The effect of training in criteria-based content analysis on the ability to detect deception in adults.

The Criteria-Based Content Analysis (CBCA) technique has been proposed as a way to differentiate truth from falsehood in interviews of children. We studied adults, utilizing 14 of the 19 CBCA criteria. In a 2×2 design, 114 students estimated the truthfulness of the statements of 12 adults; 6 were true and 6 described an invented traumatic personal experience. Subjects viewed a videotape or read a written transcript; half were trained in CBCA and half were not. Trained subjects who saw videotapes performed significantly better than chance and were significantly more accurate than each of the other 3 groups. For the trained subjects, 10 of the 14 CBCA criteria yielded significant differences in the predicted direction between evaluations of truthful and invented statements.