The Zeigarnik Effect. Cognitive Dissonance. Learning and Development..

An Unfinished Story

We often use this meme, this little picture, in our presentations when we want to highlight the predictability of human behavior. However, now we'll take it a step further.

Most people did exactly as the meme instructed. Why? To understand that, we need to understand people. An added 'bonus' is knowing what and how things are happening in the background. Hence my statements that people shouldn't be 'read'; you just need to make enough effort to understand them. And the insights I'm about to write about were discovered by Soviet psychologist Bluma Zeigarnik precisely because she observed people, tried to construct a narrative around what they did and how, and ultimately understood why they acted that way.

So, Bluma Zeigarnik is 'to blame' for this meme. She noticed that a waiter would better remember orders until the bill was paid. As soon as closure occurred and the bill was settled, the waiter would have difficulty (or no recollection at all) remembering the order details.

Essentially, this text/meme presents a 'task' that is ultimately 'interrupted' by the claim that the reader hasn't read a certain letter. In our brains, this fact creates a feeling of discomfort, a feeling of what psychology calls cognitive dissonance. Incompletion. Of course, this will prompt us to 'go back' and re-check the text to resolve the 'inconsistency in our lives'. And, of course, if we saw it for the first time, it will bring a smile to our faces.

Marketing

Of course, 'evil' marketers were the first to exploit this! The Zeigarnik effect (I'm not sure if I'm declining it correctly) is a powerful way to hold an audience's attention because, among other things, incomplete or interrupted information will create a sense of curiosity and intrigue, keeping people engaged with their message. Human brains tend to be drawn to unfinished or interrupted tasks, and this effect is one way to leverage that human desire to create compelling and memorable messages.

The Zeigarnik Effect and Human Brain Behavior

In essence, the Zeigarnik effect is a psychological principle that indicates people tend to remember unfinished or interrupted tasks better and more easily than completed ones. You've probably noticed this with TV series where each episode is 'standalone.' You likely don't remember what happened in the previous episode when watching the next. However, if a series has continuity, you're very likely to remember. The Zeigarnik effect has been observed in a wide range of situations, from remembering unfinished tasks to recalling incomplete stories, songs, jokes, and even gossip.

Today, the Zeigarnik effect is considered to be linked to a range of cognitive and neural processes. Some research suggests that the effect might be related to how our working memory processes and prioritizes information, with unfinished tasks being given higher priority than completed ones. This can also be connected to the release of certain neurotransmitters in the brain, such as dopamine and norepinephrine, which are associated with motivation, attention, and arousal.

As such, the Zeigarnik effect itself has been in practice for many years and can be said to be a well-studied phenomenon that will give us the opportunity to understand (!), not 'read', the ways our brain processes and prioritizes different information. We can probably all agree that it has an important impact in communication, public relations, and marketing, but we can also use it in employee learning and development.

Why would we do that? To send, to leave... a clear and memorable message.

The Zeigarnik Effect and Behaviorism

For me personally, the effect is also interesting from a behaviorist perspective, although it's not directly related. Behaviorism is a school of thought that studies how environmental factors, in this case, the presentation of 'interrupted' and/or incomplete information, can influence an individual's behavior. Hence my saying, which many who collaborate with us at DeeP Project have heard, that humans are environmental and experiential beings.

Behaviorists view Zeigarnik's effect from the perspective that the effect is stronger for tasks perceived (and again, it's all about perspective and perception 🙂 ) as important or if they are related to a person's goals. Additionally, we can enhance the effect by providing feedback. This approach, for me personally, helps me understand how different environmental influences can affect learning and memory in employees, or people in general.

How the Brain Works with the Zeigarnik Effect

As I said, the effect is linked to the release of certain neurotransmitters in the brain, such as dopamine and norepinephrine. These neurotransmitters are associated with motivation, attention, and arousal, and can be released in response to the sense of curiosity and intrigue that arises from an interrupted task.

The 'brain process' itself occurs in the prefrontal cortex, which is involved in our working memory and attention processing. The basal ganglia are also involved, influencing motor control and reward-based learning. Our parents understood this, sticking to the rule: 'Homework first, then you can play.' 🙂 I personally believe the hippocampus is also involved in this whole story. Given its crucial role in memory and learning processes, when we interrupt a 'task,' it continues to process related information in the same way. For this reason, it's good to 'step away' from a 'problem' sometimes, because an unburdened, later thought will likely 'come to us' on its own.

Also, research shows that hippocampal activity is greater when a person recalls an unfinished task compared to when a person recalls a completed task.

Cognitive Dissonance

The next concept we're left with is the aforementioned cognitive dissonance. In essence, cognitive dissonance arises when there are discrepancies between our attitudes, beliefs, or values and our actions or the circumstances we find ourselves in. This state can sometimes be unpleasant and will generally motivate us to try to resolve or at least reduce the dissonance.

When a person experiences cognitive dissonance, several parts of the brain will activate.

One of the brain parts involved is the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), located in the front of our brain and responsible for processing information related to emotions and conflicts. The anterior cingulate cortex activates when a person experiences cognitive dissonance and will generally indicate emotional discomfort.

Another part of the brain that can be activated in the case of cognitive dissonance is the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), which is involved in information processing, planning, and decision-making. When a person tries to resolve cognitive dissonance, the DLPFC can help analyze information and make decisions about how to deal with the dissonance.

The third part of the brain that will likely activate is the striatum, which plays an important role in motivation and self-reward. By reducing cognitive dissonance, it will activate to stimulate feelings of reward and satisfaction within us.

Cognitive Dissonance and Learning

Two things are important. We often reward ourselves, for example, after studying or completing a task. Which is fine. 🙂 Also, we are all prone to using various stimulants to make things easier. Yes, coffee is a stimulant. I didn't say anything bad. 🙂

However, one question arises. The human body is beautifully organized. Mostly. 🙂 And our brain is a wonder! So why don't we use what we have?

And that's why we can 'use' Zeigarnik (effect) and cognitive dissonance as a method for learning or performing any task, and instead of coffee as a stimulant, we can use the LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® method. For example, software developers and project managers and constantly in 'mutual' cognitive dissonance. 🙂

With well-adapted scenarios, we can primarily use everything as a method for employee learning and development, but in addition, this way of working can also be used for the acceptance (or better understood as adoption) of new processes, work models, and the like.

Because it's a long road from implementation (of anything) to acceptance (of anything).