UDC 373.2.015.3:159.954

Saprykina E.V.¹ ( Lugansk, Russian Federation) – saprykinaelena.net@gmail.com

¹Lugansk State Pedagogical University

Abstract. The sociocultural conditions in which modern preschoolers live are constantly transforming. The processes of informatization and digitalization of modern childhood are irreversible, which leads to the emergence of a new cultural and historical type – “digital childhood.” Modern preschoolers are born, grow, and develop in an information environment, and they are significantly different from their peers who lived ten years ago. Digital activities have replaced play, which is the main value of preschool childhood. The reduction of play activities has a negative impact on the development of cognitive processes that are significant in preschool age, including imagination. The purpose of the article is to actualize the problem of the development of imagination as a central new formation of preschool childhood, to determine the factors of the development of the imagination of modern preschoolers in the conditions of digital childhood and the transformation of play activity. The study is based on the analysis, synthesis, and generalization of the views of psychologists and educators who consider the problems of the development of imagination, the problems of “digital childhood,” and the transformation of play activity. Imagination is characterized as a key new formation of preschool childhood that performs a number of important functions: meaning-generating, prognostic, emotional, and motivational. It is important to note that imagination is a meta-subjective skill that plays a crucial role in successful learning in school. The development of imagination is closely linked to play, and the reduction of playtime has a negative impact on the development of children’s imagination at all stages of preschool childhood. The most significant factors contributing to the development of play-related dysontogenesis are sociocultural and educational factors. It is crucial to address the substitution of actual playtime with digital “quasi-games,” which lack an imaginary situation and result in a passive imagination. Among the educational factors, the main focus should be on devaluing play activities in the life of a preschooler and forcing the intellectual development of children. The functional capabilities of imagination are not in demand in children’s play, and therefore the level of development of the imagination of modern preschoolers remains low, and is strikingly different from the traditional age indicators.

Keywords: modern preschooler, imagination, game, leading type of activity, play dysontogenesis.

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For citation: Saprykina E.V. Factors in the development of the imagination of modern preschoolers. CITISE, 2025, no. 3, pp. 759-767.