Using presence to improve a virtual training environment.

In the rail industry, drivers must be trained to operate complex heavy machinery while responding appropriately to rapidly unfolding events in environments that are expensive and often dangerous to replicate in the real world. Virtual training environments (VTEs) can deliver stress exposure training to improve the decision-making skills of train drivers. Higher levels of recallable knowledge in the real world have been linked directly to the degree to which trainees have been engrossed in their VTE, an experience often measured through the concept of "presence." This paper reports on the use of presence to guide improvements to a VTE developed to deliver driver training in degraded track conditions. Two surveys were used to collect data on train drivers' introspective feedback on the level of presence created by the virtual rail environment and the simulator's effectiveness in generating immersion across a range of presence causal factors. Results indicate that using presence to investigate VTEs has practical significance. Outcomes provide direct information on where future improvements and modifications to the VTE can be made.