Imagination development in the process of reading e-books

Introduction. The article provides an overview of completed research studies on reading psychology, revealing the changes in text perception psychology in a multimedia environment. The interaction of readers with information has changed with the proliferation of multimedia technologies. The number of people focused on the perception of images on the screen has increased. In this context, the problem of imagination development, which is linked to the symbolic nature of texts, is increasingly recognized. However, Russian and foreign researchers have not treated the problem in much detail. The article aims at analyzing the peculiarities of imagination mechanisms in terms of symbolic diversity of electronic texts and characterizing the ergonomics principle as a baseline to achieve the optimal combination of information signs in the e-book. Materials and Methods. The research methodology is built on a system of basic principles, methods and concepts of psychological activity theory and the theory of speech activity. The methodology also includes the concept of imagination, the concept of e-books, and the principle of ergonomics. The content of the ergonomics principle within the framework of electronic communication is identified by means of the modeling method. Results. The main results consist in clarifying the psychological features of electronic text perception. The article examines the topical issues of imagination development in terms of symbolic diversity inherent in electronic communication. The authors reveal the principles of holistic imagination development within the multimedia environment. It is emphasized that the replacement of the sign system in the video can lead to insufficient development of creative imagination, which is responsible for independent creation of new images, and mental transformation of reality. Conclusions. The authors conclude that it is possible to overcome the reduction of imagination in the process of reading e-books in case of applying the ergonomics principle for its symbolic diversity. The content of this principle regarding e-book are examined. The feasibility of its application for symbolic components of e-books is experimentally proved. The authors provide a range of examples of experimental practical developments in the field of educational and popular e-books for primary school children. The authors argue that the ergonomics principle is aimed at achieving the required balance of information signs for optimal imagination development. Therefore, e-book content should be based on psychological aspects of electronic text perception.