Otherwise known as the Guilty Knowledge Test. The CIT is a series of tests, perhaps as many as 10 or more, in which there is only one critical item in each series. The tests are constructed so that the order of the item presentations is random except the first item, which is not a critical item and is used as a buffer. The theoretical operating mechanism of the CIT is there is greater signal value in the critical item for guilty examinees than in the irrelevant items. The CIT is believed to rely on cognitive processes and is therefore not subject to false positives from nervous examinees. CIT tests could be used in a small proportion of all criminal cases where sufficient details were available to construct it, however in most crimes such details are lacking or would be already known to innocent persons via the media or investigating officers. Despite assertions of theoretical superiority of the CIT over the CQT, the CIT has practical limitations that have hindered its broad acceptance among field practitioners. Moreover, the preponderance of independent research suggests that false negatives may be a problem with the CIT. See Lykken (1959); MacLaren (2001); Podlesny (1993).
