The Impact of Telepresence in an Online Ad on The

8/11/2019 The Impact of Telepresence in an Online Ad on The

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Recherche et Applications en Marketing

28(2) 324

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IntroductionIn the marketing literature, direct experience, i.e.

consumers first usage experience with a product

(Singh et al., 2000) has always been considered to

have a greater effect than indirect experience (from

advertising or word of mouth) on the formation of

strong beliefs and attitudes towards the product

(Berger and Mitchell, 1989; Marks and Kamins,

1988; Smith and Swinyard, 1983). While virtual

The impact of telepresence in anonline ad on forming attitudes towardsthe product: The relevance of thetraditional experiential approach

Sana DebbabiIUT of Tours, VALLOREM (EA6296), Franois Rabelais University-Tours, France

Serge BaileTBS, Toulouse University & Aix Marseille University, IAE Aix en Provence, CERGAM (EA 4225), France

Vronique des GaretsIAE of Tours, VALLOREM (EA6296), Franois Rabelais University-Tours, France

Gilles RoehrichCERAG UMR 5820 - IAE, University Grenoble Alpes, France

Abstract

This study proposes a conceptual model for understanding the impact of telepresence in an online ad on the

process of forming attitudes towards the product. The model takes the traditional experiential approachas its frame of reference. It formulates two interdependent attitude formation processes in a telepresencesituation: the first cognitive, the second affective. The model is tested by means of a quasi-experiment.The results confirm the hypotheses of direct and indirect causality among the variables comprising thetwo processes. This causal analysis allows us to carry out a conceptual diagnosis and to make variousrecommendations.

Keywords

3D advertising, attitude towards the product, role taking, telepresence, virtual direct experience

Corresponding author:

Sana Debbabi, Associate Professor, IUT of Tours Franois Rabelais UniversityTours, 29, Rue du Pont Volant 37082 Tours, France.

Email: [email protected]

7480RME28210.1177/2051570713487480Rechercheet Applicationsen Marketing(English Edition)Debbabi et al.

Article


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4 Recherche et Applications en Marketing (English Edition) 28(2)

experience is similar to indirect experience because

they are both produced via media, virtual experi-

ence becomes similar to direct experience through

the webs capacity to provide a virtual reality for

different types of applications (Li et al., 2002). The

implementation of new interactive technologies for

display in three dimensions (3D) enables this virtualexperience and points to a greater impact on the for-

mation of consumers beliefs and attitudes toward a

product (Hand, 1997; Hughes et al., 2002; Mirapaul,

2000).

The study of the impact of the display format on

consumer responses is increasingly attracting the

attention of marketing researchers. 3D advertising

is valued for its capacity to arouse telepresence in

the consumer in virtual environments, where telep-

resence is defined as the experience of presence in

a virtual environment by means of communicationtechnologies (Steuer, 1992: 76). Exposure to 3D

advertising thus allows consumers to surrender to

this environment and to look at products and obtain

knowledge about them without going to a store.

New experience of a product, so-called virtual

experience, can thus arise (Li et al., 2001; Edwards

and Gangadharbatla, 2001; Jiang and Benbasat,

2005; Klein, 1998; Li et al., 2002).

In the context of television advertising, MacInnis

and Jaworski (1989) introduced the concept of

role-taking defined as an experience in which theindividual places the self into the ad or product

experience (1989:13). This concept is similar to

that of telepresence in internet advertising. Indeed,

both concepts refer to the displacement of the per-

son from his or her immediate environment to the

environment created by the ad for an experience of

the product. The present study is part of a research

field that seeks to explore the implications of telep-

resence. More specifically, the objective of this

study is to better understand the mechanisms by

which telepresence impacts the formation of atti-tudes toward the product in the context of internet

advertising.

This influence on the perceptual, cognitive, emo-

tional and behavioral responses of an individual to a

stimulus has been studied in the areas of marketing,

humancomputer interaction and information sys-

tems. However, the impact of telepresence on the

formation of attitudes toward products is a relatively

unexplored area of research (Edwards and

Gangadharbatla, 2001; Klein, 1998; Li et al., 2002;

Jiang and Benbasat, 2005; Debbabi et al., 2010).

There is a connection between the present study

and research on the influence of television advertis-

ing on attitudes toward products (MacInnis and

Jaworski, 1989; Smith and Swinyard, 1983).However, our study does not intend making a com-

parison between the effect of telepresence in an

online ad and the effect of role-taking in a TV ad.

Rather our aim is to build on the theoretical connec-

tions between the two concepts so as to better

understand the consequences of telepresence.

Virtual experience of the product stemming from

telepresence is more convincing than indirect expe-

rience arising from role-taking in a television com-

mercial. Indeed, unlike a TV ad, 3D advertising

enables the individual to interact with the product.The person thus becomes a tele-actor and not sim-

ply a viewer in relation to the message he or she

receives. The mechanisms of the influence of telep-

resence on attitude are therefore specific to this type

of experience.

As a first step, we present an overview of studies

that have focused on the potential of the concept of

telepresence. We then look at the similarities

between the concept of telepresence in an Internet

ad and the concept of role-taking in a television

commercial. These similarities are a point of depar-ture for understanding the effects of telepresence.

The experiential approach of MacInnis and Jaworski

(1989), which explains the impact of role taking on

attitude formation, serves therefore as a theoretical

reference point. We next put forward a model

describing the effect of telepresence on the attitude

towards the product. Finally, we present and discuss

the main findings and their theoretical and manage-

rial implications.

Literature review

Telepresence

Several studies (Biocca, 1997; Klein, 2003; Steuer,

1992) draw attention to the fact that a user whose

perception is mediated by a communication tech-

nology necessarily perceives two environments: the

one real (physical), the other virtual (mediated).


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Debbabi et al. 5

Telepresence is experienced by the user when the

perception mediated by the technology takes prec-

edence over the unmediated perception. Lombard

and Ditton (1997) consider that telepresence is the

perceptual illusion of non-mediation. Debbabi and

Baile say that telepresence is a perception of pres-

ence in a mediated environment that appears as if itwas less mediated or real (2005: 74). Telepresence

is an intrinsically motivating activity (Jeandrain,

2001) and an exciting and emotionally intense

experience (Grigorovici, 2003), and is determined

by the characteristics of the media and of the user

(Campbell et al., 2010; Lessiter et al., 2001).

