'Being in on the action' in mobile robotic telepresence: Rethinking presence in hybrid participation

Abstract

Mobile Robotic Telepresence (MRP) systems afford remote commu nication with an embodied physicality and autonomous mobility which is thought to be useful for creating a sense of presence i hybrid activities. In this paper, drawing on phenomenology, w interviewed seven long term users of MRP to understand the live experience of participating in hybrid spaces through a telepresenc robot. The users' accounts show how the capabilities of the robo impact interactions, and how telepresence differs from in-perso presence. Whilst not feeling as if they were really there, users fel present when they were being able to participate in local actio and be treated as present. They also report standing out and bein subject to behaviour amounting to 'othering'. We argue that thes experiences point to a need for future work on telepresence to focu on giving remote users the means to exercise autonomy in way that enable them to participate - to be 'in on the action' - rathe than in ways that simply simulate being in-person.