed to obtain accurate and reliable information.

The course emphasizes ethical interviewing practices, constitutional protections, false confession awareness, trauma-informed interviewing considerations, and the integration of interviewing strategies with investigative and polygraph operations. Students participate in practical exercises involving interview planning, theme development, behavioral assessment, suspect engagement, and post-admission documentation.

Instruction also addresses modern trends in investigative interviewing, including non-confrontational approaches, strategic evidence disclosure, memory and cognition issues, and interviewing individuals under stress or in high-risk investigative environments.

Who Should Attend

Polygraph examiners, criminal investigators, internal affairs investigators, intelligence personnel, corrections investigators, public safety professionals, supervisory personnel, and background investigators.

Key Topics Include

• Investigative interviewing principles
• Rapport-building and communication techniques
• Cognitive interviewing methods
• Statement analysis and behavioral assessment
• Interrogation structure and strategy
• Ethical and legal considerations
• False confession prevention
• Trauma-informed interviewing
• Documentation and reporting practices
• Integration of interviews with polygraph operations

This advanced course focuses on the development of precise, legally appropriate, and diagnostically effective polygraph test questions across investigative, evidentiary, screening, and administrative testing environments. Participants study the scientific rationale underlying question formulation and examine how improper wording, ambiguity, contamination, and procedural errors can negatively affect test validity and defensibility.

Students receive advanced instruction on relevant, comparison, neutral, symptomatic, sacrifice relevant, and directed-lie question development within validated testing protocols. Practical exercises emphasize case analysis, issue identification, test structure, sequencing rules, question refinement, and adaptation of questions to complex investigative scenarios.

The course also addresses legal and ethical considerations, cultural and linguistic issues, examinee comprehension, cognitive loading concerns, and quality assurance review procedures. Participants review real-world examples of poorly constructed questions and participate in instructor-guided workshops designed to strengthen consistency and examiner judgment.

Who Should Attend

Polygraph examiners, quality assurance personnel, examiner supervisors, senior examiners, and instructors involved in examiner development.

Key Topics Include

• Principles of effective question construction
• Relevant and comparison question formulation
• Multi-issue and complex-case question development
• Investigative versus screening question structures
• Question contamination and ambiguity avoidance
• Test sequencing and protocol requirements
• Legal and ethical considerations
• Cultural and linguistic considerations
• Quality assurance review methods
• Practical workshops and case studies

This advanced continuing education course provides a comprehensive methodology for conducting systematic, thorough, legally defensible, and ethically sound background investigations for law enforcement, corrections, public safety, intelligence, and other security-sensitive positions. The course is designed for professionals responsible for applicant vetting, personnel selection, suitability determinations, and employment-related investigations.

Participants examine the full background investigation process from applicant recruitment and personal history statement analysis through verification, interviewing, records review, documentation, adjudication, and final hiring recommendations. Emphasis is placed on investigative due diligence, documentation standards, legal compliance, risk identification, and verification methodologies necessary to support responsible hiring decisions in public safety organizations.

The course also explores current legal and operational issues affecting modern hiring environments, including Equal Employment Opportunity compliance, Americans with Disabilities Act considerations, Fair Credit Reporting Act requirements, Brady-related credibility concerns, cybervetting and social media investigations, military service verification, identity fraud, employment falsification, and professional misconduct indicators.

Instruction includes practical exercises involving application analysis, chronological history reconstruction, applicant interviewing, verification worksheets, military and educational records review, law enforcement history checks, employment verification, documentation techniques, and investigative case studies drawn from real-world hiring failures and litigation examples.

The course emphasizes the importance of consistency, accountability, and accurate documentation throughout the investigative process while reinforcing the professional responsibilities associated with hiring personnel for positions of public trust.

Who Should Attend

Background investigators, polygraph examiners, internal affairs investigators, public safety hiring personnel, human resources investigators, adjudicators, professional standards personnel, corrections investigators, supervisory staff, and agency administrators involved in personnel selection or vetting operations.