The characteristics of a medium is defined by its

content and form (Heeter, 1992; Lombard and

Ditton, 1997). The content corresponds to the use of

conventions pertaining to the medium and to the

nature of the task or activity to be carried out(Lombard and Ditton, 1997). The form of the

medium depends on its richness and interactivity.

Media richness refers to the number of senses stim-

ulated during the presentation of information and to

the quality/resolution of this presentation (Steuer,

1992). Interactivity is defined by Steuer as the

extent to which users can participate in modifying

the form and content of the mediated environment

in real time (1992: 14).

The characteristics of the user include perceptual

and cognitive ability, attention, duration of exposureand/or its interaction, and familiarity with mediated

environments (Lessiter et al., 2001; Witmer and

Singer, 1998).

3D advertising is in this sense considered as a

source of stimulation of telepresence. It offers the

Internet user the possibility of interacting with the

product, and meets his or her requirements in terms

of observation and manipulation of the product:

rotation, zoom in, zoom out, etc. (Hand, 1997).

Researchers have shown that 3D advertising influ-

ences learning, product knowledge, the strength ofbeliefs about the attributes of the product, confi-

dence in beliefs and attitudes, and confidence in the

attitude toward the brand and the product (Debbabi

et al., 2010; Biocca and Daugherty, 2001; Klein,

2003; Li et al., 2001, 2002). From a perceptual point

of view, telepresence in a 3D advertisement propels

the individual towards direct experience of the prod-

uct and to developing a virtual direct experience

(Griffith and Chen, 2004; Li et al., 2001, 2002;

Klein, 2003). Griffith and Chen define virtual direct

experience as the conveyance of experiential prod-

uct attributes in an on-line simulation of a direct

experience (2004: 56). Li et al. instead offer a sub-

jective conceptualization of virtual direct experi-

ence: a psychological and emotional state thatconsumers undergo while interacting with products

in a 3D environment (2001: 14). Although this

experience is not poly-sensory, it is more gratifying

than the indirect experience produced by means of

posters, television ads, 2D photos of products on the

internet and non-interactive 3D animations online,

in the cinema or on television (Li et al., 2002).

Indeed, it is these intentional and interactive manip-

ulations of the product that give this experience its

particular force.

Li et al. (2002) show that the virtual experienceis only experienced by telepresent subjects in a vir-

tual environment that allows interaction with the

product. Indeed, through the technologys loss of

salience, telepresence gives the person the impres-

sion of being in direct contact with the product. This

assimilation can lead to interesting effects on con-

sumer behavior, and more specifically on the pro-

cessing of information about the product.

Theoretical findings of the literaturereview

The literature review has brought out the important

role of telepresence in the creation of a virtual direct

experience with the product. Are there rules that

allow the creators of advertising messages to foster

telepresence with certainty? What are the likely

consequences of such telepresence in terms of

information processing?

Three observations, derived from the literature,

prompt these questions.

First observation: 3D gives rise to more telepres-ence. Some studies have investigated the impactof the advertising richness and interactivity on tel-

epresence. More specifically, they examine the

format of the presentation of the product (3D or

2D). 3D ads are considered richer higher digital

resolution of the product display and the ability to

zoom in on the product and more interactive


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possibility of manipulating the product than

2D ads (Hopkins and Raymond, 2004; Li et al.,

2002; Klein, 2003). The findings of these studies

show that the level of telepresence is higher for 3D

than for 2D advertisements.

Second observation: Influence on attitude depends onthe ads richness and interactivity. Some work has

focused on measuring the effectiveness of rich,

interactive ads in simulating of direct experience of

the product. The results show that these two charac-

teristics positively influence the intensity of the

consumers cognitive, affective and conative

responses (Fiore and Jin, 2003; Griffith and Chen,

2004; Suh and Lee, 2005). Certain effects are simi-

lar to those found by Smith and Swinyard (1983) in

relation to direct experience: learning, the strength

of and confidence in beliefs about the product, andconfidence in the attitude toward the product.

Third observation: Telepresence enhances the impact ofrichness and interactivity. Finally, some studies con-tribute to understanding consumer responses to the

richness and interactivity of advertising by investi-

gating the role of telepresence. Research in this area

shows that telepresence conveys the effects of the

richness and interactivity effects of the ad to the

internet users responses (Debbabi et al., 2010;

Hopkins and Raymond, 2004; Kim, 1996; Kim andBiocca, 1997; Li et al., 2001; Lombard and Ditton,

1997; Klein, 2003).

The literature review highlights the impact of

telepresence on the attitude towards the product. It

also shows that few studies have modeled these

influence mechanisms on the formation of attitudes.

The studies by Hopkins and Raymond (2004) and

Grigorovici (2003) provide a first attempt to model

the process of attitude formation in a situation

where telepresence occurs. However, these studies

have a number of shortcomings, in that they explainattitude formation by purely affective mechanisms

without taking cognitive mechanisms into account.

Yet the role of the latter in experience is undeniable

(Derbaix and Pham, 1989; Eagly and Chaiken,

1993; Smith and Swinyard, 1982).

Given these facts, the aim of this study is to pro-

vide a better understanding of the telepresence

effects on the attitude towards the product. On the

one hand, the study of the affective influence mech-

anisms of telepresence on attitude towards the prod-

uct needs to be deepened. On the other hand, to

remedy the shortcomings in the studies by Hopkins

and Raymond (2004) and Grigorovici (2003), the

effect of telepresence on attitude cannot be fully

explained by purely affective mechanisms. The pro-posed modeling process also takes into account

cognitive mechanisms affecting attitude formation,

and shows the complementarity and interdepend-

ence of the cognitive and emotional models in atti-

tude formation in order to better understand virtual

experience through telepresence in an internet ad.

This work is thus situated within an original research

approach intended to provide answers to the follow-

ing question: how does telepresence influence the

formation of attitudes toward the product in the

context of internet advertising?To better explain the effects of telepresence, it is

appropriate to use a stream of research dealing with

the process of attitude formation, focusing on the

experience during exposure to advertising, which

mobilizes MacInnis and Jaworskis (1989) integra-

tive model. In that way our study introduces the

indirect experience of the product after exposure to

a TV ad, known as role-taking.

Role-taking is the projection of an individual

into a particular role in an advertisement. It helps

create an experience between the individual and theproduct (Krugman, 1965), and allows the person to

access the distinctive and characteristic world of

the product.

Although the concept of role-taking is tradition-

ally used in the context of TV advertising, it shares

many features with telepresence that merit being

developed, because they underlie our choice of the

MacInnis and Jaworski model as the conceptual

framework of this study.

