Read as much as you can. At this stage, it’s okay to use search engines and sites like Wikipedia. They will give you enough information to figure out if you like a topic.
For example, if your class is “Introduction to Psychology”, you could narrow down your area to behavioral psychology, based on your reading. Once you’ve established a general area of interest, you can start narrowing your area even further. For example, within the field of behavioral psychology, you may decide to focus only on the work of B. F. Skinner. Make a list of all the things that interest you within your narrowed topic. Maybe you find classical conditioning interesting, or perhaps you find a particular experiment fascinating.
Keep drawing bubbles and adding additional ideas. Sometimes, you will add your ideas on to secondary bubbles instead of the main one. You can keep expanding an idea out. In fact, it’s a good idea to focus on an idea that continues to branch off the main one if you find it interesting. For example, in your main bubble you might put “B. F. Skinner and Behavioral Psychology. ” Then in one secondary bubble, you might put “the principle of reinforcement”, while in another you put “radical behaviorism”.
Once you’re at a point where you don’t want to add anything else, look at the thought-bubble map as a whole. What areas are especially developed? What areas do you find the most interesting? Can any of the areas be combined to make an interesting topic? Circle the ideas that seem to work the best for you. Just be careful not to choose a topic that is too broad, as you might be overwhelmed with information and find it hard to find a focus for your paper. [2] X Research source
Most major libraries have databases you can use. You will need a library card to access them; some even require that you be in the library to use them. However, databases like EBSCOhost have many smaller databases that you can search; which ones are included depends on what your library pays for.
It should be something that hasn’t been covered a hundred times by someone else, so be careful when picking out your research topic. You should get an idea of what has already been covered as you research to help you choose something original. For instance, there’s likely been a good number of articles written on B. F. Skinner’s behavioral psychology, but your idea can be different in how you apply it. Maybe you want to apply it to a piece of literature or maybe you want to look at it in relation to current pop culture. The application of it can be original.
For more information on writing a good research paper, see this article. Also see Start a Research Paper.
