Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments

Zhao, Shanyang

doi: 10.1162/105474603322761261pmid: N/A

This paper contributes to the presence literature by explicating the meanings and subtypes of copresence. Copresence is defined here as consisting of two dimensions: copresence as mode of being with others, and copresence as sense of being with others. Mode of copresence refers to the physical conditions that structure human interaction. Six such conditions are delineated. Sense of copresence, on the other hand, refers to the subjective experience of being with others that an individual acquires in interaction. The main argument of this paper is that mode of copresence affects sense of copresence, and knowledge of how the former affects the latter will benefit copresence design.

Biocca, Frank; Harms, Chad; Burgoon, Judee K.

doi: 10.1162/105474603322761270pmid: N/A

At a time of increased social usage of net and collaborative applications, a robust and detailed theory of social presence could contribute to our understanding of social behavior in mediated environments, allow researchers to predict and measure differences among media interfaces, and guide the design of new social environments and interfaces. A broader theory of social presence can guide more valid and reliable measures. The article reviews, classifies, and critiques existing theories and measures of social presence. A set of criteria and scope conditions is proposed to help remedy limitations in past theories and measures and to provide a contribution to a more robust theory and measure of social presence.

Biocca, Frank; Harms, Chad; Burgoon, Judee K.

doi: 10.1162/105474603322761270pmid: N/A

At a time of increased social usage of net and collaborative applications, a robust and detailed theory of social presence could contribute to our understanding of social behavior in mediated environments, allow researchers to predict and measure differences among media interfaces, and guide the design of new social environments and interfaces. A broader theory of social presence can guide more valid and reliable measures. The article reviews, classifies, and critiques existing theories and measures of social presence. A set of criteria and scope conditions is proposed to help remedy limitations in past theories and measures and to provide a contribution to a more robust theory and measure of social presence.

Nowak, Kristine L.; Biocca, Frank

doi: 10.1162/105474603322761289pmid: N/A

We report on an experiment that examined the influence of anthropomorphism and perceived agency on presence, copresence, and social presence in a virtual environment. The experiment varied the level of anthropomorphism of the image of interactants: high anthropomorphism, low anthropomorphism, or no image. Perceived agency was manipulated by telling the participants that the image was either an avatar controlled by a human, or an agent controlled by a computer. The results support the prediction that people respond socially to both human and computer-controlled entities, and that the existence of a virtual image increases tele-presence. Participants interacting with the less-anthropomorphic image reported more copresence and social presence than those interacting with partners represented by either no image at all or by a highly anthropomorphic image of the other, indicating that the more anthropomorphic images set up higher expectations that lead to reduced presence when these expectations were not met.

Nowak, Kristine L.; Biocca, Frank

doi: 10.1162/105474603322761289pmid: N/A

We report on an experiment that examined the influence of anthropomorphism and perceived agency on presence, copresence, and social presence in a virtual environment. The experiment varied the level of anthropomorphism of the image of interactants: high anthropomorphism, low anthropomorphism, or no image. Perceived agency was manipulated by telling the participants that the image was either an avatar controlled by a human, or an agent controlled by a computer. The results support the prediction that people respond socially to both human and computer-controlled entities, and that the existence of a virtual image increases tele-presence. Participants interacting with the less-anthropomorphic image reported more copresence and social presence than those interacting with partners represented by either no image at all or by a highly anthropomorphic image of the other, indicating that the more anthropomorphic images set up higher expectations that lead to reduced presence when these expectations were not met.

Waterworth, J. A.; Waterworth, E. L.

doi: 10.1162/105474603322761298pmid: N/A

We briefly describe a novel immersive environment—the interactive tent—and an artistic production within it, the Illusion of Being. In this production, immersants experience a vivid cycle of the elements in a way that depends on their bodily movements. This elemental “story” has four versions in all, with each created to have differential effects on sense of presence and of subjective duration, according to a theoretical model. The model proposes three orthogonal dimensions of experience: focus , the level of abstraction; locus , real versus virtual; and sensus , the overall level of attention of the observer. An experiment, conducted to assess the effects of the different versions, is reported. The results confirmed the model's prediction that rated presence is relatively high when experienced media is of a form that elicits predominantly concrete (perceptual) processing, and relatively low when the emphasis is on more-abstract (conceptual) processing. But the concrete-abstract dimension had no direct effect on judged duration, contrary to our predictions. However, some evidence suggests that judged presence and estimated duration were positively correlated for media categorized as virtual, but not for content captured from the real world.

Waterworth, J. A.; Waterworth, E. L.

doi: 10.1162/105474603322761298pmid: N/A

We briefly describe a novel immersive environment—the interactive tent—and an artistic production within it, the Illusion of Being. In this production, immersants experience a vivid cycle of the elements in a way that depends on their bodily movements. This elemental “story” has four versions in all, with each created to have differential effects on sense of presence and of subjective duration, according to a theoretical model. The model proposes three orthogonal dimensions of experience: focus, the level of abstraction;locus, real versus virtual; andsensus, the overall level of attention of the observer. An experiment, conducted to assess the effects of the different versions, is reported. The results confirmed the model's prediction that rated presence is relatively high when experienced media is of a form that elicits predominantly concrete (perceptual) processing, and relatively low when the emphasis is on more-abstract (conceptual) processing. But the concrete-abstract dimension had no direct effect on judged duration, contrary to our predictions. However, some evidence suggests that judged presence and estimated duration were positively correlated for media categorized as virtual, but not for content captured from the real world.