Telepresence and role-taking:Conceptual similarities

According to MacInnis and Jaworski, role-taking

corresponds to a high level of information process-

ing during which the individual relates information

about the brand to the self (1989: 13). The person

identifies with the role described in the advertise-

ment and anticipates the consequences of using the


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Debbabi et al. 7

product. This definition implies a shift of the indi-

vidual from his or her physical environment to the

environment created by the ad. Role-taking also

implies that the media appears invisible to the

individual.

The conceptualization of role-taking is similar to

that of telepresence, which is defined by Lombardand Ditton as a perceptual illusion of non-media-

tion (1997: 57). For Lombard (2000), telepresence

is a subjective perception of an experience created

by technology with objects and/or events. Although

this perception is subjective, it allows the person to

construct an interpretation of the experience of

objects or events in the virtual environment. It con-

sists of a form of exposure suited to role projects,

and partly explains experiential behavior, since it

represents a situation in which the individual is

involved, transported and projected into the experi-ence of the product. Direct virtual experience aris-

ing from telepresence can be viewed as a form of

role-taking appropriate to the context of interactive

advertising on the internet.

Telepresence and role-taking:similarities in their determinants

Telepresence and role-taking have two common

antecedents: ability and motivation. Ability depends

on familiarity with the product (Anderson andJolson, 1980) and the medium (Lombard and Ditton,

1997), on the degree of difficulty of the message

(Yalch and Elmore-Yalch, 1984), and on interaction

with the virtual environment (Billinhurst and

Weghorst, 1995). Sustainable and/or situational

motivation determines the level of attention to the

advertising stimulus, which is a prerequisite for role-

taking (MacInnis and Jaworski, 1989) and telepres-

ence. Indeed, telepresence may vary across a range

of values that depends in part on the allocation of

attentional resources (Witmer and Singer, 1998).3D interactive ad characteristics favor factors

that initiate information processing and determine

role-taking in an advertisement, namely opportu-

nity, ability and motivation. On the one hand, the

interactivity of the ad allows the internet user to

control the speed of its transmission, a determining

factor of opportunity (Chaiken and Eagly, 1976;

Krugman, 1965; Wright, 1974). Opportunity is also

augmented by providing the consumer with textual

information and interactive displays in relation to

the product. On the other hand, controlling the order

of presentation of information and interaction with

the product in the mediated 3D virtual environment

facilitates understanding of product information

(Ariely, 2000; Ayerson 1996; Macias, 2003; Najjar,1996). The individual ability to interpret the infor-

mation contained in product advertising is thus rein-

forced. In addition, interactive advertising on the

internet gives rise to situational motivation through

its perceived novelty (Edwards and Gangadharbatla,

2001).

Telepresence and role-taking: Similarities in their conse-quences. Telepresence and role-taking influencesimilar variables, such as beliefs and attitudes

toward the product, attitude towards the ad andemotions (Campbell et al., 2010; Debbabi et al.,

2010; Grigorovici, 2003; Hopkins and Raymond,

2004; Kim and Biocca, 1997; Klein, 2003; Li et al.,

2002).

Studying the similarities between the two con-

cepts suggests that telepresence is a situation suited

to role-taking in online advertising: it expresses a

state of favorable attention to role-taking, and in a

telepresence situation, people have the opportunity

to process information, a prerequisite for role-tak-

ing (MacInnis and Jaworski, 1989). The opportu-nity to process information depends on an

individuals ability to control the transmission rate

of the message, as well as the amount and type of

information (image and text) provided (Wright,

1974). Yet, with telepresence, these two factors are

enhanced by interactivity and richness of online

advertising. In addition, ads favoring telepresence

would orientate experiential needs and contribute to

role-taking, because they are based on interactive

images of the product (MacInnis and Jaworski,

1989).In conclusion, these findings argue in favor of

the MacInnis and Jaworski model. We mobilize this

model in this study to explain the effect of telepres-

ence on the formation of attitudes toward the prod-

uct. More specifically, it supports the premise that

information processing, initiated by role-taking,

accounts for the likely effect of telepresence on atti-

tude towards the product.


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Research model and

hypotheses

MacInnis and Jaworski (1989) emphasize the impor-

tance of the role of emotions during role-taking in

the formation process of attitude toward the product.

Emotions are produced by certain aspects of theexecution of the ad (scenarios giving rise to emo-

tions related to consuming, or not consuming, the

product). These authors point out that individuals

engaged in role-taking experience more intense

emotions. Role-taking is in this sense more experi-

ential than analytical. The emotions felt partly affect

attitude towards the product through the mediation

of beliefs about the product and of the attitude

towards the ad (MacInnis and Jaworski, 1989).

In an interactive internet ad context, telepresence

projects the individual into a virtual direct experi-ence. This virtual experience is of interest on two

counts. Being perceptually similar to direct experi-

ence, it results not only in the formation of beliefs

about the product but also in arousal and a cheerful

frame of mind. Indeed, it enables the person to

anticipate the experience of using the product.

Telepresence thus reproduces some of the pleasures

and enjoyment experienced when consuming the

product (Edwards and Gangadharbatla, 2001;

Grigorovici, 2003; Jones et al., 2008). Certain char-

acteristics of the internet environment, especially itsinteractivity, intensify these feelings because they

generate positive emotional reactions (Hoffman and

Novak, 1996; Jones et al., 2008). In short, emotions

play an important role in the virtual experience, and

should therefore be taken into account by the

research model.

The experiential approach and its findings con-

sequently offer a conceptual framework for explain-

ing the effects of telepresence on the attitude

developed by the customer toward the product

through two processes, one cognitive and the otheremotional. The cognitive process results from the

virtual direct experience and is based on beliefs

about the product formed during this experience.

The emotional process results from the parallel

effects of exposure to the internet, the advertising

features and the virtual direct experience. It is based

on the emotions triggered by navigating in the ad

and on the attitude towards the ad.

The experiential approach adopted by Izard (1972,

1977) and Meyers-Levy and Malavyia (1999) recog-

nizes the interdependence between the cognitive and

emotional processes. For these authors, emotions are

an experiential and motivational process that initiates

and guides the learning process. Pleasurable and stim-

ulating emotions felt during the virtual experience

draw the persons attention to the positive conse-

quences of direct experience of the product, and

therefore induce him or her to reassess the product.

