Secret Service agent on building rapport, reading people, and polygraphs | Brad Beeler

episode

Previously titled “Secret Service agent and polygraph examiner Brad Beeler on people-reading and rapport-building” — renamed by the publisher on Aug 11, 2026

People Who Read People: A Behavior and Psychology Podcast not yet transcribed

▲ 0

Transcript

This episode hasn't been transcribed yet Upvotes decide what gets transcribed next — 0 so far. Sign in to upvote

recent transcribed audio

A.I. Safety Goes Mainstream + a ‘Hard Fork’ Exit AMA 1h 25m · 18 Sep 2026 · Hard Fork

Layoffs at the Kansas City Star will hurt local communities 15 min · 18 Sep 2026 · Kansas City Today

AWP: Beyond the Exam Room: Purpose, Myopia, and Population Health 54 min · 17 Sep 2026 · EyeCode Media

Planning Commission Meeting - Sep 17, 2026 1h 11m · 17 Sep 2026 · Leesburg Planning Commission

Heritage Commission - Sep 14, 2026 1h 57m · 17 Sep 2026 · Loudoun County Board Committees and Advisory Boards

Historic District Review Committee - Sep 14, 2026 1h 36m · 17 Sep 2026 · Loudoun County Board Committees and Advisory Boards

Report any issue

Source

Recorded30 May 2026

Publisherfeeds.megaphone.fm

Handlerec:18646722

Show notes

How much can we really learn from people's words and behavior—and where do we risk fooling ourselves? In this talk, former Secret Service agent and polygraph examiner Brad Beeler explores the practical realities of interrogations, deception detection, statement analysis, and reading people in high-stakes situations. We discuss why confirmation bias is such a threat to good investigations, why many popular body-language claims are overstated, and how investigators might make use of subtle behavioral clues without becoming wrongly overconfident in them. Brad shares stories from criminal investigations, explains how experienced interviewers think about truth and deception, and offers a polygraph examiner’s take on the controversial subject of polygraphs. We also talk about the importance of rapport-building and listening to what people are actually trying to communicate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ask this episode

“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.

Transcript

Related