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• Average Tracing Segment - a segment within a tracing that shows no physiological evidence in the emotional level within the stress area on the polygraph chart or polygrams. ​
• Reaction Tracing Segment - a segment within a tracing that shows physiological evidence that the sympathetic subdivision of the autonomic nervous system has become active following the stress area on the polygraph chart, indicating a psychological return to the subject’s exhibited average emotional level. ​
• Relief Tracing Segment - a segment within the tracing that shows physiological evidence that the parasympathetic subdivision of the autonomic nervous system has become active following the stress area on the polygraph chart, indicating a physiological return to the subjects exhibited average emotional level. ​
• Distortion Tracing Segment - a segment within a tracing that departs from the average emotional level but lacks physiological evidence of either sympathetic or parasympathetic activation within the stress area on the polygraph chart, indicating a lack in psychological origin.​
• RESPIRATORY BLOCK - a block or stoppage in respiration, occurring immediately after the subject’s answer to a test question and lasting for several seconds, is a very reliable symptom of deception. This form of suppression may appear at the end of the exhalation stage of the respiratory cycle.​
• RESPIRATORY BLOCK - appears at the end of the inhalation ​
• Respiratory Block - a suppression that approaches but does not quite equal the typical respiratory blocks. It is nevertheless, of equal significance as a criterion of deception.​
• STAIRCASE SUPPRESSION - a suppression of respiration that assumes the appearance of a staircase or upgrade set of steps, and​

  which begins immediately after a test question has been answered. It may occur in several forms, as shown above and as indicated by arrows​
• RESPIRATION BASELINE RISE - a rise in the respiration baseline at the time a test question is asked, is another very reliable symptom of deception. The rise usually lasts for 15 or 20 sec, after which the baseline ordinarily returns to its normal level. ​
• ORDINARY SUPPRESSION - equally as significant as the foregoing responses is a form of suppression in respiration that cannot be categorized except as ordinary. It does not possess any very distinctive characteristic such as block, a staircase, or a rise in baseline, but it nevertheless constitutes a reliable criterion of deception. Observe that some of the tracings combine minor scale characteristics of blocks, staircase, and baseline rise, but the only truly distinctive quality is a general form of suppression. ​
• RESPIRATION CYCLE CHANGE - (slower, faster, or heavier breathing) a change in respiration cycle, after the asking of relevant question, is another dependable criterion of deception. A widening of the cycles is indicative of slower breathing during the relevant question interval. B, the deception criterion appears here in the form of a slow sliding expiration tracing. C, the cycles here are more frequent because of faster breathing. D, the longer cycles are indicative of heavier breathing during the relevant question interval. ​
• POST DECEPTION RESPIRATION RELIEF - heavier breathing, after a crucial question or even at the end of the test itself and without being preceded by any obvious suppression, is another reliable criterion of deception. A, in this case the subject’s respiration tracing throughout the first three questions appeared quite normal, but after the fourth the subject gave a sigh of relief in the form of three heavy breaths. B, this subject’s characteristics response was his heavier breathing, at points marked with arrows, about 20 sec after his answer to a crucial question.
• ERRATIC SPECIFIC RESPONSES - contrary to what is sometimes assumed, erratic breathing of the types shown here is not due, ordinarily, to deliberate efforts on the part of the subject; at apparently results solely from his own natural disturbance over the fact of lying. ​
• PSEUDODECEPTION ANTICIPATORY RESPONSE IN RESPIRATION - the previously illustrated specific responses in respiration assume significance only when they appear, and continue, after the answering of a question, or at most not only any earlier than a one cycle interval before the question is answered, if the response occurs prior thereto, it ordinarily is not indicative of deception and may be considered a psuedodeception anticipatory response.​
• GENERALLY ERRATIC RESPIRATION - there are instances where deception is reflected in the respiration by only a generally erratic pattern rather than in the form of specific changes. Generally erratic pattern may result from excessively slow or excessively fast breathing as in A and B, respectively. When in this form they are usually the result of a deliberate effort on the part of the subject to mislead the examiner.​
• CHART INTERPRETATION ​

  The process of reading and deciphering the meaning of graphical responses of the subject based on the chart tracings. ​
• CHART PROBING ​

  The process of showing the polygram to the subject and providing a brief explanation on the dissimilarities or the responses with the objective of determining the true cause of recorded responses and to clarify the confusion or misunderstanding that might have been caused by vague response. ​