These emotions influence not only beliefs about the

product, but also the evaluation of the ad. It is thus

plausible that telepresence, though the emotions,partly influences beliefs about the product as well as

the attitude toward the ad.

The research model is presented in Figure 1.

Direct effect of telepresence on cognitiveand affective mediators of the formation ofattitude towards the product

Relationship between telepresence and product beliefs.For Smith and Swinyard (1982) direct experience

encourages evaluation of the product attributes,because it is based on sensorial inspection of the

product, though which the individual accepts the

information provided. Direct experience thus facili-

tates the formation of product beliefs (Kempf and

Smith, 1998; Smith, 1993; Wright and Lynch, 1995).

In the case of a 3D advertisement on the internet,

telepresence helps create a virtual experience, a

way of experiencing the product attributes, and

[H1a] [H5a][H2a]

TELP [H1b] EMO [H4] Ap

[H1c] [H2b] [H5b]

Aad

Cp

Figure 1.Research model.TELP:telepresence

EMO:emotions triggered by navigating in the ad

Cp: beliefs about the product

Ap:attitude toward the product

Aad:attitude toward the ad


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to be a source of information that guides the cogni-

tive process.

Hence, and in accordance with the findings of

studies establishing that the emotions triggered by

an advertisement presenting a product in a rich and

interactive manner are positive (Edwards and

Gangadharbatla, 2001; Grigorovici, 2003; Li et al.,2001; Nah et al., 2011), it is logical to assume that

their effects on beliefs about the product are also

positive. The emotions experienced thus allow the

individual to modify his or her product assessment

(Izard, 1972; Tomkins, 1962).

Relationship between emotions and attitude toward theadvertisement.Emotions are involved in the forma-tion of the attitude toward an ad (Burke and Edell,

1989; Cho and Stout, 1993; Homer and Yoon,

1992). People tend to like advertisements that gen-erate positive emotions. The emotions produced by

telepresence, interactivity and the perceived nov-

elty of an ad are positive (pleasure and arousal)

(Freeman and Avons, 2000; Grigorovici, 2003;

Heeter, 1995; Li et al., 2001; Nah et al., 2011;

Pugnetti et al., 2001). It is thus legitimate to hypoth-

esize that the emotions triggered while navigating

the ad are transferred to it.

These two propositions lead us to break down

this hypothesis into two sub-hypotheses (H2a and

H2b) concerning the direct effects of emotions.

H2: The emotions triggered by navigating in the

ad have a positive effect on:

A beliefs about the product attributes

B the attitude toward the ad.

The mediating role of the emotions triggered by navi-gating in the ad. Telepresence promotes the forma-tion of product-beliefs (H1a). It also has a positive

effect on emotions (H1c). Because emotions posi-

tively guide the formation of beliefs (H2a), it isreasonable to assume that telepresence has a posi-

tive indirect effect on beliefs via the emotions

generated.

Telepresence and emotions also have a com-

bined positive impact on attitude toward an ad (H1b

and H2b). Thus the hypothesis that the emotions

triggered by navigating in the ad play a mediating

role in relation to the influence of telepresence on

the attitude toward the ad is required to validate the

structure of the models causal relationships. This

hypothesis (H3) states that:

H3: Emotions act as a partial mediator of the

influence of telepresence on:

a beliefs about product attributes

b attitude towards the ad.

Direct and indirect effects of emotions on attitudetoward the product. The literature review revealsthe effect of emotions on attitude toward a prod-

uct (Aaker et al., 1986; Burke and Edell, 1989;

Homer and Yoon, 1992; MacInnis and Jaworski,

1989). Emotions triggered by navigating the ad

and particularly through direct virtual experience

of the product will therefore be transferred to theproduct.

For MacInnis and Jaworski (1989), the atti-

tude towards the product has the same polarity as

the emotions experienced. However, the experi-

ence of browsing a website in general, and the

direct virtual experience of the product in partic-

ular, produce intense positive emotions (pleasure

and arousal) (Diesbach and Jeandrain, 2004;

Grigorovici, 2003; Li et al., 2001; Mller, 2004;

Nah et al., 2011; Singh et al., 2005). Hypothesis

(H4) states that:

H4: The emotions triggered by navigating in the

ad have a positive effect on attitude toward the

product.

The experiential approach explains the forma-

tion of attitude toward the product by the indirect

positive effect of emotions conveyed by product-

beliefs and the attitude towards the ad. This

approach supports hypothesis (H5), which states

that this process is also valid in the context of a vir-tual experience arising from telepresence.

H5: The influence of emotions on attitude toward

the product is partially conveyed by:

a beliefs about the attributes of the product

(H5a), and

b the attitude towards the ad (H5b).


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Debbabi et al. 11

Methodology

The research methodology successively considers

the creation of advertising stimuli, the choice of

measurement scales and the collection of data.

Experimental design

To ensure a good level of telepresence, this study

tests the model on an original terrain, that of a 3D ad

(Li et al., 2001, 2002; Debbabi et al., 2010). Although

it does not allow the internet user to have a poly-

sensory experience of product, it enables him or her

to simulate a direct experience of the product.

Thus the design of a 3D ad should take into

account various experimental considerations to

enable the content of the metrics to be validated.

First, it was important to choose a product that isadvertised. Accordingly, we opted for a geometric

product, following the recommendations for clas-

sifications proposed by Klatzky et al. (1991) and

McCabe and Nowlis (2001). The existence of two

product categories geometric and material led

us to choose a wristwatch for the experiment, i.e. a

product whose geometric attributes, unlike mate-

rial products, can, in accordance with the principle

proposed by Klatzky et al. (1991), be sufficiently

well evaluated visually. Previous studies have

shown the effectiveness of 3D advertising for this

type of product (Klein, 2003; Li et al., 2001, 2002).

The choice of a watch as a geometric product was

validated in a pretest. Respondents were asked to

say whether they had any difficulty evaluating the

product without actually touching it.

Second, since the evaluations of respondents of

different gender might, as Kisielius and Sternthal

(1984) suggest, be subject to different levels of

response, it was necessary to choose one watch

model for women and another for men so as to

reduce possible perceptual bias.

Third, we decided to avoid the impact of a known

brand on the product evaluation. We therefore created

a non-existent brand without any luxury attributes.

Fourth, on the basis of 53 non-directive inter-

views, we needed to evaluate the qualifiers used to

describe the product attributes (Fishbein and Ajzen,

1975). Frequently mentioned attributes were pre-

sented in the ad and used to measure beliefs about

the product (Kempf and Smith 1998; Smith 1993).

