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When Media Aren’t Media: The Concept of (Tele)presence Matthew Lombard Temple University BTMM 3446/8446 March 2, 2010
When Media Aren’t Media: The Concept of (Tele)presence
Matthew LombardTemple University
BTMM 3446/8446 March 2, 2010
Overview• What is presence?
• Why is it important?
• What are causes and effects?
• What are research goals?
• Resources for learning more
What Is Presence?
The evolution of media technologies - drawings, print, radio, film, television, computers, videogames, IMAX, simulator rides, virtual reality, virtual worlds, artificial intelligence agents…
What Is Presence?
… has produced mediated experiences that seem increasingly natural, intuitive, comfortable, easy, automatic, because the technology seems increasingly less like technology.
What Is Presence?
• Transportation
• Realism
• Immersion
• Social richness
• Social actor within medium
• Medium as social actor
What Is Presence?
Presence as transportation
• “Being there” or “you are there”
• “It is here”
• “We are together” (shared space)
“You are there”
“You are there”
“You are there”
“You are there”
“It is here”
“It is here”
“It is here”
“It is here”
“We are there” (shared space)
What Is Presence?
Presence as realism
• Perceptual realism
• Social realism
Realism
Realism
Realism
What Is Presence?
Presence as immersion
Immersion
Immersion
What Is Presence?Presence as social richness
Social Richness
• Social presence theory (Short, Williams, & Christie, 1976) and media richness theory (Rice, 1992)
• Medium characteristics allow for different levels of intimacy and immediacy
• Developed to match communication media and organizational tasks
Social Richness
What Is Presence?
Presence as social actor within medium
Social Actor within Medium
Social Actor Within Medium
Lara Diki T-babe Webbie- Tookay
What Is Presence?
Presence as medium as social actor
Medium As Social Actor
Medium As Social Actor
Medium As Social Actor
Medium As Social Actor
Medium as Social Actor
Medium As Social Actor
What Is Presence?
• Perceptual illusion of nonmediation
• Real time during media use
• Not a disorder or abnormal
• Property of media user
• Result of media form and content, media user characteristics and media context/environment
Why Is Presence Important?
• It’s ‘central’ – relates to many fields and endeavors
• It will be increasingly common
• It has many potential effects
Causes of PresenceForm variablesNumber of sensory outputsConsistency of sensory outputsVisual display characteristics
Image quality** Image size **** Viewing distance **** Proportion of visual field **MotionColorDimensionalitySubjective camera techniques
Causes of Presence
Aural presentation characteristicsQuality (frequency range, dynamic range, signal to noise ratio)Spatialization (dimensionality)Volume
InteractivityNumber of inputs from user the medium accepts and responds toNumber and type of characteristics of mediated presentation/experience user can modify
Causes of PresenceInteractivity (cont’d)
Range or amount of change possible in each characteristic user can modifyDegree of correspondence between type of user input and type of medium responseSpeed of medium response (lag time)
Obtrusiveness of mediumLive versus recorded or constructed experienceNumber of people
Causes of PresenceContent variablesSocial realismUse of media conventions (formula plot/dialogue, etc.)Nature of task or activity
AmbiguityDifficultyEmotionality
Causes of PresenceMedia user variablesWillingness to suspend disbeliefKnowledge of and prior experience with the mediumPersonality typeInterestsPreferred representational system (visual, auditory, or kinesthetic) Cognitive style Propensity to "screen" stimuliMood before/during/after media useAge, Gender
Effects of PresencePhysiologicalArousalVection and simulation sickness (dizziness, eyestrain, disorientation, dysphoria, standing and walking unsteadiness, nausea)Automatic responses (e.g., flinching, ducking, grasping chair)Reduced eye-hand coordination FlashbacksIllusory sensations (e.g., of climbing and turning)Reduced motor control
Effects of Presence
Psychological and BehavioralEnjoymentInvolvementTask performanceSkills trainingDesensitizationPersuasionParasocial interaction and relationships Memory and social judgment
Presence and Social Judgments
Presence and Social Judgments
Presence and Social Judgments
Presence and Social Judgments
Presence and Social Judgments
Presence Research • Goals
– Identify and manipulate causes
– Understand and develop cohesive theory of cognitive, affective, and behavioral processes of telepresenc
– Identify, measure and manipulate consequences of telepresence
Big Picture Questions
• How to maximize usefulness of telepresence?
• What forms do people want and fear?
• Where will technology evolution take us? (utopia vs. dystopia)
• How to deal with ethical challenges?
• International Society for Presence Research (ISPR): http://ispr.info
• Matthew [email protected]
Resources for Learning More
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