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A SENSE OF PRESENCE - IMMERSION IN THE MEDIUM
[LISTEN TO A SUMMARY]
From At the Heart of It All: The Concept of Presence published in the Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication.
Virtual reality. Simulation rides. Home theater. IMAX films. State-of-the-art video conferencing. Computers that 'talk.' Although these emerging technologies are different in a number of ways, each of them (and many others) is designed to give the user a type of mediated experience that has never been possible before: one that seems truly 'natural,' 'immediate,' 'direct,' and 'real,' a mediated experience that seems very much like it is not mediated; a mediated experience that creates for the user a strong sense of presence
Presence is the extent to which a medium is perceived as sociable, warm, sensitive, personal or intimate when it is used to interact with other people.
Perhaps the oldest version of presence (is) the oral tradition of early humans involved in the telling of tales that transported each generation of listeners to a different time and place where the events occurred.
Although real immediacy is best achieved through eye contact, interaction and conversation; media can create a sense of immediacy. The tone, pauses and inflection of speech create more presence than text alone, as adding the non-verbal cues seen with video create a greater sense of presence than audio alone.
When media is used as a teacher ".....the relationship with the instructor/computer is so close, so immediate, that it is really not mass mediated instruction at all, but interpersonal tutoring.
(Presence is a) feeling of being a part of the phenomenal environment created by television and not being a part of the physical environment surrounding the viewer and the television set. (The phrase often spoken by television hosts following a commercial break, 'Welcome back,' is consistent with the idea that viewers are 'transported' during viewing.)
(Another) conceptualization of presence emphasizes the idea of perceptual and psychological immersion. In the most compelling virtual reality experiences, the senses are immersed in the virtual world; the body is entrusted to a reality engine.
Perceptual immersion, the degree to which a virtual environment submerges the perceptual system of the user can be objectively measured by counting the number of the users' senses that are provided with input and the degree to which inputs from the physical environment are 'shut out'
Presence as immersion also includes a psychological component. When users feel immersive presence they are involved, absorbed, engaged, engrossed.
Matthew Lombard & Theresa Ditton, "At the Heart of It All: The Concept of Presence." The Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication - Annenberg School for Communication. 1997.
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