In order to inform the participants of the importance

of these characteristics, certain information consid-

ered helpful for their understanding and necessary

for the proper conduct of experiments was pro-

vided. These included the texture of the product, the

colors available, its weight, water resistance and the

duration of its warranty.Fifth, we decided not to specify the price of these

products, so as to avoid introducing a further per-

ceptual bias through the financial aspect being taken

into account when evaluating the product (Bauer,

1960; Rao and Monroe, 1988). Respondents were

therefore invited to assume that the price of the two

watches was whatever seemed appropriate.

These various considerations were largely taken

into account in the design of the website. The first

page introduces the subject of the research and

shows a photograph of two watch models, respec-tively for men and women, in order to involve these

two targets in the process of evaluating a known

object. This page gives the name of the brand and

allows the participants to display each of the two

products by clicking on them. The second page

shows a 3D presentation of the product, information

about the product characteristics, various advertise-

ments designed on the basis the attributes selected,

and a reference, specific to this study, to the appro-

priate price, together with a reminder of the brand

name. The two website pages for each ad are in aneutral color and white.

Finally, to avoid the negative effect of the per-

ceived difficulty of using the 3D format on the

users attitude (Davis, 1989: 320), we created a

training website for 3D interaction. Participants in

the experiment were invited to interact with a test

product (a can), following the explanations pro-

vided on how to use 3D interactive tools. This ses-

sion took place prior to displaying the 3D ad. No

problems using the 3D format was found. By the

end of this training session, none of the participantshad any problem using the 3D format.

Measurement of research variables(Appendix 1)

Measurement of the variable attitude toward the prod-

uct - [Ap]. To measure the overall attitude towardsthe product, we decided to use Munch and Swasys


10/22


(1988) one-dimensional scale. This scale is consist-

ent with our holistic approach to attitude towards

the product, as it transcribes an overall opinion of

the product. The scale measures a construct con-

taining three items.

Measurement of the variable beliefs about the productattributes [Cp].These beliefs are measured by a

construct comprising several attributes measured by

scales with seven-point intervals, as suggested by

Raden (1985) and Klein (2003). The six attributes

of the construct measure the degree of the partici-

pants agreement or disagreement with statements

about the perception of the product, namely the

watch.

Measurement of the variable attitude towards the ad

[Aad]. Attitude towards the ad is measured by a three-item construct taken from Derbaixs (1995) scale.

This construct is assumed to be one-dimensional.

Measurement of the variable emotions - [EMO]. Emo-tions were measured using Mehrabian and Russells

(1974) pleasure, arousal, domination (PAD) scale.

The use of the PAD scale is recommended in studies

on the influence of the situation on behavior (Lutz

and Kakkar, 1975). The PAD scale also better repre-

sents the experience of using the product and pro-

vides emotional profiles specific to the experience(Havlena and Holbrook, 1986). In addition, the

advantage of using it in an advertising context was

shown by Morris and McMullen (1994). The PAD

scale could therefore offer a better representation of

virtual direct experience involving emotions.

However, the domination dimension was

removed from the measurement scale because it

measures the perceived control by the internet user

over his or her actions in a virtual environment.

This variable would then be considered as a deter-

minant and not a consequence of telepresence.The 12 original bipolar attributes of each

dimension (pleasure and arousal) were measured

using a seven-point semantic differential scale.

Measurement of the variable telepresence [TELP].The concept of telepresence was measured using

the one-dimensional scale developed and validated

by Klein (2003) and Novak et al. (2000) in the same

context. The construct comprises seven items meas-

ured on a seven-point interval scale.

Data collection

A large sample (n= 353) of students (40% male and

60% female), doing bachelors, masters or doctor-

ate degrees in management, agreed to participate in

the experiment. The respondents were told about

the value of their collaboration and received instruc-

tions about the conduct of the experiment. They

were asked to choose and display an ad. At the end

of the experiment, they completed a questionnaire

containing the different items of the measurement

scale used in the study.

ResultsExamination of the results took place in two stages.

The first involved validating the research models

variables using preliminary analyses, and the sec-

ond went on to test the research hypotheses.

Results of the preliminary analyses

The usual statistical analyses for each of the con-

structs measuring the research variables were

implemented to clarify their content validity and

reliability. In the first step, a Principal Component

Factor Analysis (PCFA) with Promax rotation

(using SPSS software) was performed to explore

the five constructs and identify an optimal one-

dimensional structure of the attributes making a

high contribution (> 0.5). Once the structure valid-

ity was established, in a second step the calculation

of Cronbachs alpha allowed its reliability to be

evaluated. Finally, a Confirmatory Factor Analysis

(using STATISTICA software) was carried out to

confirm the structure of the five constructs, and test

their independence in the research model.

PCFA results. The results of the PCFA of the sevenitems of the construct measuring telepresence led to

the elimination of items 6 and 7 (I forgot about my

immediate surroundings when I was navigating

through the exercise; and, When the computer exer-

cise ended, I felt like I came back to the real world

after a journey), because of their low representation


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Debbabi et al. 13

quality, which revealed a certain ambiguity in their

wording. The five items retained have high contri-

butions on a first-order factor, which account for

62.90% of the total variance. This factor measures

the Telepresence variable [TELP].

The PCFA results of the two constructs, measur-

ing attitude towards the product and attitude towardthe ad, confirm their one-dimensional factor struc-

ture. The high contributions of the three attributes

of the construct measuring attitude toward the prod-

uct account for 82.1% of the total variance. This

factor measures the variable Attitude/product

[Ap]. Similarly, the three attributes of the construct

measuring attitude toward the ad account for


the variable Attitude/advertisement [Aad].

The PCFA results of the six items of the con-

struct measuring product beliefs show low contri-butions from items 3 and 5 (this product will suit

you well, and this product is fashionable), whose

wording is too general. The four items retained have

high contributions on a first-order factor and explain


the variable Beliefs/product [Cp].

The PCFA of the 12 attributes measuring emo-

tions (pleasure and arousal) reconstruct a general

factor, whose variance (66.17%) is explained by a

linear component, the high contributions of which

reflect only five attributes (combining the attributespleasure and arousal). This component refers to the

variable emotions [EMO]. The results show that

seven attributes are rejected in the specific compo-

nents of emotion and are not included in this study.

