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Gilkey, R. H., & Weisenberger, J. M. (1995). The sense of presence for the suddenly deafened adult: Implications for virtual environments. Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments, 4(4), 357–363. 
Added by: Mark Grimshaw-Aagaard (28/02/2018, 09:47)   Last edited by: Mark Grimshaw-Aagaard (13/08/2018, 12:53)
Resource type: Journal Article
Peer reviewed
DOI: 10.1162/pres.1995.4.4.357
ID no. (ISBN etc.): 1054-7460
BibTeX citation key: Gilkey1995
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Categories: General
Keywords: Auditory Space, Deafness, Immersion, Presence, Self-presence, Visual bias
Creators: Gilkey, Weisenberger
Publisher: MIT Press (Cambridge, Massachusetts)
Collection: Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments
Resources citing this (Bibliography: WIKINDX Master Bibliography)
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Abstract
"Reports from adventitiously deafened individuals of a sense of unconnectedness with their surroundings, of a sense that the world seems “dead,” offer a compelling rationale for the argument that auditory cues are a crucial determinant of the sense of presence. Moreover, the crucial element of auditory stimulation for creating a sense of presence may be the auditory background, comprising the incidental sounds made by objects in the environment, rather than the communication and warning signals that typically capture our attention. Although designers of virtual environments have most often tried to maximize the sense of presence in the user by attempting to improve the fidelity of visual displays, the arguments presented here suggest that background auditory stimulation may be useful or even critical for achieving a full sense of presence."
  
Notes

Reflections based on a report into sudden deafness of WWII veterans (Ramsdell 1978). Concludes that the sense of presence ('coupling between observer and the environment') derives mainly from the auditory modality and, in this, mainly from background, ambient sound. As VEs (1995 at time of writing) are not capable of adequately emulating RW auditory cues (and reflections etc.), presence is not achievable in VEs. Another conclusion is that VE researchers are concentrating on the wrong modality (vision) in order to achieve presence.

Caveat is that the authors are discussing sudden deafness late in life after persons had had a lifetime of accustomizing themselves to environments full of auditory cues and ambient sound.

See also Slater (1993) and Usoh arguing that auditory cues in VEs are more contributing to presence for users with a preference for the auditory modality in the first place.



Ramsdell, D. A. (1978). The psychology of the hard-of-hearing and the deafened adult. In H. Davis & S. R. Silverman (Eds), Hearing and Deafness 4th ed. (pp. 499–510). New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
Slater, M., & Usoh, M. (1993). Representations systems, perceptual position, and presence in immersive virtual environments. Presence: Teleoperators and Virtual Environments, 2(3), 221–223.
Added by: Mark Grimshaw-Aagaard  Last edited by: Mark Grimshaw-Aagaard
Quotes
p.358   "The problem of implementing a virtual environment in toto is intractable at present."   Added by: Mark Grimshaw-Aagaard
Keywords:   Immersion Presence Telepresence Virtual environment
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