Perception, Immersion and Sensorimotor Interactions in a Virtual Environment

The definitions of immersion in a virtual environment depend on the definitions given to perception. Indeed, defining perception as a passive processing of sensory information leads to an understanding of presence as an illusion of the senses. On the other hand, if perception is defined as an active construction of the observer, cognitive immersion will be considered as an active appropriation of a technical device and the feeling of presence as one moment of this appropriation. This latter view, in line with sensorimotor theories of perception, involves replacing the process of interaction at the centre of the phenomenon of immersion. After having presented the implications of sensorimotor theories of perception on the definitions of the notions of presence and immersion, we will describe the theoretical and pragmatic approach developed from the model 3I², based on users’ immersion and interaction.