Key Topics Include

• Background investigation philosophy and methodology
• Applicant recruitment and hiring challenges
• Personal history statement analysis
• Verifiable chronological history development
• Federal hiring and employment law considerations
• Americans with Disabilities Act compliance
• Fair Credit Reporting Act requirements
• Brady-related credibility and misconduct issues
• Application verification techniques
• Educational and employment verification
• Military records and DD-214 analysis
• Law enforcement certification and disciplinary review
• Criminal history and arrest verification
• Credit history and financial responsibility reviews
• Identity and citizenship verification
• Social media investigations and cybervetting strategies
• Interviewing and interrogation techniques for applicants
• Documentation methodology and investigative worksheets
• Due diligence and standard-of-care considerations
• Records retention and investigative documentation security
• Adjudication and hiring recommendation practices

Practical Applications

Participants may complete practical exercises involving:

• Background investigation worksheets
• Application discrepancy analysis
• Employment and reference verification
• Military discharge interpretation
• Social media review strategies
• Criminal history documentation
• Applicant interview simulations
• Investigative documentation techniques
• Hiring risk assessment scenarios
• Case studies involving negligent hiring and investigative failures

Flexible Format

This course can be adapted from a few instructional hours to a multi-day intensive program depending on agency needs, operational responsibilities, and participant experience levels.

This advanced continuing education course provides detailed instruction on the identification, interpretation, and management of polygraph countermeasures. Participants study physical, psychological, pharmacological, and behavioral countermeasure attempts and examine how these efforts may influence physiological data collection and interpretation.

Students learn to identify atypical physiological patterns, data irregularities, movement artifacts, respiratory manipulation, pain-inducing behaviors, mental countermeasure strategies, and emerging trends affecting modern polygraph operations. Instruction emphasizes ethical responses, procedural safeguards, examiner observation skills, and defensible operational practices.

Practical exercises include chart analysis, video review, mock examinations, and structured case studies involving suspected countermeasure activity.

Who Should Attend

Polygraph examiners, examiner supervisors, quality assurance personnel, and examiner instructors.

Key Topics Include

• Types of countermeasure attempts
• Physiological indicators of manipulation
• Behavioral and movement observation
• Respiratory and cardiovascular anomalies
• Pharmacological concerns
• Ethical and operational responses
• Countermeasure mitigation strategies
• Chart review and analysis
• Case studies and practical exercises
• Emerging countermeasure trends

Flexible Format

This course can be adapted from a few instructional hours to a multi-day intensive program.

Designed for experienced examiners and supervisory personnel, this advanced course focuses on leadership, examiner development, quality assurance, mentorship, operational management, and professional accountability within credibility assessment programs. Participants examine the responsibilities of senior examiners in agency environments and explore methods for maintaining consistency, professionalism, and scientific integrity in testing operations.

Topics include chart review, case consultation, examiner evaluation, report review, courtroom testimony preparation, continuing education management, ethical leadership, program administration, and policy development. The course also examines instructor development, coaching methods, conflict resolution, and decision-making in high-liability investigative environments.

Practical exercises include supervisory case review, quality control workshops, examiner feedback simulations, and leadership scenario discussions.

Who Should Attend

Experienced polygraph examiners, supervisors, quality assurance personnel, training coordinators, and prospective senior examiners.

Key Topics Include

• Leadership in credibility assessment operations
• Examiner mentoring and development
• Quality assurance procedures
• Case review and consultation
• Report review and corrective feedback
• Ethics and professional accountability
• Courtroom testimony preparation
• Program administration and policy
• Instructor development
• Operational leadership strategies

This course prepares examiners and investigators to support internal affairs and administrative investigations within law enforcement, corrections, government, and public safety organizations. Participants review investigative procedures, employee rights, administrative due process requirements, Garrity-related issues, policy violation investigations, and the operational role of credibility assessment in administrative settings.

The course emphasizes professionalism, confidentiality, legal defensibility, investigative neutrality, and ethical considerations unique to administrative investigations. Participants examine interview strategies, complaint assessment, misconduct investigations, evidentiary documentation, and coordination between investigators, command staff, legal counsel, and human resources personnel.

