Immersion in Desktop-Based Web Browsing: A Framework

In this article, we report on findings from an empirical study designed to assess factors determining the experience of immersion in desktop-based web-browsing, which is identified as occurring when a user reports a deep sense of cognitive and perceptual absorption in the content and/or the interaction with a website. A within-subjects study was designed and administered to participants (N = 29) who interacted with three different websites. Results of the self-report measure have been factor analyzed by Principal Component Analysis (PCA). The PCA yielded three factors (media form and content; control and continuity; consistency), which appear to influence the determinants of an immersive experience, namely vividness and interactivity, in different ways. Directions for further research are briefly discussed.