Examining the utility of presence: 20 years of presence research and future directions

Over the last 20 years, the notion of presence has been omnipresent in research into the design, use, and effects of virtual reality. Despite the popularity of the term, a review of this literature shows presence to be ill-defined, poorly specified, and presumed as the universal end goal of VR experiences. Our presentation provides an intentional provocation of the assumptions and aims of presence-driven VR research, with the end goal of driving critical thinking and open discussion towards the development and refinement of a general theory on user experiences in VR.