To examine the effects of different answering modes on the galvanic skin response (GSR) in the concealed information test (CIT).

A total of 150 participants were recruited and randomly assigned to different experimental conditions according to the experimental design. The GSR of each participant was scored using the Lykken scoring method. The accuracies of the GSR for both perpetrators and innocent participants were analyzed under the three answering modes in the CIT: silence, honest answer, and deceptive answer.

The accuracies of identifying perpetrators under the answering modes of silence, honest answer, and deceptive answer were 53.3%, 33.3%, and 86.7%, respectively. The accuracies of identifying innocent participants under the answering modes of silence and honest answer were 100% and 93.3%, respectively.

Answering modes have a certain influence on the GSR in the CIT, which can provide a reference for the standardized application and criteria development of polygraph testing technology.