Results of the reliability test. The reliability of each ofthe five constructs, measured using Cronbachs

alpha (1951), is statistically verified for each of the

five research variables. The calculated coefficients

are high and above the norm (0.80) recommended

by Nunnally (1978).

Results of the Confirmatory Factor Analysis. Theresults of the CFA (Appendix 2) carried out for each

of these constructs, using STATISTICA 7.0 soft-

ware, confirm the existence of (statistically signifi-

cant) weights greater than 0.50 for each attribute. To

complement the reliability study, the Jreskog coef-

ficients (Fornell and Larcker, 1981) confirm the

high reliability of the measurement instruments.

Thus the convergent and discriminant validities of

the constructs were verified, consistently with the

established standards (Evrard et al., 1997), and par-

ticularly with that of the average variance extracted

(AVE), calculated for each measurement scale,

which is greater here than the square of its correla-tion with the other constructs.

To estimate the goodness of fit of the model to

the data, a CFA was carried out on the measurement

model. Assessment of the adequacy of the model,

and of a general hypothesis of fit in relation to the

empirical data, was done through a combination of

indices concerning the estimation of absolute fit (,

GFI, AGFI, RMR and RMSEA), incremental fit

(NFI, CFI, TLI, IFI), and parsimonious fit (/df).

The models goodness of fit (the fit of the data to

relationships studied) is generally acceptable andmeets the theoretical requirements, according to

Arbuckle and Wothke (2000) and Roussel et al.

(2002). On the one hand, the null hypothesis of the

existence of assumed causality relationships is veri-

fied by the value of /d.f. equal to 2.46 (lower than

the norm of 5), and the value of P() equal to 14%

(greater than the acceptable norm of 5%), showing

that the model is parsimonious. On the other hand,

the absolute fit of the model is verified first by the

values of GFI (.90), AGFI (.85) and RMR (.038),

which are close to the agreed norms, and, second,by the value of RMSEA (7%), which is slightly

higher than the norm of 5%. These intermediate

results are consistent with those of studies that help

validate the constructs, which are often difficult to

confirm from an empirical or experimental stand-

point, in the research field of e-marketing or infor-

mation systems (IS) users (Baile and Louati, 2010).

Note also that the validation of parsimonious fit is

not necessary for this exploratory study, even with

NFI and CFI coefficients of 0.90 and 0.92, which

are higher than the norms.To summarize, the structure of the research

model (Figure 1) is verified by the existence of lin-

ear relationships between variables estimated using

the Maximum Likelihood method, which, accord-

ing to Chou and Bentler (1996), is the most suitable

from the standpoint of the quality of the estimates,

and is also the most referenced in e-Marketing and

management information systems (MIS) research


12/22


(Chin and Todd, 1995). These relationships signifi-

cantly explain (p < 1%) all of the models explana-

tory variables, with the following coefficients of

determination (R) of explained variance: R [Ap] =

24%, R [Cp] = 15.3%, R [EMO] = 16.5% and R

[Aad] = 6.8%. The relationships postulated in

Figure 1 will now be addressed in testing ourresearch hypotheses.

Results of testing research hypotheses

The Maximum Likelihood estimation method

(using STATISTICA version 7.0) was used to test

the general structural model for all linear relation-

ships studied. The results of testing the general

research model are presented in the following sec-

tions. For clarity, the results for the direct and indi-

rect links postulated by the model are presentedsuccessively.

Testing the effects of telepresence on mediators of for-mation of attitude towards the product. The results oftesting the complete structural model are summa-

rized in Table 1. They show the significant positive

influence of telepresence on perceived beliefs in

relation to the product attributes, on the attitude

toward the ad and on perceived emotions. Thus

hypotheses H1a, H1b and H1c are confirmed.

The results also confirm the positive influence ofemotions on product beliefs, on attitude toward the

ad, and on attitude toward the product. Thus hypoth-

eses H2a, H2b and H4 are confirmed.

Testing the indirect effect of telepresence on productbeliefs: The mediating role of emotions.Showing themediating role of a variable is based on a specific

procedure proposed and formalized by Baron and

Kenny (1986). According to Roussel et al (2002),

this procedure has the advantage of a simple, clear

and rigorous approach. It requires a series of four

successive tests, to:

1. Show that the link (c) between the inde-

pendent variable X and the dependent vari-able Y is significant, so as to ensure the

existence of an effect to be conveyed.

2. Show that the independent variable X has a

significant impact (a) on the mediating vari-

able M.

3. Show that the relationship between the

mediating variable and the dependent vari-

able Y is significant. This involves imple-

menting a regression of Y on both M and X.

In controlling X, the coefficient (b) between

M and Y should remain significant.4. Check whether the mediation is total or par-

tial and implement a Sobel test1 (Preacher

and Hayes, 2004). If the link between the

independent variable and the dependent var-

iable (c) is zero, the mediation is total. If

c< c, the mediation is partial. Otherwise

there is no mediating effect.

Consistently with this procedure, the results pre-

sented in Table 2 show that telepresence has a sig-

nificant positive influence on emotions (a) and onproduct beliefs (c). The relationship between emo-

tions and product beliefs (b) is also positive and sig-

nificant. However, the effect of telepresence on

beliefs (c) decreased when we statistically con-

trolled emotions (c < c). Emotions therefore play a

partial mediator role for the influence of telepres-

ence on product beliefs. To confirm this mediation,

we carried out a Sobel test. The results show that the

Table 1. Results of testing the complete model.

Estimated parameter (c) Significance

TELP Cp 0.154 (t= 3.835) (p= 0.000)

TELP Aad 0.247 (t= 6.545) (p= 0.000)

TELP EMO 0.404 (t= 11.681) (p= 0.000)

EMO Cp 0.272 (t= 7.237) (p= 0.000)

EMO Aad 0.379 (t= 11.235) (p= 0.000)

EMO Ap 0.234 (t= 7.010) (p= 0.000)


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Debbabi et al. 15

indirect effect of telepresence on product beliefs via

emotions is significantly different from zero (z =

8.068 > 1.96; p= 0.000). Thus, hypothesis H3a is

confirmed.

Indirect effect of telepresence on attitude toward thead: The mediating role of emotions.The results pre-sented in Table 3 show that telepresence has a sig-

nificant positive influence on emotions (a) and the

attitude towards the ad (c). They also show that the

relationship between emotions and attitude towards

the ad (b) by controlling telepresence is positiveand significant and that the effect of telepresence

on attitude toward the ad (c) decreases when one

statistically controls emotions (c < c). The results

of the Sobel test show that the indirect effect of

telepresence on attitude toward the ad via emotions

is significantly different from zero (z = 7702 >

1.96; p = 0.000). Therefore, hypothesis H3b is

confirmed.

