Copresence in Virtual Environments

Copresence, the sense of “being together” with others, is at the center of theories about social interaction. It is an intra‐individual sense that stems from and shapes the social context. Recent research on copresence in virtual environments (VEs), synthetic simulations of existing experiences (e.g., desktop computer environments, “virtual reality”), demonstrates the variability in which people experience copresence with others who are not sharing in the same time or space. At the same time, experimental researchers in sociology are using VEs as a methodological tool, yet remain unaware about the ramifications of varying levels of copresence for the social processes under investigation. The goal of this review is to introduce sociologists to the research on copresence, specifically highlighting findings and gaps important for those who use VEs in their research practice. An understanding of how copresence occurs in VEs can improve how well sociologists design experiments to advance theories about interpersonal behavior.