In psychology, the Ovsiankina effect describes the innate human urge to finish tasks previously initiated.
The principle underlying the Ovsiankina effect posits that an interrupted task, even without any explicit reward or incentive, creates a "quasi-need".
This drives intrusive thoughts, compelling an individual to resume and possibly complete the task.
[citation needed] Kurt Lewin's field theory[2] provides an explanation for this behavior, suggesting that an interrupted action constitutes a condition for a strained system.
This tension and strain make the task more memorable, a phenomenon better known as the Zeigarnik effect.