The Zeigarnik effect will help you complete all tasks

Have you ever had such a thing that you completely forget the task as soon as it is completed? Until it's finished, can't you get it out of your head for good, even if you're working on something else? This effect was first noticed by the psychologist Bluma Zeigarnik, and named after her the Zeigarnik effect. The most interesting thing is that this psychological trait can be used at work to do more and perform better tasks.

During her stay at the restaurant, Zeigarnik noted that the waiters memorized complex combinations of dishes that the visitors ordered, but as soon as the food was on the table, this knowledge immediately disappeared from their memory. Unfinished orders seemed to get stuck in memory until they were completed.

Interested in this effect, Zeigarnik conducted experiments in her laboratory. The subjects had to complete several different tasks. During the experiment, participants were prevented from completing some of these tasks, justifying this by not having enough time. After the experiment, the subjects were asked which of the tasks they remembered.

It turned out that the participants in 90% of cases better remembered tasks that they were not allowed to complete. In other words, the essence of this effect is that unfulfilled tasks sit firmly in your head, and you automatically keep thinking about them.

If you look around, it becomes clear that the Zeigarnik effect can be found almost everywhere. It is constantly used in media and advertising, for example, to tie people to TV shows.

But there is also a positive side to it - this feature can be used to complete more tasks and better concentrate on work.

How to apply the Zeigarnik effect

Because unfinished tasks become obsessive thoughts, we can use periods of concentration, avoid multi-tasking, and avoid distractions to be productive at work.

When you complete a task, there is a sense of calm about it. If you perform several tasks at the same time, the brain simply will not be able to fully concentrate on any of them, since thoughts will periodically return to all unfinished business.

Good news for procrastinators

If you have regular problems with plans, the Zeigarnik Effect will help you complete them. The main thing is to start, and there the psychological peculiarity will not allow you to forget about the business you have started and just quit it.

But how do you get yourself to start? It depends on situation. If you are planning a large project and are constantly putting it off for fear of the volume of work, you should not tackle the hardest parts. Start with what seems manageable and easy enough. And then you simply will not be able to forget about the project, and will bring it to the end.

Expected reward and Zeigarnik effect

However, this effect does not always work, and those who routinely work 8-10 hours a day are likely to be unable to use it. Why is this so?

University of Mississippi, conducted in 2006, showed that the Zeigarnik effect stops working if a person expects a reward. The experiment involved two groups who also worked on the task as in the Zeigarnik experiment. In the process, they were interrupted before the work was done. But the first group was told that they would be paid to participate in the study, and the second group was not promised a reward.

As a result, 86% of participants who did not know about payment preferred to return to tasks after they were interrupted, while among those waiting for payment, only 58% returned to the task after the break. When the study was completed and the participants received the award, they saw no point in going back to the assignments. In addition, participants who were awaiting payment spent less time on the task, even if they returned to it.

If we apply the data from this study to a typical workday of 8 hours, the picture is bleak. The end of the working day acts as an interruption during the experiment: when 8 hours are over, the task is postponed until the next day. And payment for the time, and not for the completed tasks, acts as an expected reward.

Research shows that the reward can reduce the Zeigarnik effect, and the expectation of a reward, in the form of wages, reduces interest in the task itself. In other words, thanks to the reward, the 8-hour day makes us not think about work.