Testing the indirect effect of emotions on attitude towardthe product: The mediating role of product beliefs. Theresults (Table 4) show that the effect of emotions on

attitude toward the product (c) decreases when we

control product beliefs (c < c). The results of the

Sobel test confirm this indirect effect (z = 7.041>

1.96; p= 0.000). Beliefs thus partially convey the

influence of emotions on attitude toward the prod-

uct. Thus, hypothesis H5a is confirmed.

Testing the indirect effect of emotions on attitude

toward the product: The mediating role of attitudetoward the ad. The results also confirm the indirecteffect of emotions on attitude toward the product

via the attitude towards the ad (Table 5). The effect

of emotions on attitude toward the product (c)

decreases when we control attitude toward the ad

(c < c). The Sobel test was significant (z = 5.996 >

1.96; p = 0.000). Hypothesis H5b is therefore

confirmed.

Table 2. Mediating effect of emotions on the influence of telepresence on Cp.

Stage Estimated parameter Significance

1 TELP (c) Cp 0.501 (t= 9.561) (p= 0.000)

2 TELP (a) EMO 0.513 (t= 10.405) (p= 0.000)

3 EMO (b) Cp 0.663 (t=12.779) (p= 0.000)

4 TELP (c) Cp 0.137 (t= 2.229) (p= 0.026)

Table 3. Mediating effect of emotions on the influence of telepresence on the Aad.


1 TELP (c) Aad 0.532 (t= 10.785) (p= 0.000)

2 TELP (a) EMO 0.513 (t= 10.405) (p= 0.000)

3 EMO (b) Aad 0.600 (t=11.328) (p= 0.000)

4 TELP (c) Aad 0.228 (t= 3.795) (p= 0.000)


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Discussion and conclusion

This study confirms the value of using the role-

taking experience to understand the effect of telep-

resence on the formation of attitude toward the

product. The results show that telepresence has the

same patterns of influence as role-taking on the for-

mation of attitude. Two interdependent attitude for-

mation routes were identified.

The first of these is cognitive, via product beliefs:

interactivity helps arouse the situational interest of

consumers to process information (Grigorovici,2003; Jeandrain, 2001). Telepresence thus expresses

a state of attention and involvement. The person

absorbed in interacting with the product is projected

into the virtual experience. He or she is thus led to

process the information contained in the ad. This

information processing is facilitated through interac-

tivity with the presentation of the product (Ayerson

1996; Macias, 2003; Najjar, 1996). The virtual

experience is similar to the direct experience,

thereby contributing to the formation of beliefs

about product. The attitude towards the product is

formed, therefore, via the first route based on cogni-

tive product beliefs.

The second route is affective, via emotions and

the attitude towards the ad: telepresence is a

means of access to an experience comparable to a

kind of virtual use of the product. According to

Holbrook and Hirschmans (1982) experiential

approach, using the product yields pleasure and

arousal for the person concerned. Thus telepres-

ence reproduces emotions felt during direct expe-

rience of the product. Interactivity, the perceived

novelty of the experience, and the effect of expo-

sure to the medium also explain the positive polar-

ity of these emotions. The formation of favorable

attitudes toward the ad and in relation to the prod-

uct is, consequently, based on an affective transfer

mechanism.

Table 4. Mediating effect of Cp on the influence of emotions on Ap.


1 EMO (c) Ap 0.741 (t= 22.787) (p= 0.000)

2 EMO (a) Cp 0.703 (t= 28.710) (p= 0.000)

3 Cp (b) Ap 0.504 (t= 7.263) (p= 0.000)

4 Emo (c) Ap 0.374 (t= 5.312) (p= 0.000)

Table 5. Mediating effect of Aad on the influence of emotions on Ap.

Stage Estimated parameter Signification

1 EMO (c) Ap 0.741 (t= 22.787) (p= 0.000)

2 EMO (a) Aad 0.720 (t= 29.792) (p= 0.000)

3 Aad (b) Ap 0.432 (t= 6.122) (p= 0.000)

4 Emo (c) Ap 0.429 (t= 6.131) (p= 0.000)


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Debbabi et al. 17

The results of the study also show that the tradi-

tional experiential approach is applicable in the

context of an internet ad in general and a telepres-

ence situation in particular. They confirm the inter-

dependence between the cognitive and emotional

attitude formation processes, proposed by MacInnis

and Jaworski (1989) with regard to role-taking andby Meyers-Levy and Malavyia (1999). The results

also show that telepresence influences product

beliefs via the emotions felt. The visual elements

and the emotions they arouse therefore shape the

key message (Edens and McCormick, 2000).

Product beliefs are thus adapted to the emotions felt

(Damasio, 1994). Our results limit the application

of traditional theories of judgement in the context of

internet advertising (Fishbein and Ajzen, 1975).

They confirm the validity of the affect as informa-

tion hypothesis (Clore et al., 2001; Schwartz andClore, 1988; Schwartz et al., 1991). Contrary to

what Koufaris (2002) argues and in agreement with

the suggestions made by Clore (1992), Pham (1998)

and Pham et al. (2001), the emotional reactions trig-

gered by an ad influence the formation of cognitive

responses to the product.

The results of testing hypothesis H5a further

underline this interdependence by showing that

product beliefs convey the positive effect of emo-

tions on the attitude toward the product. Thus

these results support the application of MacInnnisand Jaworskis (1989) inclusive approach in a role-

taking situation in the context of a rich interactive

internet ad. Telepresence is therefore a form of

exposure suited to role projection. The formation

of attitude toward the product, in the case of tel-

epresence in an ad, therefore results from the

combined effect of cognitive and emotional

reactions.

Apart from its theoretical interest, to be specific,

understanding the impact of telepresence on atti-

tude formation, this study is also relevant in prac-tice. The results highlight the benefits that marketing

managers can derive from designing websites that

promote telepresence.

First, telepresence arouses experiential reac-

tions. By procuring gratification, telepresence is an

effective way of increasing the satisfaction of inter-

net users seeking hedonic benefits through visiting

a website. This extra gratification could increase the

return rate and the sales potential of a commercial

site. Second, telepresence involves the user in the

advertising message and leads him or her to form a

favorable attitude toward the ad. It is therefore a

practical solution for persuading the maximum

number of internet users. And finally, it is condu-

cive to the formation of a favorable attitude towardsthe product, since the emotions felt during this

experience are transferred to the product.

