====== Discussion Preparation 2 (Presence) ======

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===== Goal =====

The concept of "Presence" is frequently encountered when discussing virtual environments. For example, you may be asked by someone to create a virtual environment that provides a great level of presence for the user. However, it is a rather complex concept and there are various ways to describe what underlies a great level of presence. The goal of this discussion preparation is to get more familiar with this concept and think about it in terms of your own daily life.

===== Your task =====
 

  * **Read** the **Introduction** section of the article [[http://research.gold.ac.uk/483/1/PSY_Freeman_2001a.pdf|A Cross-Media Presence Questionnaire: The ITC-Sense of Presence Inventory]] to learn about "Presence" and how people attempt to measure it. The proposed ITC-SOPI questionnaire is not included in the article because it is copyrighted material, however, our lab has permission to use it (see next point).
  * **Administer the ITC-SOPI on yourself** Pick a media activity (e.g. watching TV, watch YouTube, playing games, reading a comic book...). Engage with that media for at least 10 minutes. Immediately afterwards fill in the ITC-SOPI questionnaire (it is best to have it printed out and ready before the media exposure). You can find it under **Other Materials** in MySchool. Important: **Do not distribute that file further and remove it from your machine after use**. The file is governed by strict copyright laws. 
  * **Score your media experience** Use the ITC-SOPI scoring guide (also on MySchool) to give your media experience a score along the 4 presence factors discussed in the article. Be ready to compare your media experience with other people's experiences in class.