Presence in Digital Games

An overview of some of the works of measuring a player's sense of spatial presence in digital games.

"Self Assessment Manikin" used to measure subjective telepresence (David Weibel, 2008)

When and How to Assess Subjective Overall Judgments of Presence

Bartholomäus Wissmath, David Weibel, Daniel Stricker (2008)

Abstract:

This study investigates differences between subjective on- line- and post-immersion measures, verbally and pictorially anchored scales, and the effects of content on those different measures. These factors were investigated by means of a 2x2x2 within-subjects-design. Participants (N = 162) evaluated two video clips. Against our expectations the findings suggest on- line- and post-immersion measures to be interchangeable. In line with findings from other fields than presence, pictorially anchored items seem to have major advantages when overall judgments are to be assessed. The advantages of pictorially anchored items apply in particular for language-containing environments.

Conclusions:

This piece of research suggests the adoption of post-rating scales as participants seem to be able to provide ex post highly accurate overall estimation of the presence experienced. However, when temporal variations of presence are of particular interest, our study suggests that overall on-line ratings do not interfere the sense of presence.

This study contributes to findings suggesting advantages of visually anchored measures in terms of efficacy and validity. The presence community could try to establish and investigate more specific (i.e. addressing sub-dimensions of presence) non- verbal subjective rating tools.

When assessing an overall estimation of presence, the advantages of visually anchored measures seem to pay off especially with language-based environments. Researchers should keep that in mind when setting up an investigation focusing on such environments.

A Cognitive-Heuristics Approach to Understanding Presence in Virtual Environments

S. Shyam Sundar, Anne Oeldorf-Hirsch, Amulya Garga (2008)

Abstract:

A strange paradox surrounds the role played by technology in inducing presence. The more sophisticated the technology, the greater the presence, which means greater invisibility of the technology. While we know that advancements in media technology, from larger screens to more interactivity, can enhance the sense of presence, the theoretical mechanisms by which this occurs are yet to be specified. We address this shortcoming by proposing that user interpretation of technology critically mediates the relationship between technological factors and a sense of presence. In particular, we adapt the MAIN model [1] to propose that technological affordances transmit cues that trigger cognitive heuristics leading to perceptions of presence. This paper identifies and describes a sample of heuristics triggered by modality, agency, interactivity, and navigability. Applications to 3D environments exemplify this approach by identifying specific cues and demonstrating the operation of the proposed heuristics en route to generating presence.

Immersion in Computer Games: The Role of Spatial Presence and Flow

D. Weibel, Bartholomaus Wissmath (2011)

Conclusion:

We attempted to examine the relation between presence and flow. The results of exploratory as well as confirmatory factor provides empirical evidence that flow and presence are distinct constructs, the first referring to the sensation of being involved in the gaming action, the latter referring to the sensation of being there. Furthermore, we could show within three different computer games that immersive tendency and the (pre)motivation contribute to presence and flow. Flow in turn influences enjoyment and performance. In addition, flow mediates the relationship between presence and enjoyment. In two of the three studies, flow also mediates between presence and performance. Our study shows that flow is a central construct and may explain the popularity of computer games. Computer Games seem to be ideal to induce flow experiences. This might be because the difficulty level of a computer game is usually varying. As a consequence, it is likely that the balance between challenge and skills is rather given compared to other applications. However, this a mere speculation which should be tested in future studies.