Practical exercises include administrative interview simulations, misconduct case analysis, and investigative planning workshops.

Who Should Attend

Internal affairs investigators, polygraph examiners, supervisory personnel, administrative investigators, inspectors, and agency legal support personnel.

Key Topics Include

• Internal affairs investigative procedures
• Administrative versus criminal investigations
• Garrity and employee-rights considerations
• Complaint intake and assessment
• Administrative interview strategies
• Polygraph applications in administrative settings
• Evidence and documentation management
• Ethics and confidentiality
• Report writing and presentation
• Investigative case studies

This advanced analytical course focuses on physiological response recognition, validated scoring systems, chart interpretation, and data quality assessment. Participants conduct detailed chart analysis exercises involving investigative, evidentiary, and screening examinations while reviewing decision rules, inconclusive outcomes, and atypical physiological presentations.

Students strengthen analytical consistency, defensibility, and examiner confidence through structured review exercises and instructor-guided analysis workshops.

Who Should Attend

Experienced polygraph examiners, quality assurance personnel, and examiner supervisors.

Key Topics Include

• Physiological response interpretation
• Validated scoring systems
• Chart quality assessment
• Decision rules and outcomes
• Inconclusive data review
• Advanced chart interpretation
• Quality assurance analysis
• Case-based scoring exercises

Flexible Format

This course can be adapted from a few instructional hours to a multi-day intensive program.

This advanced continuing education course examines the theory, structure, administration, and operational application of screening polygraph examinations in pre-employment, security, public safety, and personnel reliability settings. Participants review validated screening protocols, applicant risk assessment methodologies, relevant issue development, question formulation, test sequencing, data interpretation, and reporting practices.

Emphasis is placed on ethical considerations, legal limitations, false positive risk management, defensible decision-making, and integration of screening examinations into broader hiring, suitability, and security adjudication processes.

The course also explores applicant interviewing strategies, behavioral indicators, countermeasure concerns, quality assurance procedures, and emerging issues affecting modern screening programs in law enforcement, intelligence, corrections, government, and private-sector environments. Practical exercises may include case studies, question construction workshops, chart analysis, mock screening examinations, and adjudicative decision scenarios.

Who Should Attend

Polygraph examiners, background investigators, hiring and recruiting personnel, internal affairs investigators, public safety administrators, intelligence professionals, and security or personnel reliability practitioners.

Key Topics Include

• Pre-employment and personnel security screening
• Applicant risk assessment and issue development
• Validated screening techniques and protocols
• Advanced screening question construction
• Screening data analysis and interpretation
• Countermeasure awareness in screening environments
• Legal, ethical, and human rights considerations
• False positive mitigation and quality assurance
• Report writing and adjudicative communication
• Integration of screening examinations into hiring and security programs

Applied Pharmacology for the Polygraph Examiner is a continuing education course designed to provide practicing polygraph examiners with a practical understanding of medications, substances, and physiological factors that may influence the polygraph examination. Participants will examine fundamental concepts of pharmacology, including pharmacodynamics and pharmacokinetics, and explore how medications and substances may affect cardiovascular, respiratory, electrodermal, cognitive, behavioral, and autonomic functioning relevant to polygraph testing.

The course addresses psychiatric medications, cardiovascular and autonomic drugs, stimulants and sedatives, over-the-counter medications, supplements, caffeine, nicotine, alcohol, cannabis, opioids, medication interactions, withdrawal, missed doses, and recent medication changes. Participants will learn to distinguish stable therapeutic medication use from circumstances that may warrant additional inquiry and will practice obtaining a structured medication and substance history as part of the examination process.

Emphasis is placed on the examiner’s appropriate professional role and scope of practice. The course does not prepare examiners to diagnose medical conditions, determine whether a medication causes truthfulness or deception, or make medication recommendations. Instead, it prepares examiners to recognize medication- and substance-related factors that may affect physiological recordings or examination conditions and to identify circumstances in which additional information or appropriate professional consultation may be warranted.

Recommended audience: Practicing polygraph examiners and other credibility-assessment professionals seeking additional education regarding medications, substances, and their potential relevance to polygraph examinations.