Marketing managers and analysts are therefore

advised to design websites promoting telepresence,

and to provide internet users with virtual environ-

ments simulating the direct experience of the prod-

uct. To achieve this, two ingredients are essential:

the interactivity of the presentation of the product

(e.g. a 3D format) and the richness of the informa-

tion provided. The use of various types of informa-

tion calling upon different senses is stronglyrecommended for increasing the verisimilitude of

the experience.

The advantages of telepresence do not only con-

cern organizations that operate on the internet.

Practitioners interested in testing virtual prototypes

of new products may also benefit from it (Urban

et al., 1996; Urban et al., 1997).

Limitations and future research

Like all research, this study has its limitations. Onthe one hand, the negative impact of the time taken

to download applets in 3D on the virtual control of

the display was not taken into account (Weinberg,

1995). To remedy this problem, the experiment

used two connection methods: the first consisting of

downloading applets on the internet before the

experiment, thus speeding up downloading when

the participants connected to the websites; and the

second, using a local connection. Thus, the results

of this study are applicable when the download

speed is not a serious constraint.The impact of the participants demographic

characteristics was not been taken into account in

this study. Lightner (2003) has shown the impor-

tance of the effect of demographic characteristics

on the buying behavior of online users. In our study,

the sample consisted of students (60% female) with

a relatively similar level of education. The results

are therefore not comparable to those of other


16/22


studies using samples with different demographic

characteristics.

Although training the participants avoided the

negative effects of the perceived difficulty of using

3D interactions, it might nonetheless risk altering

how they processed the information. Its impact on

the influence relationships proposed in the researchmodel was not evaluated by means of comparison

with a group without any training. However, this

risk may be considered low, because the duration of

the training was short.

Using the PAD scale to measure the emotions

aroused by telepresence did not allow us validate the

postulated two-dimensional structure five of the

12 attributes were retained to validate an original

construct. This construct here measures a specific

affective response, as defined by Bagozzi et al

(1999), to the environment. Research shows that theproblem of dimensionality of emotion has still not

been resolved the researchers do not necessarily

use the same dimensions of emotion. For example,

Lemoine and Albertini (2000) validate a structure of

the original construct of the PAD scale, with only

three attributes describing two emotional compo-

nents (pleasure and arousal). Hence the absence of

internal validity (for the original structure of this

construct) should lead to caution in the use of emo-

tion. Further research is therefore needed, on the one

hand, to improve the quality of reproduction of thisscale and, on the other, to adapt it to the experimen-

tal context that confronts the purchaser in a virtual

environment.

Finally, this study imposed a high level of telep-

resence so as to better understand the effect of this

variable on attitude formation. Taking into account

two levels of telepresence would have enabled us

to add greater precision to the results. A compara-

tive study of the effects of the level of telepresence

(low vs. high) on the intensity of the relationships

between the variables of the attitude formationprocess is currently underway. In it, the level of

telepresence is varied by changing the ad format

(3D vs. 2D).

These various points suggest a number of pos-

sibilities for future research. From a conceptual

standpoint, several lines of research are promising.

In particular it would be interesting to identify and

include elements (such as mood, involvement,

etc.) upstream of the emotions experienced during

navigation so as to improve our understanding of

the effects of telepresence on attitude. So far,

research has shown that telepresence has a positive

effect on the emotions triggered by navigating in a

rich interactive advertisement for a product

(Edwards and Gangadharbatla, 2001; Grigorovici,2003; Li et al., 2001; Nah et al., 2011). It would

make sense to test whether telepresence reinforces

a negative emotion when navigating in a shocking

advertisement.

Similarly, it would be interesting to see whether

the product category geometric vs. material or

utilitarian vs. hedonic moderates the attitude for-

mation process. Li et al. (2002) show that 3D adver-

tising is more effective in than 2D in the case of a

geometrical product, though Klein (2003) suggests

that this effectiveness is limited to research prod-ucts. A comparative approach could therefore iden-

tify situations where telepresence is effective in

terms of influencing the attitude towards the

product.

Declaration of conflicting interest

The author declares that there is no conflict of interest.

Funding

This research received no specific grant from any funding

agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

Note

1. The Sobel test aims to verify whether the indirect

effect of X on Y via M is significantly different

from zero. For Preacher and Hayes (2004), this test

is applicable when the sample size is greater than

50 observations, which is the case in our study. It is

then a matter of calculating a ratio z and checking

whether its value is greater than or equal to 1.96 for

a 5% significance level.

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Debbabi et al. 23

Appendix 1. Measurement scales used

Constructs Items

Measurement scale of beliefsabout the attributes of thewatch (6 items) [Cp]

This watch is aesthetic (Cp1). This watch is comfortable to wear (Cp2). This watch will suit you well.*

This watch is functional (Cp4). This watch is fashionable.* The strap of this watch is of good quality (Cp6).

Measurement scale of attitudetoward the ad (3 items) [Aad]

This ad leaves me totally indifferent This ad does not leave me totallyindifferent (Aad1)

I really like this ad I really dislike this ad (Aad2) I would willingly see this ad again I have no wish to see this ad again

(Aad3)

Measurement scale of attitudetoward the product (3 items) [Ap]

My opinion of this watch is: GoodBad (Ap1) I dont like this watch at all I like this watch very much (Ap2) This watch is pleasant This watch is unpleasant (Ap3)

Measurement scale of

emotions (12 items) [EMO]

HappyUnhappy (EMO1)

UnarousedAroused (EMO2)Melancholic Contented* ExcitedCalm (EMO4) AnnoyedPleased (EMO5) RelaxedStimulated (EMO6) DespairingHopeful* SatisfiedUnsatisfied* DullJittery* SleepyWide awake* SluggishFrenzied* BoredRelaxed*

Measurement scale oftelepresence (7 items)

[TELP]

During the exercise, I felt I was in the world the computer created (TELP 1) During the exercise, I forgot I was in the middle of an experiment (TELP2)

During the exercise, my body was in the room but my mind was inside theworld created by the computer (TELP3)

The computergenerated world seemed to me somewhere I visited ratherthan something I saw (TELP4)

I felt I was more in

Documents

The Impact of Telepresence in an Online Ad on The