Editing Zeigarnik effect (section)

{{short description|Activity that has been interrupted may be more readily recalled}}
In [[psychology]], the '''Zeigarnik effect''', named after Lithuanian-Soviet psychologist [[Bluma Zeigarnik]], occurs when an activity that has been interrupted may be more readily [[Recall (memory)|recalled]]. It postulates that people remember unfinished or interrupted tasks better than completed tasks. In [[Gestalt psychology]], the Zeigarnik effect has been used to demonstrate the general presence of Gestalt phenomena: not just appearing as perceptual effects, but also present in cognition.

The Zeigarnik effect should not be confused with the [[Ovsiankina effect]], an urge to complete tasks previously initiated. [[Maria Ovsiankina]], a colleague of Zeigarnik, investigated the effect of task interruption on the tendency to resume the task at the next opportunity.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Ovsiankina |first=Maria |date=January 1928 |title=Die Wiederaufnahme unterbrochener Handlungen |trans-title=Resumption of Interrupted Tasks |url=https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF00410261 |journal=[[Psychologische Forschung]] |volume=11 |issue=3/4 |pages=302–379 |doi=10.1007/BF00410261 |s2cid=147359058 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220226082634/https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF00410261 |archive-date=2022-02-26 |lang=de|url-access=subscription }}</ref>