The effect of a Philips iCat on the perception of copresence in remote meetings

In an experiment we research the effect of the Philips iCat, a human-like user-interface, on copresence and social presence in remote meetings. Two remote meeting situations were compared, one in which an iCat represented a remote participant, and one with a video connection. Participants’ perception of copresence and social presence was measured through questionnaires. We found a systematically higher reported copresence in the video situation. Also we concluded that there is no evidence to support any theory that states that the iCat increases the perceived copresence of a remote participant.