30) Experiences with Repertory Grid Analysis for Investigating Effectiveness of Virtual Environments
Anthony J. Steed, Janet T. McDonnell · 2003
There are many facets to research on presence (Draper et al. 1998), but one key one that has preoccupied the community is measurement of presence response. In this abstract we show how we have used repertory grid analysis (RGA) as a tool to help us understand participants ’ presence response to virtual environments. According to the theory of personal constructs (Kelly, 1955), constructs are ways of construing the world, enabling people to respond to what they experience in ways that are ‘explicitly formulated or implicitly acted out ’ (op.cit. p.6). RGA analysis starts by identifying a set of elements of experiences. In an interview, the interviewer picks three of the elements and the participant is asked to pick two and state how they are similar and how they are distinguished from the third. This forms one construct with two poles that characterize the distinction. This is repeated with further triads until no more constructs seem to be emerging. A grid is drawn up in which elements form columns and each construct elicited forms a row. The raw grid is subsequently ‘focused ’ by encouraging the participant to assign a rating on a five-